The U.S. Air Force accidentally flew six nuclear-armed Advanced Cruise Missiles like this one across the United States last week, prompting investigations into the service’s weapon-handling policies (U.S. Air Force photo). U.S. Nuclear Transport Error Prompts Inspections By Elaine M. Grossman Global Security Newswire WASHINGTON — The U.S. Air Force has launched a series of inspections of its nuclear forces, following an incident last week in which six nuclear-armed missiles were transported across the central United States without the knowledge of the air crew carrying the weapons (see GSN, Sept. 6)...Full Story

Nuclear Experts Heading to North Korea Experts from China, Russia and the United States are scheduled to visit North Korea next week to examine strategies for disabling the country’s nuclear complex, Agence France-Presse reported (see GSN, Sept. 6)...Full Story

NNSA Chief Says U.S. to Press Forward With Plans to Consolidate Nuclear Weapons Materials The United States plans to aggressively transfer its nuclear weapon-usable materials into fewer, consolidated storage sites, according to the newly sworn in head of the Energy Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (see GSN, June 29, 2006)...Full Story

	Friday, September 7, 2007

Justice Dept. Criticizes Terror Watch List The Justice Department’s inspector general said yesterday that errors and inconsistencies in the U.S. list of known and suspected terrorists could be leading law enforcement agencies to detain innocent people while overlooking actual terrorists, the Washington Post reported (see GSN, April 4). Established by the Bush administration in 2004, the watch list has grown by about 20,000 records each month.  As of April, it contained 720,000 entries. About 270 million people are checked against the list each month, and those named on the list can be stopped from flying on airplanes or detained during normal traffic stops. Inspector General Glenn Fine said the U.S. Terrorist Screening Center’s management of the list “continues to have significant weaknesses” resulting in frequent errors and slow response to complaints. Justice Department auditors found errors that the center’s quality assurance division had not reported in 38 percent of records from a 105-entry sample.  Their report added that some errors could have originated in the FBI, which is allowed to enter international terrorist information directly into the database without scrutiny by the Terrorist Screening Center or the National Counterterrorism Center. The auditors added that opportunities to nab terrorists could be missed because two versions of the watch list database were maintained without efforts to ensure that their contents matched, the Post reported. About half of initial results in searches for specific names on the list were worthless, Fine said, suggesting that the government place a higher priority on preventing and addressing misidentifications. The auditing team also found that screening agents such as Border Patrol officers, visa application reviewers and local police did not have access to 20 records in the sample. “It is critical that the [Terrorist Screening Center] further improve the quality of its watch list data because of the consequences of inaccurate or missing information,” Fine said in a statement.  “Inaccurate, incomplete and obsolete watch list information can increase the risk of not identifying known or suspected terrorists, and it can also increase the risk that innocent persons will be stopped or detained.” “The FBI remains committed to ensuring the timely and accurate collection of watch listing data,” FBI National Security Branch Executive Assistant Director Willie Hulon said in a replay to Fine.  Hulon said the center placed high importance on ensuring the list was “accurate, correct and thorough,” adding that the office in July had finished vetting the Transportation Security Administration’s no-fly list, cutting it to about half its original size (Ellen Nakashima, Washington Post, Sept. 7). Back to top

