Russia's defense minister on Sunday blamed a Russian habit of "relying on mere chance" for the sinking of a nuclear-powered submarine and the deaths of nine of its crew.

The K-159, a former attack submarine decommissioned in 1989, sank in the stormy Barents Sea in the early hours of Saturday as it was being towed to a scrap yard.

The incident evoked painful memories of the Kursk submarine tragedy in the same seas three years ago this month and has left Russia facing another costly retrieval operation. It drew scathing from minister Sergei Ivanov.

"Once again we've seen the recurrence of an old Russian habit of relying on mere chance and hoping that everything will work out fine anyway," an uncomfortable-looking Ivanov told reporters on board a missile cruiser observing search operations.

Moving to limit political damage from the sinking, Ivanov announced he would temporarily ban transferring decommissioned nuclear submarines to scrap yards, Interfax news agency said.

Speaking ahead of President Vladimir Putin's imminent return home from a visit to Sardinia, Ivanov also said radiation levels were normal in the Barents Sea after the accident.

Ivanov's words seemed like a judgment as a whole on the state of Russia's once-mighty military in the post-Soviet period and echoed angry comments he made on a mid-air collision of two military helicopters in Russia's Far East on August 26.

That incident, in which six airmen died, he blamed on "negligence, showing-off and air hooliganism."

Speaking Sunday, Ivanov said: "This confirms yet again the simple truth that all instructions and orders must be taken seriously. Otherwise sooner or later tragedies involving the deaths of innocent people will occur."

The issue of reform of the Russian military forces is likely to be a hot topic for the opposition in parliamentary elections scheduled for December and the presidential elections set for early 2004 when Putin will seek a second term.

K-159 VERSUS KURSK

Ivanov said the K-159, like the Kursk, would be lifted but the operation could take months due to technical reasons.

But unlike for the Kursk accident, when the government was criticized for reacting slowly, Putin immediately vowed a thorough probe.

The 40-year-old vessel was being towed along the coast of the Kola Peninsula in the early hours of Saturday when it tipped over as the floats broke apart and went down three miles northwest of Kildin Island.

Ivanov, seen as a close associate of Putin, said earlier he fully supported the immediate dismissal of Sergei Zhemchuzhov, the captain in charge of the early morning operation who was now being questioned.

One officer was rescued alive from the crew of 10 on board when the accident occurred. The bodies of two crewmates were recovered from the sea.

The remaining seven were most likely to be inside the sunken vessel, officials said, adding that hope had been abandoned of finding any alive.

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