A day after a deadly suicide bomb blast struck the busy airport, Medvedev is not pulling any punches. He blamed airport officials for “clear security breaches”, and asked for firings if his investigators could prove negligence, according to BBC News.
Medvedev is quoted as saying “pure anarchy reigned” at the airport. “People were allowed to walk in from anywhere. The entrance restrictions were partial at best.”
He told the interior ministry to propose dismissals or reassignment of transport officials. He also believes Israeli-style security measures should be implemented at Russian airports.
The Moscow Times quotes Domodedovo Airport spokeswoman, Yelena Galanova, as saying, “We hope we won’t be blamed because our security services were working well.”
There is debate about who is responsible for aviation security. Viktor Gorbachev, head of the industry lobby group Airport Association, told the Moscow Times current airport legislation does not clarify the responsibilities of the transportation police and private security guards.
“This means no one is responsible” for airport security, he said.
As much as Russian authorities will be looking for airport officials to blame, some experts believe it would be difficult to point the finger. Douglas R. Laird, a former Secret Service agent and onetime head of security for Northwest Airlines, told the New York Times: “At some point, it needs to be made clear that nothing is 100 percent secure. With airports, if you were to build a new terminal from scratch, sure, you could do a better job of anticipating certain security issues.
“But still, we’re talking about public areas,” he added. “It doesn’t matter if it’s an airline terminal, a train station or the front of Macy’s — as long as you have free access, you’re going to have these potential issues.”
