"I have known Yevgeny Olegovich for a long time and very well, we had close contacts in joint work over 30 years. He is a very skilled, effective and purposeful specialist," Rumyantsev said on Radio Mayak on September 17. "It is necessary to return Adamov to Russia and give him an opportunity to answer all questions authorities want to ask him."

The former atomic energy minister was detained in Bern, Switzerland on May 2 at the request of the US authorities who accuse him of misappropriating $9 million that were allocated by the US Department of Energy for boosting security at Russian nuclear power plants and other safeguards.

In an interview with Russian journalists on September 6 Adamov called the US "absurd." He believes his case is a link in a chain of the global intrigue aimed at "weakening of the Russian state" and eventually at the "occupation of Russia."

Both the United States and Russia are seeking extradition of Adamov. The Swiss Federal Justice Department has already considered a decision that Adamov may be extradited to Russia. Now the Justice Department is considering the issue of his possible extradition to the United States, Itar-Tass reported.