MOSCOW, October 29 - RAPSI. Moscow hopes the detention conditions of the Russians arrested in the United States for allegedly illegally exporting microelectronics will improve now that they have been transferred to New York, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said in an interview with the Moscow News newspaper

He said the suspects were transferred to New York from Houston to take part in the trial. No charges of conducting intelligence activity have been brought against them, he said. Rather, they have been charged with violating U.S. export law.

"It is important that we have consulate access to all the individuals with Russian citizenship," he added.

He noted that Moscow has posed a number of questions related to terms of their detention in Houston.

Federal prosecutors in New York reported earlier that 11 members of an alleged secret Russian military procurement network have been charged with illegally shipping sophisticated microelectronics to Russia's military and intelligence agencies.

The FBI arrested the alleged ringleader, 46-year-old Alexander Fishenko, and seven others on October 3-4. They also executed search warrants at seven residences and business locations and seized assets from five bank accounts. The Department of Justice believes three other suspects remain at-large and have already returned to Russia.

The charges read that Fishenko had run an elaborate scheme since 2008 that tricked customs agents into believing that his company - the Houston-based Arc Electronics, Inc. - manufactured and shipped routine products to Russia. Instead, the suspects provided Russia with "controlled, sensitive technologies" that can be used for radar and surveillance and weapons guidance systems, as well as detonation triggers.

Earlier, the Foreign Ministry demanded that the U.S. stop applying psychological pressure on the arrested Russian citizens and forcing them to plead guilty.