U.S. Nuclear Transport Error Prompts Inspections By Elaine M. Grossman Global Security Newswire WASHINGTON — The U.S. Air Force has launched a series of inspections of its nuclear forces, following an incident last week in which six nuclear-armed missiles were transported across the central United States without the knowledge of the air crew carrying the weapons (see GSN, Sept. 6). “The Aug. 30 B-52H [bomber aircraft] munitions transfer incident drove the need to conduct no-notice and short-notice inspections of select Air Force units,” Jennifer Bentley, an Air Force spokeswoman, told Global Security Newswire yesterday.  Such inspections are routinely conducted at least every 18 months, she said. However, so-called “limited nuclear surety inspections” also are carried out as deemed necessary to assess the current safety, security and reliability of the arsenal.  They could be initiated for a variety of reasons and might involve performing detailed counts of weapons and assuring the munitions are stored properly, defense sources said. These additional examinations might affect units whose operations had been previously deemed “unsatisfactory” and could result in recommendations for improvement, according to an Air Force document outlining inspection activities, reviewed by GSN. In general terms, such inspections “are hugely important, meticulous and stringent, as they must be,” Col. Les Kodlick, the top spokesman for Air Force Space Command at Peterson Air Force Base, Colo., told GSN today.  Space Command oversees the U.S. ICBM arsenal, and the Air Combat Command operates the bomber fleet. The episode prompting the new checks involved a bomber that mistakenly transported six nuclear-armed Advanced Cruise Missiles on a roughly 3 1/2 hour mission from Minot Air Force Base, N.D., to Barksdale Air Force Base, La.  The air crew reportedly was unaware that the missiles were armed with nuclear warheads and the error was discovered only after the B-52 arrived at the northwest Louisiana base. The aircraft carried the six nuclear-tipped munitions on one wing and another six unarmed versions of the same cruise missile on the other, sources told GSN.  The cruise missiles were transported to Barksdale as part of a process to decommission 400 Advanced Cruise Missiles, but the warheads should have been removed at Minot prior to the flight, according to these sources. Nuclear weapons are sometimes transported by air but only on cargo planes such as C-130 or C-17 aircraft, Army Times reported today.  Details about nuclear security protocols — strict rules aimed at ensuring safety and security during handling — are classified.  However, typical air transport procedures would likely affect how munitions are loaded on to aircraft and plans for flight and landing, according to the publication. The Air Force has launched an investigation, due by Sept. 14, to better understand how the error occurred, according to a statement released Sept. 5. Pending the inquiry, the service has already relieved the officer overseeing the Minot munitions crews, and a number of airmen have been “temporarily decertified” from performing their munitions duties, according to the statement by Air Force spokesman Lt. Col. Edward Thomas. Back to top       Nuclear Experts Heading to North Korea Experts from China, Russia and the United States are scheduled to visit North Korea next week to examine strategies for disabling the country’s nuclear complex, Agence France-Presse reported (see GSN, Sept. 6). “We want this disabling to take place by Dec. 31.  So we have to look at our ideas for disabling against the actual facility.  And we thought ‘the sooner, the better,’” said Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill, top U.S. negotiator at the six-party talks on North Korea’s nuclear program. “There are many different ways you can disable a nuclear facility:  You can drill a hole in the side of a reactor, you can fill it with cement, you can do various things, but it helps if you have a site survey, and have a look at the reactor first so that’s the concept here,” he added. The trip is scheduled for Sept. 11 to 15, after which the experts are expected to report their findings to the next full round of six-nation negotiations this month. “I don’t think it will be the only such trip,” Hill said. Pyongyang agreed to declare and disable its nuclear program in February, in exchange for energy aid and diplomatic and security benefits.  It has already halted operations at the Yongbyon nuclear complex.  The experts visit comes at the invitation of the North Korean government, Hill said (Agence France-Presse I/Spacewar.com, Sept. 7). North Korea appears to be meeting its obligations under the denuclearization deal, U.S. President George W. Bush said Wednesday. “North Korea still looks like they’re going to honor their agreement to disclose and to shut down their nuclear programs,” Bush said following a briefing from Hill (Associated Press I, Sept. 5). Bush and South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun publicly aired their differences today on the issue of a formal peace treaty for the Korean War, the Associated Press reported. The 1950-53 conflict ended with a truce.  The peace treaty is one of several issues being considered alongside the nuclear talks. Bush and Roh met during a Pacific Rim economic summit in Sydney, Australia.  In a joint press session, Roh asked why during their meeting Bush had not addressed the issue of closing the Korean War. “I might be wrong, I think I did not hear President Bush mention an end [to] the Korean War just now,” Roh said through an interpreter.  “Did you say so, President Bush?” That led to a brief exchange between the two leaders: Bush:  “It’s up to [North Korean leader] Kim Jong Il.” Roh:  “If you could be a little bit clearer.” Bush:  “I can’t make it any more clear, Mr. President.  We look forward to the day when we can end the Korean War.  That will happen when Kim Jong Il verifiably gets rid of his weapons programs and his weapons” (Tom Raum, Associated Press II/Yahoo!News, Sept. 7). Roh also discussed the North Korea issue today with Chinese President Hu Jintao, AFP reported. “Hu Jintao pointed out that recent six-party talks have seen some positive progress.  The various parties have reached important consensus in a series of areas,” said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao (Agence France-Presse II/Spacewar.com, Sept. 7). Back to top       NNSA Chief Says U.S. to Press Forward With Plans to Consolidate Nuclear Weapons Materials The United States plans to aggressively transfer its nuclear weapon-usable materials into fewer, consolidated storage sites, according to the newly sworn in head of the Energy Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (see GSN, June 29, 2006). Thomas D’Agostino, who formally took the NNSA reins last week, described a six-point agenda during a conference call with reporters. “The view I have is to put in place activities that focus on a smaller, safer, less expensive complex that essentially will leverage the capabilities of our workforce — both the scientific and technical capabilities — that meet our current national security requirements,” he said. In particular, D’Agostino said he plans to push for reducing the number of sites keeping weapon-grade nuclear material, Inside the Pentagon reported. “There is a real opportunity over the next 12 to 18 months to put ourselves down a track where we aggressively move materials out of our sites and consolidate them,” he said. Sandia National Laboratory in New Mexico is slated to be the first site to have much of its material removed, a process that is scheduled for completion next year, he said. “That change alone will take these nuclear materials … out of the area and in essence save a significant amount of money in protecting that material, as well as making Albuquerque safer by not having the materials there,” D’Agostino said. Next would be Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California. “I want to … look at more aggressively moving plutonium out of the (Livermore) Valley, the date I have in mind to get it done is 2012,” he said.  “More importantly, the key is starting now, actually moving material now out of the valley.” The consolidation program would also apply to Energy Department sites that that produce weapon-grade materials, D’Agostino said. “We have a number of reactors, plutonium-producing reactors that we want to shut down in fiscal 2008 and we are on track to do that, but it is going to require vigilance and it is going to be significant,” he said.  “We do want to shut them down because they make plutonium and plutonium can be used, obviously, for bad things” (Carlo Munoz, Inside the Pentagon, Sept. 6). Back to top       Iran Claims Timetable Reached for Bushehr Plant Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator said yesterday that Tehran has agreed with Russia on a schedule for completing the Bushehr nuclear power plant, but a Russian official said negotiations on the deadline were not finished, Reuters reported (see GSN, Sept. 5). Iranian nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani announced the timetable to Iranian state media, but did not specify when the plant might be finished. Although the plant is designed only to provide energy, U.S. officials have urged Russia to delay the project, arguing that Iran is seeking nuclear weapons and that any nuclear assistance is unwarranted. The state-owned Russian contractor building the plant said it has not concluded negotiations over a timetable. “The negotiations are still under way and we do not yet have results from that so I am not confirming this information,” said Irina Yesipova, spokeswoman for the nuclear plant construction firm Atomstroiexport (Reuters I/The Straits Times, Sept. 7). Meanwhile, French officials said they are holding discussions with investors on imposing bilateral sanctions against Iran to pressure the country to abandon its disputed nuclear activities. “Our priority today is the adoption of a third [sanctions] resolution within the framework of the United Nations Security Council,” said President Nicolas Sarkozy's spokesman David Martinon. “The project we are working on … is more about additional sanctions,” he said (Agence France-Presse/Spacewar.com, Sept. 6). Meanwhile, the head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog yesterday urged Iran to increase transparency regarding its nuclear efforts, Reuters reported. “The next couple of months will be critical for Iran to demonstrate its good faith in implementing what it is committed to do,” said Mohamed ElBaradei, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency.  “If they do that I think we will begin to move into a completely different phase.” “I hope that Iran would move and the international community would continue to encourage it to move in that direction,” he said (Reuters II, Sept. 6). Back to top       Australia, Russia Sign Uranium Sales Agreement Australia can begin exporting uranium for Russia’s civilian nuclear energy program under an agreement signed by the two countries today, Reuters reported (see GSN, Sept. 7). Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed Australian concerns that his government could resell the uranium to countries such as Iran, which is suspected of developing nuclear weapons, or use the material in Moscow’s own weapons programs. “We already have an excessive amount of uranium for military use,” Putin said following talks in Sydney with Australian Prime Minister John Howard.  “We also have enough of our own uranium to sell to third countries.” For example, Russia exports 30 tons of uranium to the United States each year.  “Why should we bother enriching Australian uranium?” Putin said. Putin said that Russia would depend on Australian uranium as an energy source as the country doubles its nuclear power reactors to total around 60 over the next two decades. Howard also discounted concerns about the pact’s safety. “My attitude to these assessments is that they are wrong,” he said. Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer signed the deal with Sergei Kiriyenko, head of the Russian nuclear energy agency Rosatom (Oleg Shchedrov, Reuters/Globe and Mail, Sept. 7). “Any uranium that is sold to Russia will be sold under very strict safeguards,” Howard said. “This new agreement will allow the supply of Australian uranium for use in Russia's civil nuclear power industry and provide a framework for broader cooperation on peaceful nuclear-related activities,” he said (Lawrence Bartlett, Agence France-Presse/Yahoo!News, Sept. 7). Back to top       U.K., Norway Intercept Russian Bombers The United Kingdom and Norway launched fighter jets yesterday to head off eight Russian strategic bombers as they approached Norwegian territory, the Associated Press reported (see GSN, Aug. 21). Crossing the Barents Sea around the northern tip of Norway, the Russian Tu-95 aircraft remained in international airspace as they flew south to the North Atlantic Ocean and then moved back toward Russia, said Norwegian defense officials. The flight was the latest in a series of missions that European officials said was designed to assert Russian military power internationally. “This is a message that Russia is back as a superpower,” said Norwegian Deputy Defense Minister Espen Barth Eide. He told AP that Norway sees the flights as “a signal that Russia wants to be taken seriously by the West.” Following standard practice, Norway dispatched two F-16 fighters each time the Russian bombers neared the country’s northern tip, according to Lt. Col. John Inge Oeglaend of Norwegian Joint Headquarters. He said the responses were the third time Norway has scrambled fighters in response to Russian bomber runs since mid-July (Doug Mellgren, Associated Press/International Herald Tribune, Sept. 6). Back to top

