MOSCOW, December 12. /TASS/. Some 68 ionizing radiation sources have been lost on the territory of Ukraine’s Kharkov Region, Chief of Russia’s Nuclear, Chemical and Biological Protection Troops Major General Alexey Rtishchev told a briefing.

"Not only spent nuclear fuel but also radioactive calibration sources can be used to create such devices [the so-called dirty bomb]. Earlier, we cited a report by Ukraine’s prime minister outlined by the secretary of the Ukrainian National Security Council. It mentions the loss of 68 ionizing radiation sources, including highly active, on the territory of the Kharkov Region," the Russian general said.

The report stressed that the loss of control over ionizing radiation sources was qualified as a radiation accident, the chief of Russia’s nuclear, chemical and biological protection troops said.