A former Moldovan defence minister has been detained on charges of grand larceny after an investigation into the sale of 21 MiG-29 warplanes to the United States in 1997, Moldovan state radio said on Saturday. It said Valery Pasat had been detained at the airport in the Moldovan capital Chisinau. "Pasat is suspected on charges of grand larceny in connection with state and military property ... Moldova sustained damages worth tens of millions of dollars," it said. The United States bought 21 advanced Russian-made MiG-29C warplanes from the former Soviet republic in 1997 to keep them out of the hands of "rogue states". Moldova's finance minister at the time said the sale raised $40 million for the state budget. Parliament set up a commission in 1997 to investigate the sale, after complaints that the price was too low. The probe is continuing.