Texas A&M Pledges to Fix Biosafety Failings Work is under way at Texas A&M University to fix a host of problems identified in a recent report on the university’s biological defense programs, with the aim of resuming research before the end of 2007, interim President Eddie Davis said yesterday (see GSN, Sept. 6). “We’re grateful to the [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] for providing this comprehensive view of the steps necessary to rebuild our select agent and toxin research program. … We will use it as a roadmap to full compliance,” Davis said. “Our goal is to get back to the important business of vaccine research … as soon and as expeditiously as possible,” he added. The university intends next week to submit a request that the federal ban on research of certain disease agents, instituted this summer, be lifted, according to the Dallas Morning News.  The prohibition and subsequent CDC report followed findings that the university on multiple occasions had delayed notifying   the federal government of incidents in which laboratory workers were exposed to dangerous disease agents. The Texas-based Sunshine Project, which has publicized several biosafety breaches at A&M, reported another incident yesterday.  The university failed to notify the Centers for Disease Control in 2004 that a graduate student had been accidentally jabbed with a needle carrying brucella bacteria, the watchdog group said.  It also took two months for the university to inspect flood damage at its highest-security laboratory. Davis could not provide details on the flooding incident, and said the only brucella accident he knew of was the already-known February 2006 infection of a laboratory worker, the Morning News reported. Federal inspectors are expected to return to the university this fall.  David said Texas A&M hopes to show them then a biodefense program with safety levels that would lead the industry. The university plans to hire top-level biosafety personnel, to increase training, and to install video cameras for laboratory monitoring along with new access key cards, Davis said (Emily Ramshaw, Dallas Morning News, Sept. 7). Back to top       Boston University Lab Plans Argued in Court Massachusetts’ highest court heard oral arguments Wednesday on a lawsuit seeking to bar Boston University from operating a biological defense laboratory on its urban campus, the Boston Globe reported yesterday (see GSN, Aug. 7, 2006). The university has begun building a Biosafety Level 4 facility near its medical school.  Residents have objected to site, expressing concerns that an accident could endanger the local community. In her questioning, Chief Justice Margaret Marshall suggested that she might be leaning toward allowing the university to run the laboratory. “It sounds in the context of this case rather like a NIMBY case,” she said, using the acronym for “not in my backyard.”  The university was acting sensibly to build the facility near other scientific and medical buildings, she said. “Your honor, I strongly disagree,” replied attorney Douglas Wilkins, who represents the residents opposed to the site.  “My clients just want to be safe. … I don't accept the assumption that this has to be near a large medical area.” One opponent called Marshall’s remarks “very insulting.” “We’ve been very careful in saying we don’t think this project should be built anywhere, period,” said Klare Allen. University attorney John Stevens argued that that other laboratories already in use have a strong safety record that demonstrates that Boston University’s plans would not endanger the community (Stephen Smith, Boston Globe, Sept. 6). Back to top

