MOSCOW, July 31. /TASS/. The transfer of weapons to Ukraine has resulted in the West arming European criminal organizations, Alexander Stepanov, a military expert at the Institute of Law and National Security at the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA), told TASS.

Earlier, ANSA reported, citing Palermo Chief Prosecutor Maurizio de Lucia, that the Italian mafia is attempting to acquire drone weapons that emerged on the black market during the Ukrainian conflict.

"We see that the uncontrolled spread and development of a black market for weapons leads to these weapons subsequently returning to the European market through the same seaports, which provides the opportunity to arm criminal groups to carry out criminal activities within Europe itself. In other words, Western military aid to Kiev has a downside. It transforms European organized criminal groups and communities into paramilitary combat units equipped to carry out a wider range of tasks, including countering European intelligence agencies and security forces," the expert said.

Earlier, the German newspaper Berliner Zeitung reported that weapons supplied to Ukraine, if not properly controlled, could flood the black market in Europe. The article says that Ukraine is one of the most corrupt countries, raising concerns about the problem of insufficient control over supplies.