North Korea:  Seized Chemical Could Be Used to Produce Nerve Agent

By Mike Nartker
Global Security Newswire

WASHINGTON — Chemicals seized earlier this week from a North Korean freighter docked in the Taiwanese port of Kaohsiung could be used to produce nerve agents, experts told Global Security Newswire yesterday (see GSN, Aug. 12).

On Monday, Taiwanese officials seized more than 150 barrels of phosphorus pentasulfide from the freighter Be Gaehung, according to reports.  The chemical can be used as a precursor in the development of nerve agents, proliferation expert Mark Smith of the University of Southampton told GSN yesterday.  He added that Iraq was known to have used the chemical in its VX program.  The Wall Street Journal reported today that phosphorus pentasulfide could also be used to produce peaceful materials, such as insecticide or motor oil additives. 

Phosphorus pentasulfide is also included on the export control list used by the Australia Group, an informal network of 33 countries that coordinates export controls for dual-use biological and chemical items, Smith said.

While most of the international concern surrounding North Korea’s WMD efforts has focused on Pyongyang’s relaunched nuclear weapons program, the country is also believed to have pursued biological and chemical weapons.  In an April report, the CIA said that North Korea had acquired dual-use chemicals last year for possible use in its “long-standing” chemical weapons program.  The CIA also said that North Korea had produced “a sizeable stockpile” of chemical weapons, such as nerve, blister, choking and blood agents.

The Journal reported today that the Be Gaehung has been allowed to leave Kaohsiung after its captain agreed to leave the chemical barrels behind.  While some reports have indicated that Taiwanese officials searched the ship on the basis of U.S.-provided information, a U.S. State Department official yesterday refused to tell GSN what, if any, role the United States played in the operation.  The official said Monday’s action should not be seen as being country-specific, adding that the United States has long worked to encourage countries to be more aware of suspicious materials passing through their territory.

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United States:  Incinerator Scheduled to Run Slowly for First Two Months

Army officials plan to operate the chemical weapons incinerator in Anniston, Ala., on a probationary basis until late October, the Birmingham Post-Herald reported yesterday (see GSN, Aug. 11).

When the 30-day “shake-down” period is over, state officials will “examine everything we are doing down to microscopic details,” said Mike Abrams, a spokesman for the Anniston Army Depot.

“After we have proven to all the regulators that in fact things are working as designed and our data is accepted by the state, then we can start in earnest and work at a level that is safe and more efficient,” he added.

The facility was expected to destroy about 15 rockets yesterday, Abrams said, but it could do more.

“We might do as many as 40,” he said yesterday, adding, “There’s a strong possibility but there’s no pressure.

More than 660,000 chemical artillery shells, rockets and mines are stored at the depot, 10 percent of the total current U.S. stockpile, and the Army plans to destroy all of them over the next seven years (Erin Sullivan, Birmingham Post-Herald, Aug. 12).

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United States:  Chemical Weapons Disposal Begins at Anniston

After receiving clearance from a federal judge, the U.S. Army began destroying chemical weapons at the Anniston Army depot in Alabama this weekend (see GSN, Aug. 8).

Community and environmental activists, concerned about possible contamination, have protested the incineration plans at the depot.

“We’re very disappointed today,” said David Christian, an Anniston architect and a protest leader.  “They’re putting poisons in the air and we may not know for years what the effects will be,” he added.

The disposal began with an M-55 rocket that was drained of sarin nerve agent and incinerated.

“That rocket is now history,” said Mike Abrams, a spokesman for the depot.  “This community is now one rocket safer,” he added.

The depot still has tens of thousands of rockets to destroy, the New York Times reported (Jeffrey Gettleman, New York Times, Aug. 10).

Officials took 36 minutes, which was longer than anticipated, to ensure the smooth destruction of the first rocket.

“The operation was flawless,” said project manager Tim Garrett.  The Army destroyed two rockets Saturday.

Depot officials hope to destroy 40 rockets per hour by next year (Associated Press/Washington Post, Aug. 10).

An additional eight rockets were dismantled Sunday (Associated Press, Aug. 11).

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United States:  Judge Allows Anniston Chemical Burn to Proceed

By David McGlinchey
Global Security Newswire

WASHINGTON — A U.S. judge ruled today that the U.S. Army may begin burning chemical weapons at a depot in Alabama despite the concerns of some local residents and chemical safety activists (see GSN, Aug. 6).

The plant is prepared to begin incineration as early as this weekend, but Army lawyers must first decide if they will wait for expected appeals to today’s decision, according to Mike Abrams, a spokesman at the Anniston Army Depot.

U.S. District Judge Thomas Jackson dismissed an appeal for a temporary restraining order sought by a coalition of groups, including the Chemical Weapons Working Group, the Sierra Club and a chapter of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.

Jackson said that concerns about the depot’s safety are “purely speculative.”

Richard Condit, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, argued that Army and Alabama officials had not thoroughly examined emergency preparations in case of an accident at the depot.  He also said that officials had no way to monitor the release of contaminants from the plant.

Condit said that earlier test burns did not represent actual working conditions and were a “red herring” to fool the public and environmental officials.

Activists in the courtroom decried the decision and said the Army should consider neutralizing the chemical weapons instead of burning them.  The neutralization method is being used at several other depots, but the Army says that once chemicals are weaponized, they must be burned.

“The citizens of Anniston were hoping to get the justice they deserve [but] they didn’t get that today,” said Monica Rohde-Buckhorn, a spokeswoman for the Chemical Weapons Working Group.

Jackson ruled that the plaintiffs needed to demonstrate an imminent danger, not a theoretical or feared accident.  He said there was “insufficient showing” that “any harm will flow.”

Condit said he was “obviously disappointed” in the ruling.  He said he would review the decision with his clients and would probably appeal “if it appears there are holes in the judge’s analysis.”

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