I heard internet rumors that the Russians seized Chernobyl so quickly because the Ukrainians were hiding illegal nuclear weapons there. It would be a great place to hide them because a) nobody would accidentally find them there, and b) more importantly, the latent radiation from Chernobyl would mask the radiation emissions from the weapons. It would be a perfect place to hide them. AFAIK they aren't supposed to have them for treaty purposes, so who gave nukes to them?
Anybody else hear this? Obviously totally unconfirmed.
Ukraine inherited over 15,000 nuclear weapons when the USSR tanked. I find it hard to believe that all 15K have been properly disposed of by now.