California biotech researcher Linda Western uses a portable device that can detect anthrax and other biological pathogens. The White House is seeking $5.1 billion for civil biological defense measures, according to a new analysis (Getty Images/Dan Krauss). Bush Budget Holds Steady for Civilian Biodefenses By David Ruppe Global Security Newswire WASHINGTON — The Bush administration’s fiscal 2006 budget plans for civilian biological defense measures total at least $5.1 billion, according to a new nongovernmental analysis. The amount brings the total requested since 2001 to at least $27.7 billion (see GSN, Nov. 8, 2004)...Full Story

Kim Jong Il to Support Non-Nuclear Korea, China Says North Korean leader Kim Jong Il yesterday told a Chinese envoy to Pyongyang that he favors denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula, the Associated Press reported (see GSN, July 13)...Full Story

Senate Mulls Chemical Plant Security Standards Chemical industry watchdogs told the U.S. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee yesterday that additional security is needed at chemical plants to lessen the effects of a terrorist attack, the Courier Post reported today (see GSN, July 6)...Full Story

	Thursday, July 14, 2005

Lockheed Expects to Test Bunker-Buster This Year Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control is expected to test four prototypes of a new U.S. bunker-buster bomb later this year, Agence France-Presse reported (see GSN, July 1). Lockheed is working with U.S. Navy scientists as part of the Defense Department’s Threat Reduction Initiative. News of the tests was first reported in the British weekly New Scientist, according to AFP. The missile is designed to create an air pocket in front of the weapon as it falls to the ground. In theory, this pocket will force the earth to the sides once the weapon reaches the surface, creating a hole for the missile to penetrate. This would allow the weapon to reach buried targets, such a WMD storage facilities The idea of an air pocket comes from torpedoes that create gas bubbles around themselves, allowing the weapon to move faster because it is traveling through water vapor as opposed to liquid water, AFP reported. “Lockheed Martin hopes the supercavitating missile will reach 10 times the depth of the current Air Force record holder, the huge BLU-113 bunker-buster, which can break through seven meters of concrete (22.7 feet) or 30 meters (100 feet) of earth,” AFP quotes New Scientist as saying. A thinner casing on the conventionally armed weapon would allow it to carry more explosives than the existing version, according to AFP (Agence France-Presse/Yahoo News, July 14). Back to top

Kim Jong Il to Support Non-Nuclear Korea, China Says North Korean leader Kim Jong Il yesterday told a Chinese envoy to Pyongyang that he favors denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula, the Associated Press reported (see GSN, July 13). North Korea “expects the next round of the talks to be held on time and make positive progress,” Kim was quoted by Xinhua as telling Chinese State Councilor Tang Jiaxuan, referring to a new round of nuclear talks involving China, Japan, Russia, South Korea and the United States, expected to begin in Beijing the week of July 25 (Alexa Olsen, Associated Press/Washington Post, July 13). Meanwhile, top nuclear negotiators from Japan, South Korea and the United States met today in Seoul to coordinate strategy for the negotiations, AP reported. The officials included U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill, South Korean Deputy Foreign Minister Song Min-soon and Kenichiro Sasae, director of the Asia and Oceania Bureau at Japan’s Foreign Ministry (Burt Herman, Associated Press/Washington Post, July 14). Back to top       U.S. Warns Iran to Maintain Moratorium Washington yesterday warned Tehran not to resume enriching uranium, a key aspect of a nuclear program it has pledged would remain frozen for the duration of its negotiations with the European Union, Agence France-Presse reported yesterday (see GSN, July 13). “There needs to be an objective guarantee from Iran to make sure that they are not developing nuclear weapons under the cover of a civilian program,” said White House spokesman Scott McClellan. “That means there needs to be a permanent end to their uranium enrichment and reprocessing activities. We have made that very clear,” he said. Asked whether the resumption by Iran of sensitive nuclear activities would end Washington’s support for the EU diplomatic effort, he said, “I’m not going to play ‘what-ifs,’ but Iran did make a commitment.” “They need to abide by that commitment. They also need to abide by their international obligations, which they have violated over the last couple of decades,” he said (Agence France-Presse/Yahoo!News, July 13). Back to top

