EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana today expressed hope for progress in resolving the Iranian nuclear crisis (Gerard Cerles/Getty Images). Iran Acts to Limit Advance Notice of Uranium Enrichment Plans Iran announced yesterday that it has formally reduced its cooperation with international nuclear officials, implementing a decision made shortly after the U.N. Security Council imposed an expanded set of sanctions against Tehran Saturday (see GSN, March 28). “Exercising the government’s decision to limit cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency started from today,” the semi-official Mehr news agency reported yesterday...Full Story

U.S. Chemical Industry Plots to Kill Security Measures By Chris Strohm, Congress Daily WASHINGTON — Chemical industry lobbyists are confident that their allies in Congress will kill legislation that gives state and local governments the authority to pass stronger laws than the federal government when it comes to regulating security at the nation’s chemical facilities (see GSN, March 23)...Full Story

South Korea Remains Hopeful Nuclear Deal Will Advance Despite North Korea’s refusal to join six-nation nuclear talks until it receives once-frozen bank accounts, a senior South Korean official said he thought a nuclear agreement reached last month would proceed nevertheless (see GSN, March 28)...Full Story

	Thursday, March 29, 2007

Irish Police Seek WMD Protection The Irish national police force is seeking to purchase WMD-protection suits for its officers, the London Mirror reported today (see GSN, June 24, 2004). Garda Commissioner Noel Conroy has asked contractors for offers to supply 270 suits with a possibility for 200 more over the next year, according to the Mirror. “The world has changed and terrorists are willing to use chemical, biological and nuclear threats,” said security expert Declan Power (London Mirror, March 29). Back to top       Infrared Technology Could Be Used for WMD Detection A new infrared light technology could be applied to detect chemical or biological weapons, United Press International reported yesterday (see GSN, Dec. 14, 2004). Researchers at the University of Utah found that terahertz radiation, or far-infrared light, could be used to sense WMD materials. “Emitters and detectors of terahertz radiation [can] detect materials that resonate at a terahertz frequency when exposed to far-infrared light,” said Utah professor Ajay Nahata.  The researchers reported their findings in today’s issue of Nature (UPI, March 28). Back to top

