North Korea Linked to Destroyed Syrian Nuclear Reactor
April 24, 2008 :: New York Times :: News
Today the White House will announce that the North Koreans had been working at a Syrian nuclear reactor until it was destroyed last September in an Israeli airstrike, reports the New York Times. This discovery, based on video evidence, comes after a seven-month clandestine investigation. U.S. and Israeli senior officials believe that the strike targeted a fledgling nuclear reactor modeled after the North Korean reactor used for attaining fuel for its weapons system.
The site was destroyed by Israeli jets on September 6. After protesting, the Syrians bulldozed the site and erected a building on the area formerly holding the reactor. They have routinely denied access to international nuclear weapons inspectors.
The State Department finds the White House’s timing in declassifying this information suspicious. Some have suggested that the administration’s declassification is aimed at undermining a deal with the North Koreans that would allow it to be removed from the list of nations sponsoring terrorism.
One senior White House official has said, off the record that, “Making public the pictures is likely to inflame the North Koreans. And that’s just what opponents of this whole arrangement want, because they think the North Koreans will stalk off.” Another official claims that perhaps this new information will force North Korea to more fully divulge its projects in Syria with the disclosure of details pertaining to its nuclear activities.
The deal in question is being brokered by the assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, Christopher R. Hill, who is acting as the primary liaison with North Korea, and has suddenly become the latest point of contention in a seven-year battle within the Bush Administration over foreign policy as it relates to North Korea. That policy has evolved from attempting to pressure North Korea in hopes of collapsing Kim Jong-il’s government, to negotiating with North Korea along with Russia, China, South Korea and Japan—each of whom has pursued a unique strategy in solving the problem of North Korea.
Christopher Hill was charged with the task of determining a new strategy for dealing with the North Koreans more than three years ago. With dwindling support, Hill has struggled, and senior officials have reported that President Bush has overtly admonished his aides against pursuing any policy that “makes [him] look weak.” Vice President Cheney’s office has argued that Hill’s proposal would be too big a concession—in exchange for a perfunctory declaration form the North Koreans regarding its plutonium production, it would be removed from the list of nations sponsoring terrorism and therefore no longer subject to economic sanctions under the Trading With the Enemy Act. Still, the North Koreans have failed to volunteer information pertaining to its involvement with Syria and its plans to begin building arms using uranium. Hill’s deal would allow the North Koreans to continue on in relative secrecy. It would allow them to leave unexplained its purchase of uranium enrichment materials from Pakistan—materials and equipment that experts believe was obtained to help North Korea engineer another road to a nuclear bomb if it were forced to abandon its plutonium program.
Today American intelligence officials will, in a presentation to members of Congress, show videos of Koreans working among employees at a Syrian plant. Mr. Hill has already shown this footage to senior South Korean officials. Other pictures illustrate what seems to be the construction of a reactor vessel inside the very building later destroyed in the Israeli strike of September.
Officials have heretofore refused to speak about the September attack. Christopher Hill has found little support among his colleagues, including his boss, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice who has sharply criticized the 1994 agreement between North Korea and the Clinton Administration for its “front loaded” rewards system for the North. Critics are saying something very similar of Mr. Hill’s proposed deal. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: North Korea, Nuclear Weapons, Israel, Syria
Ros-Lehtinen on Reckoning with Syria
September 19, 2007 :: Analysis
The New York Sun published an opinion piece by Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Florida on Syria on September 19. Congresswoman Ros-Lehtinen argues that only tougher economic sanctions, particularly ones targeting Syria's energy industry, are the only way to change its destructive behavior in the region. Syria is "a stalwart supporter for terrorist organizations and activities throughout the region," allowing foreign jihadists to enter Iraq and serving as a base of operations for Hezbollah and Hamas. Additionally, "Syria has developed ballistic missiles and has reportedly even conducted research and development on biological weapons. Syria has one of the largest ballistic missile inventories in the Middle East, comprised of several hundred short-range ballistic missiles and cruise missiles." Syria's pursuit of more destructive weaponry aligned it with Iran, with whom it declared in a mutual self-defense pact in 2005.
Accordingly, Congresswoman Ros-Lehtinen has introduced the Syria Accountability and Liberation Act, which would:
[R]equire the immediate imposition of all possible American sanctions and that they remain in place until Syria ceases its support for terrorism, unconventional weapons development, and other destructive policies. It mandates a number of additional sanctions to curtail Syria's proliferation efforts and imposes new sanctions on entities that invest or conduct business in Syria's energy sector.
