Much ado about nothing. Bruce
No CIA Traces Seen in Romania in Amiable Hunt on an Air Base By <http://query.nytimes.com/search/query?ppds=bylL&v1=NICHOLAS%20WOOD&fdq=1996 0101&td=sysdate&sort=newest&ac=NICHOLAS%20WOOD&inline=nyt-per> NICHOLAS WOOD New York Times December 09, 2005 MIHAIL KOGALNICEANU AIR BASE, <http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/countriesandterritories/ro mania/index.html?inline=nyt-geo> Romania, Dec. 8 - As the furor over the C.I.A.'s reported use of Eastern European countries in the transfer or torture of terrorism suspects rippled across Europe this week, Romania's president made an offer he hoped would dispel suggestions that his country was involved. Speaking after Secretary of State Condoleezza's Rice's visit here, President Traian Basescu announced Wednesday, "If there is the wish by anyone to visit any place suspected to be destined for detention and torture, Romania puts at their disposition its entire territory." And so on Thursday, a small group of reporters gathered at Mihail Kogalniceanu Air Base, north of Constanza, on the Black Sea. It is here that planes used by the Central Intelligence Agency landed, according to an interpretation of flight records by Human Rights Watch, and could have funneled a group of suspected members of Al Qaeda for detention and possible interrogation. Dressed in green slacks and a Romanian Air Force bomber jacket, Lt. Cmdr. Adrian Vasile was on hand to take around anyone who wished. "Just name it and we can go there," he said nonchalantly, standing in front of a row of unused Soviet-era MIG-29 fighter planes. Since 1996 Kogalniceanu has been the main air base for joint exercises by Romanian and American forces. In 2003 it was used as a refueling depot for American aircraft flying to northern Iraq. According to the Romanians, there are no permanent American military facilities here. In the base's 104 buildings, set in a bleak landscape of rolling barren hills, there seemed to be any number of possible places to lock up detainees. But there were none of the white huts that the American Army often uses for barracks, or the temporary containers and wire mesh seen at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. "There is a former missile storage area that can be locked securely," Commander Vasile said. A drive at break-neck speed down the apron of the runway took the assembled news corps to a long concrete building, painted in camouflage green, with large metal sliding doors. One by one, Commander Vasile opened the doors, revealing a series of empty rooms. Should evidence surface that Romania facilitated the transfer of prisoners - or more seriously, their detention - the consequences could be serious. Romania, a former Communist state, is hoping to join the European Union in 2007. Any evidence that it knowingly helped the C.I.A. detain suspects on its territory could damage its relations with the 25-member Union at a critical time. The Council of Europe, which has a mandate to examine human rights abuses across Europe, has said it wants to examine satellite photographs of Kogalniceanu and a Polish air base to determine if any detention centers had been established. But the seriousness of the allegations appears to be lost on many Romanians, who, after shedding 55 years of Soviet-style rule, are fiercely pro-American. "It's a joke," said Capt. Cmdr. Puiu Vlad, the leader of a helicopter squadron based at the airport. Commander Vasile, a liaison with American forces when they visit the airport, was more than happy to show reporters aerial photographs taken by the Romanian Air Force. A 20-minute slide show offered views of the runway and surrounding buildings, and pictures of the joint Romanian-American exercises held in the last two years. The bottom of each slide was marked "not secret" in Romanian. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> 1.2 million kids a year are victims of human trafficking. Stop slavery. http://us.click.yahoo.com/U6CDDD/izNLAA/cUmLAA/TySplB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: osint@yahoogroups.com Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. 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