Iran Acts to Limit Advance Notice of Uranium Enrichment Plans Iran announced yesterday that it has formally reduced its cooperation with international nuclear officials, implementing a decision made shortly after the U.N. Security Council imposed an expanded set of sanctions against Tehran Saturday (see GSN, March 28). “Exercising the government’s decision to limit cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency started from today,” the semi-official Mehr news agency reported yesterday. Tehran has chosen to restrict cooperation by refusing to notify the agency any sooner the six months before introducing nuclear materials into its uranium enrichment facilities, Reuters reported (Reuters I, March 28). Meanwhile, EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana expressed hope today that negotiations could resume soon to find a solution to the longer-term Iranian nuclear dispute and the near-term crisis over Iran’s recent seizure of 15 British troops. “It is to be hoped that in the next few days and weeks we shall be able, with the leaders of Iran, to solve not only the problems with Britain over the service personnel but begin negotiations to reach a definitive solution to this (nuclear) problem,” he told the European Parliament (Reuters II, March 29). Back to top       South Korea Remains Hopeful Nuclear Deal Will Advance Despite North Korea’s refusal to join six-nation nuclear talks until it receives once-frozen bank accounts, a senior South Korean official said he thought a nuclear agreement reached last month would proceed nevertheless (see GSN, March 28). “I believe that the agreements reached under a Feb. 13 deal will be implemented,” said Unification Minister Lee Jae-joung at a press briefing. The deal laid out the first stages of a plan under which North Korea would ultimately give up its nuclear weapons, but the agreement stalled when international bank officials encountered trouble trying to transfer $25 million in frozen North Korean accounts (Associated Press I/International Herald Tribune, March 29). Those accounts were initially frozen by Macau-based Banco Delta Asia after U.S. complaints that the funds were connected to money laundering, counterfeiting and other illicit activities.  The U.S. Treasury Department, however, recently cleared the way for North Korea to recover the funds. The bank’s owner yesterday today questioned whether the money, held in 50 accounts, was ever linked to illegal activities. “To the best of my knowledge, those North Korean-related account holders at BDA as at September 2005 have not been blacklisted by any relevant authorities,” said bank owner Stanley in a statement published today in Hong Kong newspapers.  “Also, there appears to be no formal legal action against any of such account holders by any government authority for any of the illicit activities as alleged” (Min Lee, Associated Press II/Washington Post, March 29). Back to top       Presidential Candidate Cites Nuclear Terror Threat The threat of terrorists acquiring nuclear weapons has been overlooked by the Bush administration, Democratic presidential candidate and New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson said yesterday (see GSN, Feb. 14). “If al-Qaeda obtained nuclear weapons, they would not hesitate to use them with the same ruthlessness that allowed them to fly airplanes filled with people into buildings,” he told an audience at the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University. Richardson, who served as secretary of energy during the Clinton administration, said he would make preventing nuclear terror a high priority in his national security policy. “It took a Manhattan Project to create the bomb,” he said.  “We need a new Manhattan Project to stop the bomb — a comprehensive program to secure all nuclear weapons and all weapons-usable material, worldwide.” Calling himself “a pragmatist,” Richardson said he did not support recent calls for eliminating all nuclear weapons (see GSN, Jan. 4). “I believe what the world needs to do is nuclear arms reductions,” he said. He said the goal of total elimination was unrealistic.  In a now-legendary 1986 discussion, President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev discussed completely abandoning nuclear weapons, but that idea lasted “for about 10 minutes,” Richardson said (Nedra Pickler, Associated Press/TIME, March 28). Back to top       Australia Backs Changes to Nuclear Export Rules Australia plans to support changes to international nuclear export control guidelines that would enable India to acquire nuclear technology even though it is not a member of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, Australian Prime Minister John Howard said today (see GSN, Sept. 25, 2006). The 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group has been asked to exempt India from its rules after the United States and India crafted a 2005 nuclear trade deal.  The U.S. Congress created a loophole in U.S. law last year to allow the deal the advance, but the new law requires changes to NSG export guidelines. “It's likely that we will support that agreement in the suppliers group and I'll have a discussion around that” with visiting Indian nuclear negotiator Shyam Saran, he said. Australia would also consider changing its own export rules to allow sales of Australian uranium to India, Howard said.  Current Australian nonproliferation laws prohibit uranium sales to non-NPT nations, Reuters reported. “There is no pressing urgency in relation to this issue, but we see India as a very responsible country,” Howard told reporters before meeting with Saran.  “The relationship between Australia and India is growing. It’s a very important relationship and they will be considerations that we will bear in mind.” Australia would require India to allow international monitoring of any uranium fuel it purchased from Canberra. “We would never agree to supply uranium to a country unless we were completely satisfied that appropriate and enforceable and effective safeguards existed,” Howard said (Rob Taylor, Reuters, March 29). Back to top

