Russia moved the explosives?

Via Drudge: The Washington Times is reporting that "Russian special forces troops moved many of Saddam Hussein's weapons and related goods out of Iraq and into Syria in the weeks before the March 2003 U.S. military operation." The Times reports that "John A. Shaw, the deputy undersecretary of defense for international technology security, said in an interview that he believes the Russian troops, working with Iraqi intelligence, 'almost certainly' removed the high-explosive material that went missing from the Al-Qaqaa facility."

If true, this is a huge development. It also goes a long way to explain Russia's reticence to sign on to another UN Security Council resolution finding Iraq in material breach of Resolution 1441 and the cease-fire from the 1991 war. Previous stories have documented Russia's dealings with the Saddam regime, which it certainly did not want exposed to international scrutiny. I am sure that this story will develop quickly.