Bush Budget Holds Steady for Civilian Biodefenses By David Ruppe Global Security Newswire WASHINGTON — The Bush administration’s fiscal 2006 budget plans for civilian biological defense measures total at least $5.1 billion, according to a new nongovernmental analysis. The amount brings the total requested since 2001 to at least $27.7 billion (see GSN, Nov. 8, 2004). The budget request includes increases for protecting national food and water supplies and a significant decrease for funding state and local public health departments, compared to requested spending last year. The fiscal 2006 budgeting, an aggregate of spending across numerous agencies, reflects as much as a $2.5 billion drop from what was sought for fiscal 2005, but the decrease results mostly from the absence of one-time appropriation last year for drug and vaccine purchases through 2008 as part of the Project Bioshield law, according to the study by Ari Schuler, a government relations manager for Raydiance and a former research analyst at the Center for Biosecurity of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, located in Baltimore, Md. The analysis was published this week in the center’s journal, Biosecurity and Bioterrorism: Biodefense Strategy, Practice, and Science, and it updates similar earlier analyses by Schuler. “Civilian biodefense spending, not including the Bioshield bill, has reached a consistent level of about $5 billion from fiscal 2003 to fiscal 2006,” the article says. “Since 2001, the U.S. government has spent substantial resources to prepare the nation against a bioterrorist attack,” the center said in a press release announcing the article’s publication. “All agencies involved in civilian biodefense received at least incremental increases.” The fiscal 2006 total in the study does not include Defense Department budgeting for civilian biological defenses, as do previous years’ figures, because the Pentagon “was unable to furnish numbers for the requisite programs,” the study says. Military biological defense spending for civilians in the previous two fiscal years averaged about $200 million. The analysis says, though, that those figures do not truly account for all Pentagon funding for civilian biological defense measures “Some DOD research has direct civilian benefit, but because the majority of these funds are primarily military in application, these lines were excluded from calculation of total DOD expenditures,” it says. Cuts and Boosts As in previous years, the largest amount of money — $4.1 billion according to the article — was budgeted for the Health and Human Services Department, which funds the National Institutes of Health, the Food and Drug Administration, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The article describes a planned $130 million cut to CDC funding for state and local public health departments, bringing the total CDC budget request down to $797 million. Another substantial cut is a $119 million reduction from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases’ budget for research facility construction, down to $30 million, and intended to “offset the increase in research funding,” the analysis says. The Homeland Security Department’s $362 million budget is roughly the same as for fiscal 2005 — except for the $2.5 billion drop reflecting the advanced purchase for fiscal 2005 under the Bioshield law. The Agriculture Department was budgeted $354 million, a 26 percent increase, for biological defense activities, the State Department $71.8 million, and the National Science Foundation $31.3 million. The Environmental Protection Agency received an 87 percent increase to $185 million, primarily for decontamination capabilities, to protect water and food supplies, and for training, the study says. Critics have said that despite substantial funding on biological defenses since the Sept. 11 terror attacks, the country remains substantially unprepared for a mass-casualty biological attack. Another article published in the journal, titled “Anthrax Countermeasures: Current Status and Future Needs,” concludes “the federal government does not yet have the range of medical countermeasures needed to protect its citizens from anthrax and other potential bioweapons.” Back to top       Judge Considers Anthrax Letter Confession A U.S. federal judge could rule next month whether the confession of an Indiana woman accused of threatening President George W. Bush with anthrax can be used against her, the Journal Star reported today (see GSN, July 8). Jessica Moyer, 21, said she asked to go home repeatedly before confessing to police that she sent a threatening letter to the president. Prosecutors argued Moyer was free to leave during questioning and wrote the confession herself. In the letter, sent March 5, Moyer wrote: “Your time is almost through. Yes, that's right. That's a threat. I have enclosed some anthrax and I hope it is enough to kill you and if it is not, I can send someone to shoot you or something. You are not safe.” Moyer’s trial is scheduled to begin in September (Journal Star, July 14). Back to top

