International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Mohamed ElBaradei met today with Iranian officials to discuss increased cooperation with his agency (AFP photo/Behrouz Mehri). Iran Again Agrees to Suspend Nuclear Parts Production; Schedule for IAEA Inspections Is Set Iran promised today to suspend the manufacturing and assembly of centrifuges and other nuclear components beginning Friday and said it wants Iran’s case before the International Atomic Energy Agency closed by June, Reuters reported (see GSN, April 5). “We will temporarily suspend making and assembling all nuclear parts,” said Gholamreza Aghazadeh, head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization. “We have asked the agency to close Iran’s nuclear case. We have asked for a deadline which is the June meeting (of the IAEA),” he added. Aghazadeh spoke after meeting in Tehran with IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei, who said that Iran has agreed to speed up cooperation with his agency...Full Story

Brazil Says It Cooperates With Nuclear Inspectors Brazil’s foreign minister said yesterday his country is cooperating with U.N. nuclear inspectors seeking access to a uranium enrichment plant being built near Rio de Janeiro, Agence France-Presse reported (see GSN, April 5)...Full Story

Sensors for Missile Defense System Behind Schedule Delivery of infrared sensors for the U.S. Defense Department’s $8.6 billion early missile-warning satellite system, a component of President George W. Bush’s missile defense system, has been delayed for the third time in the last year, Bloomberg News reported today (see GSN, Jan. 8)...Full Story

	Tuesday, April 6, 2004

Arrested British Terrorist Suspects Reportedly Planned Chemical Attack Eight suspected terrorists arrested last week in the United Kingdom were reportedly planning to build a bomb using the chemical osmium tetroxide, the New York Post reported today. ABC News reported last night that the group planned attacks on trains, shopping malls and Gatwick Airport (see GSN, March 29; William Gorta, New York Post, April 6). Back to top

U.S. Still Investigating Recovered Iraqi Trailers The Iraq Survey Group is still investigating whether two trailers recovered in Iraq were intended for use as mobile biological facilities, U.S. chief weapons inspector in Iraq Charles Duelfer said today (see GSN, April 5). Last week, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said that the evidence he used to support his claims that prewar Iraq developed mobile biological facilities might have been incorrect. During a news conference held after a meeting with Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer, though, Duelfer said the Iraq Survey Group had not determined the purpose of the recovered trailers. “There [are] varying assessments on whether they are for production of hydrogen for weather balloons or whether they’re for biological weapons,” Duelfer said during a press conference in Australia (Reuters/Wired News, April 6). Downer said that Australia’s decision to participate in Operation Iraqi Freedom was not based on the mobile biological facilities claims. Instead, he said, “Australia’s position was based on [former Iraqi President] Saddam Hussein being in clear breach of [U.N.] Security Council Resolution 1441 and previous Security Council resolutions, and he obviously was” (Radio Australia, April 4/BBC Monitoring, April 5). Back to top       Feds Plan Next Round of Terrorist WMD Exercises The third in a series of congressionally mandated exercises simulating terrorist attacks using weapons of mass destruction is set for next April, according to the Homeland Security Department (see GSN, Dec. 19, 2003). The Top Officials (TOPOFF) exercises use scenarios that “gauge our readiness, test our internal communications and develop and reinforce relationships across all levels of government and the private sector,” Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge said in a prepared statement. TOPOFF 3 will simulate a terrorist campaign using weapons of mass destruction, with mock attacks in New Jersey and Connecticut. Additional exercises are planned for the United Kingdom as part of a security partnership effort. Scenario details are being developed, the department said. Objectives of TOPOFF 3 include improving international coordination for WMD terrorist attack response and assessment of responses to such incidents (U.S. Homeland Security Department Release, April 5). Back to top

