Reports out of Riga indicate that Oleg Milshtein, a biochemist who was previously refused permission to emigrate to Israel on grounds of alleged state secrets he had been exposed to at work, has received his long awaited visa and is expected to leave shortly with his wife Flora and children, according to the National Conference on Soviet Jewry. He applied for a visa 21/2 years ago.
A former professor at Latvian State University, Milshtein quit his post shortly before applying to emigrate. His wife, a psychiatrist, was able to continue her work while Oleg was forced to accept a position as a loader in a beer factory. The National Conference learned that during Milshtein’s wait, officials from his university had told the Office of Visa Registration that they had no objection to his leaving the USSR and that he had not been exposed to any secrets.
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