International Atomic Energy Agency chief Mohamed ElBaradei today said Iran has promised to discuss studies into nuclear weapon activities (Axel Schmidt/Getty Images). Iran to Address Nuclear Intel Iran has pledged to respond in detail before the end of May to suspicions it has conducted research aimed at developing nuclear weapons, International Atomic Energy Agency chief Mohamed ElBaradei said today (see GSN, April 22). ElBaradei said that agency safeguards chief Olli Heinonen and Iranian officials “agreed on a process” this week to address the concerns, which emerged from Western findings and the IAEA probe into Iran’s nuclear activities, Agence France-Presse reported...Full Story

U.S. Adapts Position on Enrichment Technology Sales The United States has ended an effort to ban international sales of uranium enrichment technology to non-nuclear states, ceding to other nations’ goals of providing the technology while preventing it from being used to produce nuclear-weapon materials, Reuters reported Monday...Full Story

North Korean Nuclear Declaration Expected Soon South Korean Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan said today that preparation of the declaration of North Korea’s nuclear programs is nearly complete, Agence France-Presse reported (see GSN, April 22)...Full Story

	Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Iran to Address Nuclear Intel Iran has pledged to respond in detail before the end of May to suspicions it has conducted research aimed at developing nuclear weapons, International Atomic Energy Agency chief Mohamed ElBaradei said today (see GSN, April 22). ElBaradei said that agency safeguards chief Olli Heinonen and Iranian officials “agreed on a process” this week to address the concerns, which emerged from Western findings and the IAEA probe into Iran’s nuclear activities, Agence France-Presse reported. “It is my understanding that hopefully by the end of May we will be in a position to get an explanation and clarification from Iran as to these alleged studies,” ElBaradei told journalists in Bosnia.  “This in my view is a positive step. I hope they will be able to clarify within a few weeks this important issue.” Iran maintains that its only seeks to develop civilian energy capabilities through its nuclear efforts (Agence France-Presse I/Spacewar.com, April 23). Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad today said that Tehran is prepared to discuss its nuclear program with any country, but it will not respond to international pressure or incentives to halt its most controversial atomic activities, Reuters reported. “The Iranian nation is in favor of talks to resolve the (nuclear) issue with any of you (countries).  We will slap those who want Iran to abandon its right (to nuclear technology) on the mouth,” Ahmadinejad said in a televised speech.  “Iran’s enemies (the West) should know our nation is in favor of logical talks … but talks should be based on respecting our rights” (Parisa Hafezi, Reuters, April 23). Meanwhile, the state-run Russian contractor Atomstroiexport yesterday protested Azerbaijan’s decision to halt a shipment of equipment to Iran’s Bushehr nuclear power plant on grounds that the delivery could violate U.N. Security Council sanctions, the Associated Press reported. “We do not understand why officials in Azerbaijan are obstructing the delivery,” said Atomstroiexport spokeswoman Irina Yesipova.  “Our cargo has been thoroughly inspected and does not fall under U.N. sanctions,” she said. Azerbaijani customs committee chief Aidyn Aliev said that special government permission would be necessary to allow the delivery of about $171,000 in heat-isolating equipment. “This cargo consists of isolating materials and falls under the category of cargo that requires expert control,” Aliev said (David Nowak, Associated Press/International Herald Tribune, April 22). The head of Iran’s top transport firm has said that international sanctions against Iran are taking an unfair toll on the country’s shipping industry, AFP reported today. “Currently, because of unfair U.N. sanctions and U.S. pressure on foreign ships not to cooperate with Iranian-flagged ships, we cannot have our flag on all of our vessels,” Aftab Yazd quoted Bonyad Shipping Co. chief Ali Safarali as saying (Agence France-Presse II/Google News, April 23). Switzerland announced today it has frozen the assets of 12 organizations and 13 people covered under Security Council sanctions imposed on Iran over its nuclear program, AFP reported. Switzerland has also banned five Iranian nationals from its territory, the Swiss Federal Council said.  The country also plans to block shipments of multiple-use technology that Iran could use in building a nuclear power plant as well as certain missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles, the agency said. The new asset freezes came in addition to 23 entities and 27 people Switzerland had already moved to isolate (Agence France-Presse III/Spacewar.com, April 23). Back to top       U.S. Adapts Position on Enrichment Technology Sales The United States has ended an effort to ban international sales of uranium enrichment technology to non-nuclear states, ceding to other nations’ goals of providing the technology while preventing it from being used to produce nuclear-weapon materials, Reuters reported Monday. The policy change was unveiled this week at a two-day meeting in Vienna of the Nuclear Suppliers Group, the 45-nation body that sets international nuclear trade guidelines.  U.S. officials indicated that they would consider permitting some enrichment equipment sales as long as the recipient nation could not acquire design information to manufacture the machinery itself. “The United States was for years the only holdout in the NSG against sales criteria,” said one Western diplomat.  “This new language shows some flexibility on criteria.” The group made no decision on the U.S. proposal this week, but it could do so at its next meeting scheduled to begin May 19 in Berlin, Reuters reported. Several advanced nuclear states, particularly Canada, have sought to keep open the option of selling enrichment technology with adequate safeguards to prevent the buyer from diverting the equipment to military uses. Moving toward allowing such sales, the United States has now advocated using “black box technology” that cannot be replicated and would be operated by the supplier nation’s personnel, Reuters reported (Mark Heinrich, Reuters, April 21). “You can have the box, but can’t open it to see what’s inside,” said one meeting participant describing the U.S. position (George Jahn, Associated Press/Google News, April 22). The new U.S. proposal would also bar any enrichment technology transfers to nations that have not signed the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty and do not allow the most rigorous inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency, according to Reuters. This could threaten a tentative U.S.-Indian nuclear trade agreement, under which Washington is seeking to sell nuclear fuel and other power technology to New Delhi.  