U.S. Response:  Dual-Use Exports to be Monitored

The U.S. Customs Service yesterday announced a new plan in which businesses are to monitor export orders for items that could be used by terrorists.

The Customs Service has created a “shopping list for terrorist organizations” of 100 items that could be used to develop weapons of mass destruction, said Customs Service Commissioner Robert Bonner.  Items on the list include the chemical thiodiglycol, which can be used both for making dyes and mustard gas, and krytrons, which are small glass bulbs that have uses in photocopiers as well as nuclear warhead triggers, Bonner said (see GSN, Nov. 27).

Businesses should be cautious of first-time customers, customers offering large amounts of cash or prospective buyers willing to pay high above market prices for sensitive materials, Bonner said. 

The Customs Service, along with the State and Commerce departments, will also work to strengthen enforcement of export laws, Bonner said.  “It will take a vigorous effort from everyone, including the government and private sector, to shield America from being targeted by its own technology,” he said (Bill Miller, Washington Post, Dec. 11).

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Iraq:  German Engineer Sent Weapons Equipment

A German mechanical engineer who allegedly facilitated illegal arms sales to Iraq has been jailed since October, according to Der Spiegel, the Agence France-Presse reported Saturday.  Prosecutors told Der Spiegel that the suspect may have already sent equipment through Jordan to Baghdad in violation of U.N. sanctions.  Officials believe that the shipped equipment included a drill to make cannon tubes which could be used to fire nuclear, biological or chemical weapons (Agence France-Presse, Dec. 8).

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South Korea:  WMD Warfare Defense Unit Planned

South Korea plans to create a new biological and chemical warfare defense command next year, officials said today.

The existing Army Chemical, Biological and Radiological Defense Command is to be reorganized, reinforced, and placed under the direct control of the Defense Ministry.  The reinforcement will consist of 200 extra personnel and a new force trained to combat terrorists using chemical or biological weapons, said Col. Chang Sang-geun, head of the ministry’s division for biological, chemical and radiological warfare.

“The new command will maintain close cooperation with police, the government and civilian organizations to thwart possible terrorist attacks ahead of the 2002 World Cup soccer finals,” Chang said (Hwang Jang-jin, Korea Herald, Dec. 10).

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