-Caveat Lector-
{PRIVATE}The Washington Times
www.washingtontimes.com
China ships North Korea ingredient for nuclear arms
Bill Gertz
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
Published December 17, 2002
North Korea has purchased a large shipment of chemicals from China that can be used to
make nuclear-weapons fuel, U.S. intelligence officials say.
North Korean procurement agents succeeded in buying 20 tons of tributyl phosphate,
known
as TBP, a key chemical used to extract material for nuclear bombs from spent nuclear
fuel,
said officials familiar with intelligence reports of the transfer.
The officials said the chemical also can be used in commercial processes, such as
making
plastics, ink and paint.
U.S. intelligence agencies, however, believe North Korea will use the TBP for its
plutonium-
based nuclear-weapons program, based on sensitive intelligence information, the
officials said.
The chemical is used in a process known as plutonium-uranium extraction, or purex,
which
produces plutonium from spent reactor fuel.
North Korea announced last week that it planned to restart its plutonium reactors at
Yongbyon.
"The fact that North Korea is importing tributyl phosphate right now is rather
ominous," said
Gary Milhollin, director of the private Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control.
"It's
evidence that North Korea plans to extract more plutonium."
The chemical also can be used to prepare uranium for the weapons process, Mr.
Milhollin said
in an interview.
North Korea has a large supply of spent reactor fuel that is under international
surveillance.
The reprocessing of the spent fuel means Pyongyang could produce more bombs "in fairly
short order, a matter of months," he said.
The TBP transfer, which happened earlier this month, highlights the Chinese
government's
failure to control the export of goods related to nuclear-weapons production.
The disclosure of the transfer also followed appeals from senior Bush administration
officials
in recent months for Beijing's help in halting North Korea's nuclear-weapons program.
The transfer itself is an indication that China's government, contrary to some public
statements, is unwilling to support U.S. efforts to resolve the North Korean nuclear
problem,
said administration security officials.
Chinese President Jiang Zemin and Russian President Vladimir Putin said during a
summit in
Beijing this month that both favored a nuclear-free Korean peninsula.
Mr. Jiang also said during an October meeting with President Bush in Crawford, Texas,
that
China favored a nuclear-free Korean peninsula, but stopped short of condemning
Pyongyang's
nuclear program.
The two presidents agreed at the summit to discuss curbing the spread of weapons of
mass
destruction.
However, senior administration officials said China continues to export nuclear,
chemical and
biological weapons material and missile goods, despite claims of curbing exports by
Chinese
companies to rogue states or unstable regions.
White House National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice told a visiting Chinese general
last
week that Beijing's help in stopping the North Korean nuclear program would be
important to
U.S.-China relations.
North Korea's government revealed to a State Department official in October that it was
secretly developing uranium-enrichment capability to make fuel for nuclear weapons.
Pyongyang then announced it planned to restart three reactors at the Yongbyon nuclear
complex that were shut down under a 1994 agreement.
White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer told reporters yesterday that he did not
believe
China was helping North Korea's nuclear program and that Beijing was being helpful in
U.S.
efforts to curb North Korea's drive for nuclear arms.
"China is working with the United States to make certain that we can resolve the
situation
with North Korea peacefully and diplomatically, and that is being done in concert with
South
Korea, and Japan and Russia, as well," Mr. Fleischer said.
A White House spokesman had no comment on the Chinese-North Korean chemical transfer.
The TBP purchase is expected to lead to sanctions on the Chinese and North Korean
companies involved in the sale. U.S. officials said the company was located in Dalian,
a
Chinese seaport, but they did not name the company.
U.S. intelligence officials first disclosed North Korea's effort to purchase tributyl
phosphate in
China to The Washington Times earlier this month.
Henry Sokolski, head of the private Nonproliferation Policy Education Center, said the
transfer of the nuclear arms-related chemical shows the Chinese "don't understand how
important this is to us."
"If China thinks this is a good way to restrain North Korean nuclear activities, they
need to
talk to us," Mr. Sokolski said.
Copyright &##169; 2002 News World Communications, Inc. All rights reserved.
Return to the article
<A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A>
DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER
==========
CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic
screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are
sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis-
directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with
major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought.
That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and
always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no
credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply.
Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector.
========================================================================
Archives Available at:
http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html
<A HREF="http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html";>Archives of
[EMAIL PROTECTED]</A>
http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/
<A HREF="http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/";>ctrl</A>
========================================================================
To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email:
SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED]
To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email:
SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Om