Iran Again Agrees to Suspend Nuclear Parts Production; Schedule for IAEA Inspections Is Set Iran promised today to suspend the manufacturing and assembly of centrifuges and other nuclear components beginning Friday and said it wants Iran’s case before the International Atomic Energy Agency closed by June, Reuters reported (see GSN, April 5). “We will temporarily suspend making and assembling all nuclear parts,” said Gholamreza Aghazadeh, head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization. “We have asked the agency to close Iran’s nuclear case. We have asked for a deadline which is the June meeting (of the IAEA),” he added. Aghazadeh spoke after meeting in Tehran with IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei, who said that Iran has agreed to speed up cooperation with his agency. “Mr. Aghazadeh committed that Iran will do everything possible to accelerate the process of resolving the outstanding issues,” ElBaradei said (Reuters I, April 6). However, the pledge to suspend nuclear parts development contradicted Iran’s March 29 claim that it had already stopped making uranium enrichment centrifuges, according to the Associated Press. Iran also agreed to a schedule of IAEA nuclear inspections, according to Reuters. “We have agreed on an action plan with a timetable on how to move forward with the major outstanding issue,” said ElBaradei (Reuters/Yahoo!News, April 6). Agency inspectors are scheduled to travel to Iran on April 12 to verify cessation of all uranium enrichment activities (George Jahn, Associated Press/San Marcos Daily Record, April 6). ElBaradei also denied yesterday a report last week citing several diplomats claiming that additional highly enriched uranium had been found in Iran beyond two sites reported last year. “We haven’t seen or heard anything about new contamination,” he said (Francois Murphy, Reuters II, April 6). Back to top       Brazil Says It Cooperates With Nuclear Inspectors Brazil’s foreign minister said yesterday his country is cooperating with U.N. nuclear inspectors seeking access to a uranium enrichment plant being built near Rio de Janeiro, Agence France-Presse reported (see GSN, April 5). Foreign Minister Celso Amorim denied reports in Sunday’s Washington Post that Brazil impeded International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors’ examination of the Resende facility. “The idea that we are prohibiting inspectors from coming to the country is unfounded,” Amorim said. “We have not banned access to any facilities,” he added. Science and Technology Minister Eduardo Campos acknowledged that IAEA inspectors in February and March were not allowed to examine a uranium centrifuge. Campos said Brazil is negotiating new inspection methods with the agency for when the facility enters its experimental phase in October in order to safeguard new Brazilian technology. “Brazil must also have the possibility of protecting its technology, a technology that was developed in Brazil,” Amorim said.  The U.S. State Department urged Brazil to cooperate with the agency and said its recent commitment to nonproliferation has been adequate. “While Brazil’s nonproliferation record over the past two decade is a good one, we believe the IAEA should have all the tools required to monitor compliance with (the) nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty and IAEA obligations,” said a department official.  The official added that U.S. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham will visit Brazil this month to discuss nonproliferation with his Brazilian counterpart (Agence France-Presse/Channel News Asia, April 6). Back to top       Russian Nuclear Weapons Expert Found Guilty of Treason Russian nuclear weapons expert Igor Sutyagin has been found guilty of treason after being accused of passing secrets to the United States and United Kingdom, Reuters reported yesterday from Moscow. Sutyagin, an arms expert with the U.S.-Canada Institute in Moscow, could be sentenced to up to 20 years in prison, Reuters reported. Arrested in 1999, Sutyagin was accused of having passed states secrets concerning Russia’s nuclear forces to foreign intelligence agents working for the Alternative Futures consulting firm. Sutyagin’s lawyers, however, had argued that the information was in the public domain and that there was no proof that foreign intelligence agents worked for Alternative Futures (Reuters, April 5). Back to top       Australia Says North Korea Must Address Nuclear Concerns North Korea must agree to dismantle its nuclear program before expecting improvement in relations with Australia, Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said yesterday (see GSN, April 5). Australian Ambassador Alan Thomas visited Pyongyang Monday and emphasized to North Korean officials that his visit “was not a sign of relaxation in Australia’s approach,” according to the Sidney Morning Herald. He became ambassador to China in March 2003 but delayed formal initiation of his dual posting to Beijing and Pyongyang because of Australian anger at an alleged attempted smuggling of 120 kilograms of heroin into the country by a North Korean shipping vessel (Hamish McDonald, Sydney Morning Herald, April 7). Thomas “stressed that further development of the bilateral relationship would depend on substantial progress by the D.P.R.K. on addressing Australia’s concerns about North Korea’s nuclear program,” Downer said in a statement (Associated Press, April 6). Back to top       Indonesia, Malaysia Resist U.S. Plan to Guard Strait Indonesia and Malaysia oppose a U.S. plan to deploy U.S. Marines to guard the Strait of Malacca against terrorist attacks, the Financial Times reported today (see GSN, April 2). The Regional Maritime Security Initiative was disclosed last week during congressional testimony by U.S. Pacific Command head Adm. Thomas Fargo, the Times reported. Fargo said that he expected “a broad range of support” for the effort from Southeast Asia because “all the countries are concerned about the transnational threat.” While Fargo told Congress that Singapore supports the plan, both Indonesia and Malaysia have come out against it, according to the Times. “The security of the Malacca Strait is for Indonesia and Malaysia to shoulder. Therefore, we will not accept any policies or any steps that are inconsistent with that reality,” Indonesian Foreign Ministry spokesman Marty Natalegawa said (Burton/Donnan, Financial Times, April 6). Back to top