India is not an NPT party and does not allow widespread IAEA inspections (see GSN, April 22; Heinrich, Reuters). “The Indians have been insisting on having access through the NSG to enrichment and [plutonium] reprocessing-related technology and this proposal, which is now backed by the vast majority of NSG countries, would bar the transfer of these two technologies to India,” said Daryl Kimball, head of the Arms Control Association (see GSN, April 21; Jahn, Associated Press). Back to top       North Korean Nuclear Declaration Expected Soon South Korean Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan said today that preparation of the declaration of North Korea’s nuclear programs is nearly complete, Agence France-Presse reported (see GSN, April 22). U.S. officials are in Pyongyang, where yesterday they met with top nuclear negotiator Kim Kye Gwan for talks on the declaration.  The document, due several months ago, has become a stumbling block to implementing a 2007 agreement under which North Korea agreed to eliminate its nuclear complex in exchange for economic, diplomatic and security benefits. The U.S. team is expected to provide Pyongyang with a list of specific data and additional items necessary for verification of its plutonium holdings, the Yonhap News Agency reported.  “North Korea is expected to submit a declaration before the end of this month if the U.S. team’s activity goes well,” a source told Yonhap. Under a recent compromise agreement between Washington and Pyongyang, the regime would only have to “acknowledge” U.S. suspicions regarding uranium enrichment activities and nuclear support for Syria. “North Korea’s nuclear declaration has been long delayed but the U.S. team is conducting the last work in Pyongyang,” Yu said during a speech in Seoul.  “If the work is done as scheduled, I expect six-party talks to be held again within May so that the momentum can be maintained.” The negotiations involve China, Japan, Russia, the United States and both Koreas. “We don’t have much time left,” Yu told YTN television news.  “I hope that progress will be made as early as possible in order for the six-party talks to maintain momentum” (Agence France-Presse I/Spacewar.com, April 23). The U.S. team remains in Pyongyang, AFP reported. The U.S. delegation “did, as I understand it, have a chance to meet with Kim Kye Gwan [yesterday] and they’ll be continuing their discussions over the next day or so,” said State Department spokesman Tom Casey. The hope is to “make progress toward getting that declaration,” he said.  “But I’m not really in a position to try and handicap for you exactly how close or how far away we are at this point” (Agence France-Presse II/Spacewar.com, April 22). North Korea has sought to be removed from the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism after issuing the declaration.  The Stalinist state, though, is expected to be on the list when the Bush administration publishes its “Country Reports on Terrorism” for 2007, Reuters reported. “A country’s inclusion or noninclusion as a state sponsor of terror has absolutely nothing to do, and never has, with the release of an annual report that … catalogs previous year’s activities and actions with (respect) to terrorism,” Casey said. “Unless I have missed something … in calendar year 2007 North Korea was a state sponsor of terror and was not delisted as such, so I would expect a report covering 2007 would fully include them on the list of state sponsors,” he added. The list, due to be released on April 30, is also expected to identify Cuba, Iran, Sudan and Syria as state sponsors of terrorism (Reuters/Washington Post, April 22). Back to top       U.S. to Offer Data on Suspected Syrian Nuclear Site U.S. intelligence officials plan to tell lawmakers tomorrow that a Syrian facility  destroyed last year by Israel was a plutonium-production reactor being built with North Korean assistance, the Los Angeles Times reported (see GSN, March 31). Israeli leaders have offered no official explanation for the September air attack, but sources within Israel and Washington have suggested the Syrian site looked remarkably similar to a 5-megawatt reactor that North Korea has used to produce plutonium for its nuclear weapons program (see GSN, April 21). Tomorrow’s briefing to multiple committees is probably a precursor to a public release of information, said a senior Senate aide. “I have this strong impression the reason they want to brief the committee is they want to say something publicly,” said the aide (Richter/Miller, Los Angeles Times, April 22). Back to top       Israeli Man Aided Multiple Spies A U.S. citizen recently arrested for allegedly sharing nuclear secrets and other classified information with Israel is believed to have collaborated with the same Israeli agent as a former Navy intelligence analyst serving a life sentence for spying, the Washington Post reported today (see GSN, April 22). Former Army mechanical engineer Ben-Ami Kadish, 84, told the FBI he leaked between 50 and 100 classified documents to Israel from August 1979 to July 1985.  His Israeli handler said the information had a “direct correlation to Israel’s security” and would help to “protect Israel,” an FBI affidavit says. The criminal complaint against Kadish identifies the Israeli collaborator only as “co-conspirator 1.”  However, Israeli media and a former prosecutor said the agent is Yosef Yagur, who worked at the Israeli Consulate in New York.  Yagur left the United States shortly after another agent, former Navy analyst Jonathan Pollard, was arrested and accused of spying in late 1985. Kadish communicated with his former facilitator on March 20, shortly after the FBI began questioning him, according to the affidavit.  “Don’t say anything,” the agent allegedly said.  “Let them say whatever they want. … What happened 25 years ago?  You didn’t remember anything.” Kadish denied speaking to his one-time handler when interviewed by the FBI the next day.  That ultimately led to charges that he hindered an investigation and lied to law enforcement officials.  In addition, he has been charged with conspiracy to disclose documents related to U.S. defense programs and conspiracy to serve as an Israeli agent. “It’s a fascinating case of another agent in place, another sleeper, with the very same handler,” said Joseph diGenova, a former U.S. prosecutor who handled Jonathan Pollard’s case.  “We always suspected there were other people.  [Kadish’s] tradecraft was apparently better than Pollard’s” (Carrie Johnson, Washington Post, April 23). The U.S. State Department expressed concern about the case, Agence France-Presse reported. “We would expect that Israel would not be engaged in such activities,” spokesman Tom Casey said. An Israeli official today, though, attempted to minimize the significance of the spying case. “This affair is a momentary embarrassment, but it will not harm the privileged relations between Israel and the United States,” the official said (Agence France-Presse/Google News, April 23). Back to top

