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U.S. Removed Iraqi Nuclear Material Without IAEA OK
The United States failed to obtain authorization from the International Atomic Energy Agency before removing radioactive sources and low-enriched uranium from Iraq last month. The materials had been under agency seal, U.N. officials said yesterday (see GSN, July 7). U.S. officials said yesterday that they had approval from the new Iraqi government to remove the materials and did not need IAEA authorization. “We are in custody of the material only, and we have the permission of the Iraqi government to take this out of the country,” National Nuclear Security Administration deputy chief Paul Longsworth said (Edith Lederer, Associated Press/PhillyBurbs.com, July 8). Nuclear experts yesterday criticized the Energy Department for leaving behind about 400 tons of natural uranium in Iraq, according to the Washington Post. The uranium “is still dangerous and could be used in a nuclear weapons program or sold to somebody that would misuse it,” said former U.N. nuclear weapons inspector David Albright. “They lost a real opportunity to move the natural uranium, and that’s disappointing since they had well over a year to do it when the country was exclusively under American control,” Albright said. “We have no idea what Iraq will look like in a year,” he added. NNSA spokesman Bryan Wilkes said that natural uranium is not considered an immediate proliferation threat and that such material in Iraq is being stored at a secure location under the protection of the Iraqi government (Dafna Linzer, Washington Post, July 8). Meanwhile, Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allawi said Iraq would not attempt to relaunch its nuclear weapons program. Iraq will not spend “the riches of its nation” on “destructive and illegal weapons,” he said (Associated Press/WHNT19.com, July 8).
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