A thriller unprecedented by Greek standards has been unfolding in recent weeks in commercial port of Piraeus. After her information Anti Money Laundering Authority officers of the 3rd customs office in Neo Iconio seized titanium rods, which, according to one version, were supposed to fall into Iran for the development of Tehran’s nuclear program.

The seriousness of the case is evidenced by the fact that, in addition to customs officers, officers of the army and fire departments with special equipment to combat nuclear and radiological threats took part in the investigation into the seizure of the cargo.

The case began to open at the end of February. The cargo ship of the shipping giant Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) from the port of Shanghai in China was loaded with two containers bound for Istanbul. In the customs declarations, a multinational logistics company with branches in China and Turkey was indicated as the sender and at the same time the recipient of the cargo. The documents also described the contents of the containers, namely titanium rods, a high-tech titanium lathe, and containers of chemicals.

Titanium rods and machines are characterized as “double” materials. That is, raw materials and objects that can have political and commercial, but also military applications. Their movement is controlled on the basis of the relevant Community legislation. The cargo ship with the two containers in question left China on 25 February. In the following period, the Laundry Department and its head, Charalambos Vourliotis, were informed by a foreign agency about the ongoing transportation of titanium rods. The initial information concerned one, not two containers, and was passed to the Public Prosecutor of the 3rd Piraeus Customs.

The cargo sent from Shanghai was destined for the chemical industry in Istanbul.

Customs officers checked the shipping documents for all the containers on the cargo ship and found that a Chinese company was behind the shipment of not one, but two containers of titanium. Although the original plan was for them to transit through Piraeus, they were ordered to unload in the customs area, and that was it.

Special army pyrotechnicians took control of the containers, while fire and EKAV officers were present with special equipment to deal with radiological and nuclear threats. During the inspection, titanium rods and a machine for processing them, as well as containers with chemicals, were indeed found. Just twenty-four hours ago, the Laundry Department in charge of the investigation completed the removal of the titanium rods. The 3rd customs office, accordingly, draws up a recommendation document for the release of chemical substances with the argument that, on the one hand, their composition is not of particular interest, but there is a difficulty – the impossibility of storing it.

According to further investigation, the recipient company appears to be a chemical industry based in Istanbul. The Turkish Embassy in Greece was informed about the seizure of the cargo, in fact, requesting information and clarification from the competent Greek authorities in this case. Moreover, information “K” they report that the recipient company has already filed a lawsuit demanding release of the cargo.

However, foreign intelligence agencies express serious suspicions that the final destination of the titanium rods was not Istanbul, but Iran. As well as the fact that it will be used to create weapons systems or, even worse, to develop them Tehran’s nuclear program. Moreover, in the past, Iran has reportedly attempted to bypass the Security Council embargo and covertly import large quantities of titanium into the country.

In the mid-2010s, for example, a secret report by the United Nations was published in the international press, alleging that titanium rods inside steel pipes were smuggled into Iran. The same report also revealed that titanium, due to its strength, is used in the construction and operation of nuclear reactors, and that the rods, which were previously hidden in another cargo, were shipped to Iran from China.