"Iran has been pursuing a clandestine programme in co-operation with North Korea, estimated to cost hundreds of millions of dollars, to construct a network of underground tunnels to conceal and protect its military nuclear programme."
http://www.janes.com/security/international_security/news/jdw/jdw060123_2_n.shtml Tehran takes steps to protect nuclear facilities By Robin Hughes JDW Deputy Editor London For some months, Iran has been pursuing a clandestine programme in co-operation with North Korea, estimated to cost hundreds of millions of dollars, to construct a network of underground tunnels to conceal and protect its military nuclear programme. The tunnel project includes the construction of 10,000 m2 of underground halls, with tunnels measuring hundreds of metres branching off from each, the sources said. The construction programme, diplomatic sources told JDW, is being financed under a special budget that has been assigned separately from the official Iranian budget. The Iranian authorities, they added, are "currently on high alert in anticipation of air strikes against their facilities". A delegation of North Koreans, led by Lyu-Do Myong, a leading North Korean government expert on underground construction, had by June 2005 arrived in Tehran to help design and construct the underground tunnel network, which is designed to protect Iran's military nuclear facilities. During the same period, the legal department of the IRGC, which is responsible for the project, summoned "dozens of managers from leading Iranian construction companies to sign joint-venture contracts with the IRGC," the sources said. According to the sources, "all these joint-venture contracts have been signed and construction is currently under way. The companies selected are at present involved in intensive construction and maintenance work for massive shielding of the tunnels branching to the facilities at Natanz and Isfahan". 227 of 906 words [End of non-subscriber extract.] -------------------------- 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. OSINT, as a part of The Intelligence Network, is making it available without profit to OSINT YahooGroups members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the understanding of intelligence and law enforcement organizations, their activities, methods, techniques, human rights, civil liberties, social justice and other intelligence related issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. We believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
