There was a time in Russia and the former Soviet Union when people would have been fearful about creating embarrassment for the government.

But a lot of credit is due to a submariner's wife who on Aug. 5 leaked to a radio station the plight of a Russian mini-submarine snagged by fishing nets and cables 590 feet under water off Russia's remote Pacific coast. The woman's call was made about 24 hours after the mini-sub radioed an emergency signal; the Russian government had not divulged the sub's predicament up to that point.

It was after the radio station reported the story that Russian authorities asked Japan, Britain and the United States for help in rescuing the sub and its seven-member crew. A British naval officer directed the effort that used a remote-controlled underwater vehicle to free the 44-foot submarine.

At the time of the Kursk nuclear submarine tragedy in August 2000, Russian authorities delayed asking for outside help until hope was nearly exhausted. As a result of the delay, all 118 crew members perished.

Russian military and civilian authorities, including Russian President Vladimir Putin, endured considerable criticism in the wake of the Kursk incident. Their delay this time, which put the lives of the mini-sub's crew in danger, also merits strong criticism by the Russian people.

The mini-sub's crew had only six hours of oxygen remaining at the time of their rescue.