Russian Plant to Eliminate 6,400 Tons of CW by 2009 The Russian Maradykovsky disposal plant is expected to eliminate slightly more than 6,400 tons of chemical weapons agents before the end of 2009, Interfax reported today (see GSN, April 20). The facility opened last year in the Kirov Region. “Over [4,409 tons] of toxic agents have been disposed of at [the] Maradykovsky facility, as 19,618 containers have been sealed, and 2,192 pieces of chemical munitions are being hydrolyzed,” said facility chief Konstantin Morozov. More than $362 million in funding is being directed toward the facility, he said (Interfax, Sept. 7). Back to top       Pennsylvania Scientist Faces CW Charge A scientist from Pennsylvania was charged with possessing and using chemical weapons after allegedly trying to poison the woman having an affair with her husband, the Philadelphia Daily News reported today (see GSN, Aug. 9). Carole Anne Bond is suspected of stealing two chemicals, potassium dichromate and chlorphenoxarsine, from her employer.  She then applied the chemicals to the door handles of her would-be victim’s home and car and on the inside of the woman’s mailbox, according to a federal indictment filed yesterday. The woman, Bond’s best friend, alerted postal inspectors after finding the red and white chemicals, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Amy Kurland. Exposure to either chemical could cause permanent health damage or death, the Daily News reported.  Potassium dichromate affects mucous membrane and upper respiratory tract tissues, while the chlorphenoxarsine contains arsenic. Bond, 36, of Lansdale, was arrested in June.  Along with the chemical weapons charge, she faces two counts of possession of stolen mail. The maximum sentence for the charges would be life in prison and a $1 million fine.  Under nonbinding sentencing guidelines, if convicted she would serve 78 to 90 months in federal prison. Bond’s lawyer said the chemical weapons charge is a “statute meant to put away the Osama bin Ladens and others who threaten this government” rather than a “stressed spouse.” “It’s not intended for domestic issues.  The local criminal-justice system is best for handling threats and assaultive behavior,” said attorney Robert Goldman. Kurland said the pre-Sept. 11 statute is appropriate for this case. “The facts fit perfectly into the statute:  The woman (allegedly) took toxic chemicals and used them with intention to harm somebody,” she said (Kitty Caparella, Philadelphia Daily News, Sept. 7). Back to top