The Congresswoman concludes that, "Without foreign capital and development, Syria will be deprived of the energy profits it desperately needs to buy weapons and sponsor terrorist activities," and therefore make the U.S. and its allies safer. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Analysis, Syria
Jerusalem Post: Syria and Iran Smuggling Long-Range Missiles to Hezbollah
December 3, 2006 :: Jerusalem Post :: News
Syria and Iran have smuggled “truckloads” of long-range missiles into Lebanon over the past four months, reports Yaakov Katz in The Jerusalem Post. During the Lebanon war from July to August 2006, the Israeli Defense Force destroyed most of Hezbollah’s long-range missile arsenal, including the Iranian-made Fajr and Zelzal missiles. But according to Israeli military intelligence, Hezbollah has since received weapon convoys carrying long-range missiles, as well as short-range and anti-tank missiles. Hezbollah has stored these weapons in its extensive system of underground tunnels and bunkers in southern Lebanon, despite the presence of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon and the Lebanese Armed Forces south of the Litani River. According to The Jerusalem Post, Israeli military intelligence believes that “sooner or later” Hezbollah will resume military operations against Israel in the form of rocket and mortar attacks. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Israel, Iran, Syria, Proliferation, Terrorism
» Missile details: Zelzal-1/2/3
U.S. Seeks to Block New Missiles for Hezbollah
September 6, 2006 :: Jane's Information Group :: News
The U.S. is helping Israel prevent Hezbollah from receiving shipments of new missiles to replace the thousands fired or destroyed in the recent 34-day conflict, reports the October 1 issue of Jane’s Missiles and Rockets. The Lebanese-based terrorist organization is currently being resupplied by Iran across Syria’s mountainous western border with Lebanon into the Bekaa Valley, Hezbollah’s strategic center and the location of its main command centers and missile arsenals. Despite massive Israeli air strikes destroying virtually all the bridges and road networks in the region, Israel believes that Iranian missiles are still moving across the Syrian-Lebanese border, mostly along ancient smuggling trails. The U.S. has called for the support of regional allies such as Turkey and Iraq, and has pressured key global arms suppliers such as Russia and China to ensure that these missiles do not reach the Hezbollah. Sources indicate that at least two aircraft flying from Iran to Damascus have been challenged by aviation authorities in Iraq and Turkey, one on July 20 and another two days later. On August 17, seven transports—six Iranian and one Syrian—were forced to land at Dyarbakir, Turkey, after U.S. satellites spotted missiles, including C-802 anti-ship cruise missiles, and launchers being loaded onto them in Iran. According to Israel, however, some flights carrying weapons for Hezbollah have made it to Syria, and have possibly crossed the border into Lebanon. (Link)
» More stories on: Iran, Israel, Proliferation, Syria
Jane’s: Syria Agrees to Hide Iranian Nuclear Materials
December 20, 2005 :: Jane's Information Group :: News
Syria has agreed to store Iranian nuclear materials should Tehran come under UN sanctions, reports Jane’s Defence Weekly. According to Jane’s, Syria has committed “to allow Iran to safely store weapons, sensitive equipment or even hazardous materials on Syrian soil should Iran need such help in a time of crisis.” The agreement is said to be part of a larger Iranian-Syrian strategic accord meant to protect either country from international pressure. For instance, Iran has pledged to grant safe haven to any Syrian intelligence officer indicted by the UN or Lebanon regarding the Hariri assassination. Likewise, Syria is obligated to continue supplying the Iran-sponsored terrorist group Hizbullah with weapons, ammunition, and communications. The Iranian-Syrian accord, negotiations of which began in 2004, was signed by both parties on November 14, 2005, in preparation for possible sanctions imposed on either state. (Link)
» More stories on: Iran, Syria
Russians Said to Proliferate Stolen German Missile Tech to Syria, Iran
November 5, 2005 :: AFP :: News
The German news magazine “Focus” reports on November 5 that the Berlin government has warned German defense industry that certain Russian criminals have been transferring German technology to Iran and Syria.
Apparently, high-quality technology, which is sold to Russian companies in good faith, goes directly to Iranian or Syrian missile workshops.
Using Moscow as a hub, the Tehran regime, in particular, is increasingly purchasing German top products for the expansion of its arsenals of weapons of mass destruction. Measuring devices, as well as drive and control systems for the so-called Shahab-3 programme, are mostly made in Germany: the new missile, which is to be equipped with nuclear warheads, with an envisaged range of 3,500 km, could hit also European targets precisely.
The present “early warning letter” to the German industry, which is based mainly on information from the Federal Intelligence Service [Bundesnachrichtendienst], mentions 15 companies in Moscow, St Petersburg, and Samara that are regarded as procurers for Iranian arms manufacturers. An institute at Moscow Technical University is also among the addresses that are used as cover.
Syria, also served via Russia, needs the German technology for its old Scud missiles, which are primarily aimed at Israel. At present, there is a high demand for systems to improve target accuracy.
(Article, Link)
» Text of Focus report on Russian transfers
» More stories on: Iran, Proliferation, Russia, Syria
Syria Tests Three Scud Missiles
June 3, 2005 :: New York Times :: News
On June 1, Israeli Channel 2 television reported that Syria tested three Scud missiles on May 27. Israel’s Green Pine Radar, integrated into its own Arrow ballistic missile defense system, detected the launches from the testing site in eastern Syria. A later report, however, claims they were launched from northern Syria, near Minakh, near Aleppo. One missile flew some 250 miles to southernmost Syria, near the border with Jordan.
