A spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.), above, said the Senate was trying to complete enabling legislation for the pending U.S.-Indian nuclear trade deal, but offered no specific timetable for its completion (Alex Wong/Getty Images). Clock Ticking on U.S. Enabling Legislation for Indian Pact By Jon Fox, Global Security Newswire WASHINGTON — If the U.S. Senate fails to pass enabling legislation for the pending U.S.-Indian nuclear trade agreement before the end of year, Congress would have to start from scratch on the deal in 2007 (see GSN, Sept. 13). The House of Representatives passed its version of the bill in July by a wide margin, and Bush administration officials have expressed hopes that senators would address the deal this month...Full Story

U.S. Says Time Needed to Obtain Iran Sanctions U.S. officials are seeking international support to sanction Iran for refusing to freeze its nuclear program, but acknowledged yesterday that gaining such backing might take more time than anticipated earlier (see GSN, Sept. 13)...Full Story

Tokyo Subway Attack Leader Loses Final Appeal The mastermind behind the 1995 chemical weapons attack in the Tokyo subway lost his final appeal today, when Japan’s Supreme Court upheld his death sentence, the Associated Press reported (see GSN, Aug. 14)...Full Story

	Friday, September 15, 2006

CIA Received Data Showing No Bin Laden-Hussein Link While top Bush administration officials in 2002 were linking Iraqi President Saddam Hussein to al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, the CIA had learned from an Iraqi Cabinet member that there was no relationship, the Washington Post reported today (see GSN, Sept 11). The new information was provided in a Senate Intelligence Committee report released last week. The Cabinet official, then-Foreign Minister Naji Sabri, told a CIA questioner in September 2002 that “Iraq has no past, current or anticipated future contact with Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda,” the committee report says.  The official “added that bin Laden was in fact a longtime enemy of Iraq,” says the report.  Sabri was reportedly a paid CIA informant during the runup to the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, but he has denied this publicly (see GSN, March 23). At about the same time, President George W. Bush and other administration officials were charging that bin Laden and Hussein had a dangerous relationship. “Al-Qaeda hides.  Saddam doesn’t, but the danger is, is that they work in concert.  The danger is, is that al-Qaeda becomes an extension of Saddam’s madness and his hatred and his capacity to extend weapons of mass destruction around the world. … You can’t distinguish between al-Qaeda and Saddam when you talk about the war on terror,” Bush told reporters in late September 2002. Last week’s committee report says CIA did not pass on the Sabri information about bin Laden to administration officials, but other information that bolstered claims being made by administration officials quickly reached the president and his top aides (Walter Pincus, Washington Post, Sept. 15). Back to top       Senate Approves U.S. Port Security Bill The Senate voted 98-0 yesterday in favor of a bill that calls for screening at U.S. seaports of most incoming cargo for nuclear weapons or radiological “dirty bombs,” the Associated Press reported (see GSN, Sept. 14). The legislation is “the most comprehensive approach to border security we have taken to date,” said Senator Ted Stevens (R-Alaska).  It includes $835 million in funding for next year. The House of Representatives approved similar legislation in May. The Senate bill calls for 1,000 new agents to monitor cargo removed from ships and for boosting security on railways that take shipments out of ports.  It mandates checks on high-risk, suspicious cargo at ports overseas, along with a pilot program to scan cargo heading to the United States from three foreign ports for nuclear or radiological material (Lara Jakes Jordan, Associated Press/The Philadelphia Inquirer, Sept. 15). Back to top       U.S. Lawmakers Differ on Chemical Plant Security U.S. lawmakers, chemical industry representatives and environmental groups continue to clash over legislative strategies for protecting plants filled with toxic materials from being used by terrorists as impromptu weapons, The Christian Science Monitor reported today (see GSN, March 21). Democrats, moderate Republicans, environmentalists and select security experts have argued that the Homeland Security Department should receive authority to compel plants to make specific security improvements.  Republicans and industry have said companies should be allowed to make their own changes — such as using safer chemicals or posting armed guards at plants — with final approval given to Homeland Security. There is as yet no legislation addressing chemical plant security.  The industry in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks argued it could make sufficient changes without regulation; the American Chemistry Council says its 133 member companies have made $3 billion in security improvements in the last five years. However, media, environmentalists and the Government Accountability Office have found that security vulnerabilities persist, some at plants in heavily populated areas. “It’s unacceptable we don’t have a piece of legislation on such a significant critical infrastructure that, if attacked, could have potentially catastrophic consequences,” said Frank Cilluffo, director of the George Washington University Homeland Security Policy Institute. The American Chemistry Council has come to support security legislation, the Monitor reported.  “It would be risk-based, performance oriented, and it would not include (inherently safer technologies),” said ACC spokesman Scott Jensen. That means the plants would not be required to switch to less dangerous chemicals even in cases where it is financially and technologically feasible. The House Homeland Security Committee this summer passed legislation giving Homeland Security power to require use of safer chemicals when possible at high-risk plants.  Companies could appeal such a decision. Rather than scheduling a vote on that bill, GOP leaders in the House are giving Homeland Security in its appropriations legislation the authority to require vulnerability assessments and security plans at chemical plants.  “Nothing in this section authorizes the secretary directly or indirectly to require any particular security measure,” the appropriations bill states. “The industry didn’t like what passed in committee, and now they’re using the appropriations process to craft a drastically weak, completely industry-friendly version and present it as a fait accompli,” said Andy Igrejas of the National Environmental Trust.  “A congressman can oppose it, but to do so, he or she’d have to vote against Homeland Security appropriations just six weeks before an election.” Countered ACC spokesman Jensen:  “We’re not against IST.  The chemical industry developed and created it.  However, what we are against is banning chemicals under the guise of security.  We think the legislation should work toward securing those chemicals, rather than banning them” (Alexandra Marks, Christian Science Monitor, Sept. 15). 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U.S. Alleges Continued WMD Development in China U.S. officials yesterday said China has continued to develop biological and chemical weapons and to export weapons-related material to nations such as Iran, Agence France-Presse reported (see GSN, June 19). “We remain disappointed in the continuing proliferant behavior or certain Chinese entities, and we remain deeply concerned about the Chinese government’s commitment toward its nonproliferation obligations,” said Paula DeSutter, assistant secretary of state for verification, compliance and implementation. China is a member state of the Biological and Chemical weapons conventions. “We maintain reservations about China’s current research activities and dual-use capabilities, which raise the possibility that sophisticated BW (biological weapons) and CW (chemical weapons) work could be under way,” DeSutter told the U.S.-China Economic Security Review Commission. Publications have suggested that the Chinese military is studying “the possible offensive capabilities of aerosolization techniques,” DeSutter said. “We … continue to believe that China maintains some elements of an offensive BW capability in violation of its BWC (Biological Weapons Convention) obligations,” she said. “In addition, the United States believes that China maintains CW production mobilization capability, although we simply do not have enough information to determine whether China maintains an active offensive CW research and development program,” DeSutter said. She said concerns persist about exports of restricted items by Chinese entities to “countries of concern,” according to AFP. Washington for some time has worried that Beijing is support development of Iran’s ballistic missile, nuclear and chemical programs, said Peter Rodman, assistant defense secretary for international security affairs. “We remain concerned that Chinese entities have helped Iran move toward its goal of self-sufficiency in the production of ballistic missiles,” he said. “The time is right” for China to reconsider its connections to Iran and North Korea, Rodman said. “Continued proliferation to countries such as Iran and North Korea is a source of regional instability,” he said (P. Parameswaran, Agence France-Presse/Yahoo!News, Sept. 14). Back to top

Clock Ticking on U.S. Enabling Legislation for Indian Pact By Jon Fox, Global Security Newswire WASHINGTON — If the U.S. Senate fails to pass enabling legislation for the pending U.S.-Indian nuclear trade agreement before the end of year, Congress would have to start from scratch on the deal in 2007 (see GSN, Sept. 13). The House of Representatives passed its version of the bill in July by a wide margin, and Bush administration officials have expressed hopes that senators would address the deal this month. If there is no Senate vote before for the end of the year, however, both the House version and the bill that emerged from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee would die. With the U.S. midterm elections fast approaching, it is possible the Senate might delay a vote on the agreement until a possible lame-duck session after the November elections.  Just three weeks remain before the scheduled end of the current session. Both parties are focusing on issues selected to resonate with the electorate in bids to burnish pre-election opinions, congressional experts said.  