Ricin Suspect Indicted in Las Vegas A U.S. federal grand jury yesterday indicted a man arrested last week for possessing the biological toxin ricin, the Associated Press reported (see GSN, April 17). The FBI arrested 57-year-old Roger Bergendorff in Las Vegas upon his release from a hospital where he had been recovering for nearly two months from possible exposure to the lethal biological agent.  Authorities had recovered 4 grams of “crude” ricin found in his hotel room after Bergendorff fell ill, according to charging documents. Bergendorff now faces a May 2 arraignment.  He will plead not guilty to the biological charge and two additional firearms possession counts, said public defender Paul Riddle. Riddle dismissed speculation that Bergendorff was made ill by ricin exposure, saying the out-of-work graphic designer was suffering from pneumonia, kidney failure and emotional distress triggered by the death of his older brother (Ken Ritter, Associated Press/FoxNews.com, April 22). Back to top       Hospital Biothreat Lab Opens in Australia A hospital in northern Australia has installed a physical containment laboratory to help treat patients infected with diseases such as anthrax or avian flu, the Northern Territory News reported today (see GSN, Dec. 13, 2007). The federal government provided nearly $1.8 million for the level-three facility, a new component of the trauma unit at Royal Darwin Hospital. The laboratory is expected to be on the “front line” of biological defense efforts in the Northern Territory, said Health Minister Chris Burns. “There [have] been a whole lot of incidents which have put this sort of hospital front and center nationally and internationally,” he said. The danger posed by infectious and contagious diseases has increased alongside the greater travel freedom allowed by inexpensive airline tickets in the region, Burns said. The hospital is prepared to face such threats, said supervising scientist Paul Southwell. “One of our roles is the screen.  When you have epidemics you need quick diagnosis so you can contain the threats,” he said (Nick Calacouras, Northern Territory News, April 23). Back to top