Update: The August 2005 issue of Jane’s Missiles & Rockets report that Israeli security sources said all three “were fired from mobile launchers near Minakh, north of Aleppo in northern Syria.”
The New York Times picked up the story today, adding that, Israel allegedly chose to report the story only after the United States chose not to do so. The Times cites Israeli sources saying that the missiles launched were one older Scud B with a range of 185 miles and two Scud D missiles, with a range of 435 miles. Israeli military officials are quoted as speculating that the tests are an act of defiance by Syrian President Assad to the United States. The tests are the first missile launches by Syria since 2001.
Update: However, Jane’s also reports that “[a]n Arab military source said the Syrians were careful to aim the missiles away from the southeastern part of the country because U.S. and Iraqi forces were attacking insurgents in al Qaim province close to Iraq’s border with Turkey.”
In addition, one missile was fired southwest toward the Mediterranean, over the Turkish province of Hatay and shed debris over two Turkish villages there. Israelis claim to have film of both the launching and breakup. It is the first time Syria has ever launched a missile over another country, and Turkey is of course also a member of NATO.
Israeli officials are also cited as observing that Syria could easily have directed the missile in a different direction, to land within its own territory. The tests came days before a scheduled election in newly unoccupied Lebanon.
Russia’s Itar Tass quotes an unidentified “Russian expert in the field of missile technology” as saying that the missile tests were of political rather than military significance. The source added a bit of background on the number and type of the Soviet-origin missiles:
“The missiles of this type, which were developed in the Soviet Union in the 1960s, are in the arsenals of at least 25 countries of the world. In a number of countries, including Syria, work has been carried out to modernize the missiles. In particular, the Syrian army is equipped with modernized Scud-D missiles, with a range of 700 km. According to various estimates, Damascus could have 300 to 400 such missiles,” the expert explained. He recalled that the production of missiles of this type has been developed in North Korea on the basis of Soviet-made R-300 operational-tactical missiles.
At a White House press conference, Scott McClellan today fielded a question about the test: (More »»»)
» June 3, 2005: White House press conference
» June 3, 2005: Itar Tass report on Syrian launches
» June 1, 2005: Original report of Syrian launches by Israeli television
» June 3, 2005: AP account of missile launches
» More stories on: Syria, Testing - Foreign
» Missile details: Sakr, Ababil-100/150
Syria Wants Russian S-400
February 9, 2005 :: News
Syria is negotiating the purchase of the Russian S-400 air and missile defense system, said to be comparable or superior to U.S. Patriot PAC-3 interceptors. Middle East Newsline quotes “Russian industry sources” as saying that Syrian President Bashar Assad sought to acquire the system during his recent visit to Moscow. “Assad is very interested in the S-400 and apparently Syria has the money to buy this,” an industry source is quoted as saying.
Recent news reports have confirmed that Russia will be deploying the S-400 for its own defenses in 2005. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Israel, Russia, Syria
» Missile system details for: S-400 (SA-20 Triumf)
Russia Backpedals Missile Proliferation to Syria, Hezbollah
January 13, 2005 :: News
The Russian newspaper Kommersant recently reported of Russian plans to sell a number of missile systems to Syria, a state sponsor of terrorism and in particular Hezbollah. These included the shoulder-fired SS-18 Igla anti-aircraft missiles, but also and more significantly, eighteen of Russia’s new and made-for-export SS-26 Iskander missile, and the S-300PMU-2 (SA-10) air and missile defense system, similar to that which rings Moscow, and other systems. The S-300PMU-2 system is one of Moscow’s most developed air and missile defense systems. The SS-26 has increasingly made the news for its touted capabilities to evade other air-defenses—possibly the U.S. Patriot interceptors—and the Russian’s plans to market it widely, including in the middle east. The export version of the SS-26 Iskander missile has a reported range of 280 km, sufficient for Syria to strike nearly all of Israel.
At this time, negative publicity may be sufficient reason for Russia to back out of the missile deal, but it nevertheless serves as yet another example of Russia’s long track record of being willing to proliferate missiles and missile technology throughout the world. (More »»»)
» January 12: Original report of planned missile sales by Russian newspaper Kommersant
» January 13: Ivanov denies plans to proliferate Iskanders to Syria
» January 12: Interfax: Colonel Vladimir Anokhin defends missile sales to Syria
» More stories on: Proliferation, Russia, Syria, Terrorism
» Missile details: SS-26
» Missile system details for: S-300P (SA-10 Grumble)
European Union Adopts Weak Stance Toward Syrian Missiles
August 1, 2004 :: Reuters :: News
The European Union is apparently backing down on its negotiating demands that Syria reduce its missile arsenals. The original requirement in a trade agreement would have had Syria reduce both its ballistic missiles and its weapons of mass destruction. The newer, more watered down version, will say nothing about missiles, and ask Syria only to reduce its weapons of mass destruction.
Time will tell whether such policies of weakness are capable of bringing any good result. (Article, Link)
» Iran claims U.S. has backed down on nuclear weapons demands
» More stories on: Syria
 |
| Total Records: 15 |
[1]
2
»
|