Russia, U.S. to Discuss Missile Defense on Monday A Russian Foreign Ministry official said yesterday that diplomats from Moscow and Washington expect to gather Monday in Paris for talks on U.S. plans to deploy missile defenses in Europe, Agence France-Presse reported (see GSN, Sept. 6). “There will be a second round of consultations on the U.S. antimissile shield project on Sept. 10 in Paris,” said Boris Malakhov. The United States and Russia held initial talks on the missile shield proposal in Washington in late July.  Russia has opposed the plan. (Agence France-Presse I/Yahoo!News, Sept. 6). U.S. President George W. Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin made the issue a major topic of their meeting today in Australia, AFP reported. The meeting lasted for about an hour inside a Sydney hotel and “above all was related to missile defense,” according to Putin.  Neither Putin nor Bush elaborated on the discussion. Putin said that experts from both countries plan to inspect a Russian radar station in Azerbaijan that Moscow has proposed as an alternative missile defense site. “In this way we are continuing joint work in this direction,” Putin said. Bush and Putin also discussed Iran’s nuclear program (Agence France-Presse II/Interactive Investor, Sept. 7). Meanwhile, Putin has submitted legislation to Russia’s parliament that would suspend Russia’s participation in the 1990 Conventional Forces in Europe treaty, AFP reported yesterday. Moscow announced on July 14 that it would withdraw from the arms control agreement, which places restrictions on the deployment of conventional arms in Europe. Russian lawmakers expect to consider the legislation in October, according to a statement on the parliament’s Web site. Despite their opposition to U.S. plans to deploy missile defenses in Europe, Russian officials have said Moscow plans to withdraw from the arms treaty because NATO members have not ratified its revised 1999 version (Agence France-Presse III/Spacewar.com, Sept. 6). Back to top

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