“Chemical Ali” Leaves Hospital After Heart Attack Former Iraqi official Ali Hassan al-Majid returned to a U.S. detention center yesterday after being treated for a heart attack, the Associated Press reported (see GSN, April 22). A U.S. military official said al-Majid had suffered a heart attack and was in stable condition before being sent back to the detention center.  Before the heart attack, al-Majid had been on a hunger strike with other inmates, according to defense attorney Badee Izzat Aref. Al-Majid, cousin to former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, is best known as “Chemical Ali” for ordering the use of chemical weapons in the mass killing of Iraqi Kurds in the 1980s.  He has been sentenced to hang but a date has not been announced for his execution (Sameer Yacoub, Associated Press/Yahoo!News, April 22). Back to top       Japan Arrests Four Over CW Disposal Scandal Japanese authorities today detained four business executives suspected of misusing $1.2 million in government funds intended for eliminating Japanese chemical weapons abandoned in China at the end of World War II, the Associated Press reported (see GSN, April 1). All four were one-time heads of Pacific Consultants International, including former president Tamio Araki.  Formal charges have yet to be filed, but the suspects have been linked to misappropriation of government money and to inflation and fabrication of expenses in 2004 and 2005 through a subsidiary firm, Abandoned Chemical Weapons Disposal Corp. Japan has until 2012 to complete reclamation and disposal of abandoned chemical weapons in China.  So far, only about 10 percent of the roughly 400,000 weapons have been reclaimed, and construction of a planned disposal facility has not yet begun (Mari Yamaguchi, Associated Press/International Herald Tribune, April 23). Back to top       Construction Delayed at Pueblo Chemical Depot Some construction on a weapons destruction facility at the Pueblo Chemical Depot in Colorado will be delayed until next year due to rising costs for building materials, the Pueblo Chieftain reported yesterday (see GSN, April 15). About $261 million was authorized in 2003 for military construction at the site, said Gary Anderson, Pueblo manager for the Defense Department’s Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives program.  However, there has been a significant cost increase in the last five years for steel and cement. Roughly $2.5 million in subcontracts that had been expected to be issued this year are likely to be pushed back to 2009, said Paul Henry, Pueblo manager for primary construction contractor Bechtel. The delay has no effect on spending for research, development, testing and evaluation programs, which are funded separately from military construction. “It’s a little disappointing that we didn’t have this better figured out,” said Irene Kornelly, head of the Colorado Chemical Demilitarization Citizens Advisory Commission.  “It is better to plan this out in advance than to have a panic at the end.  We’ve had enough panics.” The Pueblo chemical neutralization plant is set to eliminate 2,611 tons of mustard agent contained in munitions.  Disposal operations are estimated to end as late as 2021, though Congress last year demanded that the Pentagon eliminate the full U.S. chemical arsenal by 2017 (John Norton, Pueblo Chieftain, April 22). Back to top

Nigeria Removes Three Radiation Sources Three dangerous radiation sources have been shipped out of Nigeria, the nation’s Nuclear Regulatory Authority announced Monday (see GSN, July 27, 2007). Agency chief Shamsideen Elegba said the International Atomic Energy Agency assisted in removing the sources from Lagos, Ibadan and Vom, Leadership reported. The sources were brought into Nigeria before the establishment of the regulatory authority and their presence posed a threat to surrounding populations, Elegba said. None of the sources were in active use, he said.  Nigeria’s National Veterinary Research Institute had acquired the Vom source for a research project on sterilizing flies in order to prevent the spread of sleeping sickness. “The project was abandoned, leaving the radioactive source behind,” Elegba said.  “The source was discovered after the fire that gutted the research facilities and the need to urgently evacuate it arose.” The regulatory agency requires that any organization that imports a radioactive source for a project must ultimately send it back to the country of origin (Leadership/allAfrica.com, April 21). Back to top

About Newswire  |  Contact National Journal  |  Re-Use Guidelines

© Copyright 2008 by National Journal Group, Inc. The material in this section is produced independently for NTI by National Journal Group, Inc. Any reproduction or retransmission, in whole or in part, is a violation of federal law and is strictly prohibited without the consent of the National Journal Group, Inc. All rights reserved.