With political posturing and a heavy workload including critical appropriations bills, the nuclear agreement is likely to be pushed to the rear, they said. “It’s not likely that Congress is going to pass much of anything between now and when Congress goes out,” said Michele Swers, an assistant professor of government at Georgetown University. Despite the broad consensus in the House, the issue still has the potential to spark divisions in political ranks, Swers said. “Both parties are trying to put forward the issues that make them look the best and don’t divide their conference.”  For Democrats, that means a focus on the war in Iraq, and for Republican the focus has shifted to antiterrorism initiatives, she said. This week Republicans and Democrats engaged in election-year wrangling over a port security bill.  Democrats unsuccessfully attempted to attach a host of additions to the legislation, a move Republicans said could have killed the bill (see related GSN story, today). “Politics is going to be the overriding issue of what does and does not get done,” said Steven Wayne, also a government professor at Georgetown.  Wayne did not anticipate action on the India deal before the scheduled Oct. 6 adjournment. “There’s a real focus right now on port security and antiterror bills,” said John Drogin, spokesman for Senator John Cornyn (R-Texas), co-chairman of the Senate’s India Caucus. With a number of appropriation bills still to be addressed, a lame-duck session is all but assured for the beginning of December. U.S. Ambassador to India David Mulford told reporters in New Delhi this week that the administration hoped the Senate would vote on legislation for the nuclear pact this month.  However, a spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) remained vague about this month’s schedule. “There are ongoing discussions on trying to get this thing done,” Chuck Harper said. Additional Protocol There are also concerns that the enabling legislation could be waylaid by provisions implementing the Additional Protocol to the U.S. safeguards agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency.  The protocol was approved by the full Senate in 2004, but its entry into force has been delayed by the lack of implementing legislation. The protocol would allow the agency broader visitation powers at U.S. civilian nuclear facilities, but would not permit international inspectors access to military sites. Language implementing the protocol has been included in the Senate’s bill to enable the Indian deal and has reportedly raised the hackles of some lawmakers who are concerned that U.S. defense-related sites might not be adequately insulated from IAEA eyes. “This wariness is partially justified, and the issue of which sites are subject to the exclusion should be addressed,” according to a report released last week by the Heritage Foundation. The report cautions that further delays in the approval of the deal — which would open India up to nuclear trade, including the sale of nuclear fuel, in exchange for giving international inspectors access to civilian nuclear sites — could erode Indian public support and make it difficult for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to continue to back the deal. Either the so-called “Title II” provision, the Additional Protocol portion of the bill should be amended or it should be stripped from the legislation and addressed at a later date, the Heritage report states.  “Both the United States and India must keep their eyes on the prize and consider the lengthy and involved process that brought the deal to its current stage.” Before the bilateral pact can go into effect, India must strike an inspections agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency. The 45-member Nuclear Suppliers Group must also reach a consensus to alter its rules to permit sales of technology and fuel to India (see related GSN story, today).  Current NSG guidelines bar the United States and other members from selling nuclear equipment and fuel to nations that do not open all their facilities to international safeguards. The U.S.-Indian agreement in its final form must come before Congress for final approval. Back to top       U.S. Says Time Needed to Obtain Iran Sanctions U.S. officials are seeking international support to sanction Iran for refusing to freeze its nuclear program, but acknowledged yesterday that gaining such backing might take more time than anticipated earlier (see GSN, Sept. 13). The U.N. Security Council set an Aug. 31 deadline for Iran to suspend its sensitive nuclear activities, but Tehran has elected to continue its program, leading the United States to pursue further Security Council action. “The reality of it is that there are going to be intense negotiations on this,” State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns had predicted earlier that the U.N. Security Council would agree to a set of sanctions in September, Agence France-Presse reported.  