Senate Mulls Chemical Plant Security Standards Chemical industry watchdogs told the U.S. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee yesterday that additional security is needed at chemical plants to lessen the effects of a terrorist attack, the Courier Post reported today (see GSN, July 6). Representatives of leading chemical companies told the committee that Congress needs to set consistent security standards across the industry, but said the standards should not differentiate between the types of chemicals at the plant. The senators, who in the past have had difficulty agreeing to chemical security codes, seemed optimistic that chemical plant legislation would pass this year. “While the industry has made substantial investment (in plant security) … more obviously needs to be done,” said Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.). Senator Jon Corzine (D-N.J.) called chemical plants “pre-positioned weapons of mass destruction” that need federal protection.  “We have a voluntary patchwork of security with respect to our chemical plants that is without question, in my view, one of the single most vulnerable elements of our infrastructure and is a clear and present danger,” he said. Since the terrorist attacks in London last week, momentum has grown for minimum federal security standards at chemical plants. Last month, the Bush administration expressed support for standards, according to the Post. A chemical industry group says more than $2 billion has been spent on security at chemical plants since 2001, but smaller plants have yet to implement improved security measures. “Our member companies are committed to taking all reasonable actions to enhance the security of their operations and products against those who would do us harm,” said Martin Durbin, managing director of security and operations for the American Chemistry Council. “But our nation will not be safe until all chemical facilities that need to be protected have taken steps equivalent to those taken by our members.” Critics have contended that industry spending increases have not translated into improved security. “A strategy of guards, gates and guns is simply inadequate and bound to fail,” said Carol Andress, an economic development specialist with Environmental Defense. “The problem is significant, pervasive and unaddressed.” Andress suggested a reduction in toxic chemicals at plants or the development of safer substances to use in facility processes (Ledyard King, Courier Post, July 14). Back to top       Jordanian Suspects Confess to Chemical Plot Nine men on trial in Jordan for allegedly planning a chemical attack in Amman have confessed to the crime, Deutsche Presse-Agentur reported today (see GSN, June 30). “Our Sheikh Abu Musaab al-Zarqawi said that if we had chemical weapons we would have hit Tel Aviv and the traitor collaborator (Jordanian) regime,” said Hussein Sharif, one of the accused men, as quoted by the al-Hayat daily. “I came back to Jordan to perform the Islamic duty of jihad and kill the infidel rulers and government officials who spread corruption for the interest of their American and Jewish masters,” said another defendant, Hassan Omar al-Samik. The men planned to target Jordanian intelligence headquarters because it is the “main spear of infidelity,” al-Samik was quoted by al-Hayat as saying. Four other fugitives, including al-Qaeda’s leader in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, are being tried in absentia (Deutsche Presse-Agentur/Khaleej Times, July 14). Back to top       VX Byproduct Leaks at Newport Chemical Depot Equipment containing a byproduct of the VX nerve agent neutralization process has leaked at Newport Chemical Depot in Indiana, the Indianapolis Star reported today (see GSN, July 1). The five-gallon spill was contained in a sealed room and endangered no workers, Army spokeswoman Terry Arthur said. The cause of the leaks is not yet known, she said. Workers were transferring hydrolysate, a byproduct of VX destruction, from a holding tank to a reactor when the spill was discovered. The spilled liquid did not contain VX, according to the Star. Operations at the plant have been suspended since June 10, when 30 gallons of VX spilled. Work was further delayed when hydrolysate was found to be more flammable than originally thought. It is not known when operations at the Depot will resume. Arthur said the Army is working to determine what is causing hydrolysate’s increased flammability and whether safety procedures in place are adequate (Tammy Webber, Indianapolis Star, July 14). Back to top

South Korea to Buy German Patriot Missiles The South Korean Defense Ministry is expected to buy secondhand, German-made Patriot missile interceptors instead of more modern and expensive Patriots from the United States, the Korea Herald reported today (see GSN, July 5). Klaus von Sperber, director of the German Defense Ministry’s international armament bureau, met with South Korea Defense Minister Yoon Kwang-ung and other ministry officials in Seoul yesterday to discuss the purchase, the Herald reported. “The purpose of Sperber's visit is a consultation regarding surplus German Patriot missiles,” the South Korean Defense Ministry said in a statement. South Korea plans to spend $1 billion on 48 Patriot missiles to improve defenses against a potential North Korean missile attack. The missile defense program is scheduled to begin in late 2006, according to the Herald. However, some politicians and civil liberties groups in South Korea have criticized the plan, claiming the costs is too high and that South Korea will be seen as complicit in U.S. plans to establish a global missile defense network (Joo Sang-min, Korea Herald, July 14).  South Korea, as recently as last week, had not made a decision if the missiles would be purchased from Germany or the United States, Agency France-Presse reported yesterday. The Patriot missiles would replace 40-year old Nike missile used in South Korea today. The United States last year deployed Patriot missiles to South Korea to protect U.S. troops stationed there. Military experts have warned that North Korea’s non-nuclear missile development poses a grave threat to the security of the Korean peninsula, according to AFP (AFP/DefenseNews.com, July 13). Back to top       Japan Steps Toward New Missile Defense Rules A committee of the Japanese parliament’s upper house today passed a bill that would allow the Defense Agency chief to make use of a potential missile defense system in case of emergency without waiting for approval from the Prime Minister or cabinet, Kyodo reported today (see GSN, July 6). The revision is expected to be approved in next week’s vote of the full upper house and would allow for adoption of a missile defense system being jointly developed by Japan and the United States, according to Kyodo. The bill would also require the prime minister to report to parliament immediately in the event that any missile defense action is taken (Kyodo I/Yahoo!News, July 14). Meanwhile, Japanese Defense Agency Director General Yoshinori Ono said today that interceptor missiles developed by the two countries could be offered to others, worrying some lawmakers that such transfers could violate a constitutional prohibition on weapons exports, Kyodo reported. “If there is a request from the United States, it could be possible for those missiles to be provided to third countries under certain circumstances,” said Ono. Tokyo would stipulate, however, that the United States inform it of any such plans prior to a sale, Ono added (Kyodo II/Yahoo!News, July 14).   Back to top

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