U.S. Chemical Industry Plots to Kill Security Measures By Chris Strohm, Congress Daily WASHINGTON — Chemical industry lobbyists are confident that their allies in Congress will kill legislation that gives state and local governments the authority to pass stronger laws than the federal government when it comes to regulating security at the nation’s chemical facilities (see GSN, March 23). The chemical industry was still formulating its strategy Monday, but expected to prevail over Democrats and environmental activists on an issue that has been festering for years. The supplemental spending bill being debated by the Senate this week includes a controversial provision that gives state and local governments the power to enforce chemical security laws that are stronger than federal regulations. “This isn’t about states’ rights; this is about national security,” Jack Gerard, president of the American Chemistry Council, said in an interview Monday. “What does the environmental lobby have to say about security? Have they all of a sudden morphed into security experts in this country?” But the chemical industry was deferring to lawmakers to decide when the best time will be to try and kill the provision. Senator George Voinovich (R-Ohio) is expected to offer an amendment to strip the provision from the supplemental, industry officials said. “We think we have good bipartisan support for our position and we’ll determine at the appropriate time what tactics to deploy,” Gerard said. “We fully anticipate and expect that our friends and allies will enjoin the debate at the appropriate time. They will know when that is.” He said the chemical industry is targeting Senators Mary Landrieu (D-La.) and Mark Pryor (D-Ark.) as potential Democratic allies. Democrats inserted the provision into the Senate’s supplemental bill to override draft regulations issued recently by the Homeland Security Department. The draft regulations say “state laws must give way to federal statutes and regulatory programs to ensure a unified and coherent national approach in areas where the federal interests prevail — such as national security.” Critics say the regulations would roll back strong security laws passed by some states, such as New Jersey. The Homeland Security Department plans to issue its final regulations “any day,” a spokesman said. The department spokesman said that about 90 comments were submitted in response to the draft regulations, some dealing with whether states should be able to enforce their own laws. When asked if the department planned to alter its position on states’ rights, the spokesman would only say:  “I think ultimately that officials who have expressed concern are going to be satisfied but also the American public is going to be satisfied because they are going to get very strong regulations.” Meanwhile, environmental activists were trying to build support for states’ rights. “I think at a certain point some basic deference is given to people looking out for their state,” said Andy Igrejas, environmental health campaign director for the National Environmental Trust. Igrejas said the environmental lobby was looking toward Senators. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Norm Coleman (R-Minn.) for Republican support. Both senators are up for re-election next year. “I think we might have a shot at getting them,” he said. He acknowledged the supplemental bill might be vetoed, but said whatever language it contains on chemical security will likely “influence the next round of bills that will be drafted.” The American Chemistry Council’s Gerard argued that Congress should wait to see the department’s final regulations before taking further action. He added that members of his group have voluntarily spent $3.5 billion since 2001 on security improvements. Back to top       Bombers Use Chlorine Again in Iraq Suicide bombers attempted yesterday to attack an Iraqi government facility in Fallujah with chlorine-laden trucks, but the attackers were shot before they entered the site, the Associated Press reported (see GSN, March 26). The bombers, however, did succeed in detonating the explosives on their truck, wounding 15 U.S. and Iraqi troops, according to the U.S. military.  Some Iraqi police and soldiers received treatment for breathing troubles, vomiting and other symptoms of chlorine exposure, according to the AP. “I hate to call it chemical warfare in the sense that there are real chemical weapons, and those are profoundly toxic,” said defense expert William Arkin, a fellow at the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy at Harvard University.  “My sense is that these are attacks directed against Iraqi citizens because American military can protect themselves better, they are in better health and they can put on gas masks.” The attack was the eighth to use chlorine since the series began in late January, AP reported. How long they will continue could depend on insurgents’ access to chlorine.  Arkin speculated that Iraqis may have stolen the gas from a major plant in Ramadi following the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003. “Really, the only concern is how much of this stuff got out during the ... period in which a lot of looting was going on,” Arkin said (Associated Press/Houston Chronicle, March 28). Back to top       More WWII-Era Shells Found at Ex-Army Base Cleanup workers have found 13 liquid-filled mortar shells over the past year at a former U.S. chemical weapons training school in Alabama, the Associated Press reported yesterday (see GSN, July 19, 2006). The former Camp Sibert has been the site of a cleanup operation since it was found to be the worst in the nation for having unexploded weapons on it, according to AP. The discovered mortar shells are similar to one found in 2001 that contained phosgene, but tests are not expected on the new batch until next month, AP reported.  Until then they have been safely stored, said an Army Corps of Engineers spokesman. “It could be water, it could be chemicals. We just don't know,” said Pat Robbins.  “They're in a safe facility on site. They’re no danger to anyone.” The shells would be destroyed after they were tested, he added (Associated Press/al.com, March 28). Back to top

Japan Plans First-Ever Missile Interception Test Demonstrating its growing commitment to joint missile defenses with the United States, Japan plans to test sea-based missile interceptors this year and next, the Associated Press reported yesterday (see GSN, Oct. 26, 2006). A Japanese Aegis destroyer would try to shoot down a medium-range missile late this year, said U.S. Missile Defense Agency director Lt. Gen. Henry Obering. The test would be “the first such firing by a maritime ally,” he told a hearing of a House Armed Services subcommittee. Japanese concerns over North Korea’s ballistic missile threat were driving Tokyo’s interest in boosting its missile defense, added U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Brian Green. “This threat encouraged Japan to seek closer cooperation with the U.S.,” he said.  “The Japanese are now one of our pre-eminent missile defense partners” (Associated Press/International Herald Tribune, March 28). Back to top

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