ROME -- A report published Friday said links were growing between Russian and Italian mafias in the multimillion-dollar underground world of drugs, arms and money laundering.


The report by the Confcommercio small businessmen's association said Russian gangsters were forging tight links with their Italian counterparts.


"We are trying to sound an alarm over the extent of the problem," said Sergio Bille, a Confcommercio director in charge of its fight against crime. "It is a landmine waiting to go off under our feet."


The report, based on talks with anti-Mafia magistrates in Italy and police and intelligence officials, alleged that Russian crime families had already set up a base in Italy to coordinate the smuggling of drugs, arms, women and money.


It said they were responsible for a growing share of the $120 million of dirty money pumped into the economy every year.


"The Sicilian Mafia's refineries are now an integral part of the supply network for the large market of Russian drug addicts who number 5 to 7 million," it said.


"At the same time, high-technology laboratories around Naples and Palermo are supplying the Russians with a torrent of false American banknotes."


The report said Italian gangsters were investing heavily in Russia, snapping up privatized companies, property and even banks.


It was the latest in a series of warnings over thelinks between Italian and foreign criminals, especially those from the former Soviet Union.


It was issued 10 days before law and order ministers from around the world meet in Naples, heartland of the Camorra crime group, for a United Nations conference intended to draw up an action plan against international organized crime.


"It is hard to say precisely how much money is coming into Italy from Russia, but everyone agrees it is increasing rapidly," said Gian Luca Giorda, a consultant who helped to prepare the study.


Confcommercio represents a business category most at risk from extortion in Italy.