However, McCormack yesterday said an agreement “would take weeks.” “Our diplomatic interactions indicate that while this will be complex, sometimes hard-fought diplomacy, that we will, in fact, end up with a Security Council resolution that includes sanctions,” he said. French officials yesterday urged the United Kingdom and United States to act cautiously and keep talking to its allies if they want to maintain a strong coalition of international support. “If one or two of the permanent members of the Security Council fail to uphold this dialogue, and there is a growing drive — on either side — towards confrontation, the international community would split,” said Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy in an interview to appear in the French weekly Valeurs Actuelles (Agence France-Presse I/Yahoo!News, Sept. 14). Meanwhile, Iran reasserted its willingness to discuss the nuclear crisis with Western nations, but continued to refuse the U.S. and European Union demand to suspend its nuclear activities before beginning any talks. Iran is ready to “commence the negotiation, without any precondition and without further delay,” said Ali Asghar Soltanieh, Iranian ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency, at the agency’s September board meeting, which wrapped up yesterday in Vienna. “I am fully prepared … (for) a debate with the U.S. ambassador in order to prove … that allegations are baseless and the Islamic Republic of Iran is (the) victim of neglect, discrimination and double standards,” he said. The offer of a debate mirrored a similar message by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who last month offered to debate U.S. President George W. Bush (Michael Adler, Agence France-Presse II/Yahoo!News, Sept. 14). The United States yesterday stuck to its demand that Iran stop its nuclear activities before any discussions can begin. “We can’t be any more clear about this; suspend enrichment and reprocessing activities and we’ll talk,” said White House spokesman Tony Snow (Agence France-Presse III/Yahoo!News, Sept. 14). Back to top       India Gains Key Support for Nuclear Trade India, Brazil and South Africa agreed yesterday to find ways to enhance their nuclear cooperation, possibly improving the prospects for the pending U.S.-Indian nuclear trade deal, the Financial Times reported (see GSN, Sept. 5). Meeting in Brasilia for a three-nation trade summit, the nations’ heads of state promised to “explore approaches to cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy under appropriate safeguards,” according to a joint statement. “They further agreed that international civilian nuclear cooperation, under appropriate [International Atomic Energy Agency] safeguards, amongst countries committed to nuclear disarmament and nonproliferation objectives could be enhanced through acceptable forward-looking approaches, consistent with their respective national and international obligations,” says the statement, issued by Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and South African President Thabo Mbeki. The agreement could help India advance its deal with the United States, which would require revisions to U.S. and international export control rules.  International nuclear trade guidelines are governed by the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group, currently headed by Brazil.  South Africa is also a member of the group. The group “functions on the basis of consensus,” said K. Subrahmanyam, a former member of India’s national security advisory board.  “They have to say yes as a group for the U.S. to supply technology to India” (Amy Yee, Financial Times, Sept. 15). Back to top       Japan Charges Mitutoyo Workers for Illegal Exports Japanese authorities yesterday formally filed charges against five people suspected of illegally exporting equipment that could have nuclear weapon applications (see GSN, Sept. 12). The accused once worked at precision equipment manufacturer Mitutoyo Corp., which sold measurement technology that could be used to on uranium enrichment centrifuges, the Associated Press reported.  The five included former company president Kazusaku Tezuka, two company advisers and a contract employee, according to prosecutors.  The fifth was also a contract worker, according to other news reports. The equipment might have ended up in the hands of the nuclear smuggling network once led by former top Pakistani nuclear scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan, now under house arrest (see GSN, Sept. 11), Japanese newspapers reported.  Authorities believe the company also shipped equipment to a firm linked to Iran’s nuclear program, AP reported. The International Atomic Energy Agency found some Mitutoyo equipment in Libya after Tripoli disbanded its covert nuclear program, according to other news reports (Carl Freire, Associated Press/Houston Chronicle, Sept. 14). A Malaysian firm linked to the Khan network has denied knowingly transferring Mitutoyo equipment to nations that used the network, Agence France-Presse reported yesterday. Scomi Precision Engineering did purchase six measurement machines from Mitutoyo in 2002 for about $272,000, Chief Executive Officer Shah Hakim Zain told reporters.  Five remained in Malaysia and the sixth was sent to a Dubai customer.  Where it is now is uncertain, Shah said. “We don’t know. … It went to Dubai,” he said.  “These are standard machines, Mitutoyo manufactures these and sells it to everyone.” Malaysian police and IAEA officials cleared Scomi of any wrongdoing in connection with the Khan case, Shah noted (Agence France-Presse/Gulf Times, Sept. 14). Back to top       Bush, Roh Pledge Push for Six-Party Nuclear Talks U.S. President George W. Bush and South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun pledged yesterday to push for resuming six-nation talks on North Korea’s nuclear program, the Washington Post reported (see GSN, Sept. 14). During a Roh visit to Washington, Bush played up the rewards that could await North Korea if it resumes talks and eliminates its nuclear weapons. “First and foremost the incentive is for [North Korean leader] Kim Jong Il to understand there is a better way to improve the lives of his people than being isolated — that stability in the region is in his interests.” The two leaders offered “no more specific proposals” during the session, an administration official said.  While relations between Bush and Roh have been strained over their different approaches to the North Korea nuclear standoff, the meeting went well, the official said. Roh agreed to enforce U.N. sanctions applied following Pyongyang’s July missile tests, the Post reported. “Some meetings have been less jovial than others, but this looked like it was better than others and did what they needed to do,” said former Bush adviser Michael Green, now with the Center for Strategic and International Studies and Georgetown University (Peter Baker, Washington Post, Sept. 15). Following up on the presidents’ meeting, officials from Seoul and Washington could meet next week to develop a joint plan for pressing Pyongyang to end its nuclear weapons effort, the Associated Press reported. “A follow-up consultation on this is expected to take place as early as next week,” said Song Min-soon, lead security aide to Roh. Differences clearly remain.  While Washington has been pushing to punish Pyongyang, Roh said yesterday that his government is “not in a stage where we have to talk about additional sanctions.” “The U.S. is seeking sanctions on North Korea under the U.N. Security Council resolution, but the Roh Moo-hyun government wants a softer approach to dialogue,” said Park Joon-young, a North Korea expert at the Ewha Womans University in Seoul (Jae Soon-Chang, Associated Press I, Sept. 15). Meanwhile, the Japanese Cabinet next week is expected to approve sanctions to punish North Korea for its missile tests and push it to return to the nuclear negotiations, AP reported. The sanctions, called for by the U.N. Security Council, could be in place by Sept. 26.  They would penalize 12 groups and one person believed to be connected to Pyongyang’s weapons programs, according to the Nihon Keizai business daily. Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, however, said any decision on details of the sanctions would depend on talks with South Korea and the United States (Associated Press, Sept. 5). Back to top

Tokyo Subway Attack Leader Loses Final Appeal The mastermind behind the 1995 chemical weapons attack in the Tokyo subway lost his final appeal today, when Japan’s Supreme Court upheld his death sentence, the Associated Press reported (see GSN, Aug. 14). Shoko Asahara, former leader of the Aum Shinrikyo cult, was convicted of planning the subway attack which killed 12 and injured thousands. Asahara’s attorneys had argued that he was not mentally incompetent to stand trial, saying they had never had a coherent conversation with him.  A court-appointed psychiatrist, however, found last month that Asahara was competent and could be faking his mental illness. Japanese courts have sentenced to death about a dozen cult members for the attack, but none have been executed as most have not completed their appeals (see GSN, Sept. 6; Mari Yamaguchi, Associated Press/Forbes.com, Sept. 15). Back to top

DOD Appeals European Missile Defense Budget Cuts The U.S. Defense Department is asking U.S. lawmakers to reconsider the House decision to eliminate fiscal 2007 funding for a European missile defense installation, Inside the Pentagon reported today (see GSN, Aug. 1). “The House action will cause a 12- to 18-month delay in deploying this important missile defense capability and leave the nation as well as our European friends vulnerable to ballistic missile attack,” the Pentagon said in a formal appeal filed Sept. 8. Senate authorizers approved the full $55.8 million Pentagon request. Representative Silvestre Reyes (D-Texas) in May said the House Armed Services Strategic Forces Subcommittee opposed the funding because the United States does not yet have an agreement with a European nation to house the site.  The Czech Republic and Poland have been identified as the leading contenders (see GSN, Sept. 14). U.S. missile interceptors are now deployed in Alaska and California. The full Armed Services Committee said in a report on the defense authorization bill that “it is premature to invest in the third site until the existing block 2004/2006 [Ground-based Midcourse Defense] configuration completes integrated end-to-end testing.  Accordingly, the committee authorizes no funds for the third site.” Funding for the European site would be used to design and develop the installation; to conduct environmental surveys, analysis and permitting for the location; to prepare the property for construction; and to procure communications and secure satellite technology, Inside the Pentagon reported (John Liang, Inside the Pentagon, Sept. 14). Back to top

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