Russian Lawmakers to Discuss Disposal Progress Today The board of the upper house of the Russian Parliament, the Federation Council, is scheduled today to discuss the progress made in disposing of Russia’s vast stockpile of chemical weapons and on implementation of the Chemical Weapons Convention, according to ITAR-Tass (see GSN, March 17; Lyudmila Yermakova, ITAR-Tass, April 6). Meanwhile, Russian officials are criticizing delays in international funding to aid Russia’s chemical weapons disposal efforts, according to Izvestia.  While countries promised to provide Russia with $1.3 billion in chemical weapons disposal aid between 1992 and 2003, the actual sum provided was $268 million, Munitions Agency Director Viktor Kholstov said.  Sources in the Munitions Agency said that while Russia lacked adequate funding of its own to destroy its chemical weapons when it ratified the convention in 1997, it now can provide about $200 million annually for such efforts. “We will accomplish the task with the Western assistance or without it,” said Munitions Agency Deputy Director General Vyacheslav Kulebyakin. “With it, however, we will accomplish it much faster,” Kulebyakin added (Dmitry Litovkin, Izvestia/What the Papers Say, April 6). Back to top       NATO Opens Chemical Weapons Training in Czech Republic NATO yesterday opened a chemical weapons training center in the Czech Republic, Czech Chief of Staff Pavel Stefka said (see GSN, Feb. 5). The center, based in the city of Vyskov, is NATO’s only chemical weapons training site and will develop regulations for NATO chemical warfare troops, according to the Xinhua News Agency. While the center is not set to receive NATO accreditation until next year, it has already begun to train 400 foreign specialists, Xinhua reported. “The center has global importance and we created it because as a member of NATO we are specialized on the chemical warfare and on defense from weapons of mass destruction,” Stefka said (Xinhua News Agency, April 5). Back to top       Mustard Agent Drippings Could Delay Aberdeen Cleanup Cleanup of the chemical weapon stockpile at the Aberdeen Proving Ground could be extended beyond a December deadline because of lingering mustard agent residue, the U.S. General Accounting Office said, according to the Daily Record of Baltimore (see GSN, Nov. 26, 2003). Removal of the residue is necessary for the cleanup to be considered complete, a GAO official told the House Armed Services Committee Thursday (Daily Record, April 5). Back to top

Sensors for Missile Defense System Behind Schedule Delivery of infrared sensors for the U.S. Defense Department’s $8.6 billion early missile-warning satellite system, a component of President George W. Bush’s missile defense system, has been delayed for the third time in the last year, Bloomberg News reported today (see GSN, Jan. 8). Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman are currently set to deliver the sensors in July, but submission could come as late as June 2005, according to congressional documents. The original deadline was January 2003. The sensors would be placed on satellites stationed above the North and South poles to detect missile launches from Russia or China, Bloomberg News said. Flaws in testing methods to block sensor emissions that could disrupt the satellites have slowed work. The General Accounting Office last week said the delay “will likely have long-term consequences for the remainders of the program.” Resources for other system components were redirected to deal with the sensor difficulties, according to the GAO (Bloomberg News/Los Angeles Times, April 6). Back to top       China to Use Cheney Visit to Attempt to Block Arms Sales to Taiwan China plans to use next week’s visit by U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney to call on the Washington to stop selling missile defense systems and other advanced weapons technology to Taiwan, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said today (see GSN, April 1). Cheney will visit China April 13-15, according to Associated Press.   “We are firmly opposed to the export of advanced weapons to Taiwan, which violates its (Washington’s) own repeated commitments and also destroys stability across the straits,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan said (Joe McDonald, Associated Press, April 6). Back to top

Correction The statement in Friday’s GSN Quote of the Day, “James Bond isn’t going to infiltrate Tora Bora,” should have been attributed to U.S. Representative Alcee Hastings (D-Fla.).   Back to top

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