Posted on 02/08/2004 5:03:54 PM PST by blam
How US put rogue atom scientist out of business
By David Blair in Islamabad
(Filed: 09/02/2004)
America closed down the Pakistani-based "nuclear supermarket" by confronting President Pervaiz Musharraf with "mind boggling" evidence and threatening isolation and economic sanctions, it emerged yesterday.
A high-powered American delegation met Gen Musharraf last October and demanded that he deal with Abdul Qadeer Khan, the "father" of Pakistan's nuclear bomb, who has confessed to trading atomic secrets.
Gen Musharraf: 'stunned' by the detailed evidence
The pressure on Gen Musharraf was comparable to the aftermath of September 11, when America demanded - and received - Pakistan's support against al-Qa'eda and the Taliban regime.
News of the secret confrontation helps to explain Washington's muted public response since Khan confessed last week to selling nuclear technology to the world's most radical anti-Western states. It was the biggest network for the spread of weapons of mass destruction ever uncovered, providing key technology to Iran, Libya and North Korea.
Richard Armitage, the US deputy secretary of state, met Gen Musharraf at his official residence in Rawalpindi on Oct 6 last year. Mr Armitage came armed with evidence compiled by the CIA and MI6.
Gen Musharraf was "stunned" by the detail. Khan's meetings with dealers in controlled weapons technology had all been tracked. Bank accounts holding payments made for nuclear secrets were recorded.
The Americans had tracked every journey Khan had made outside Pakistan. A senior Pakistani official said the evidence against the scientist was "mind boggling".
The Americans increased the pressure. A few hours after Mr Armitage departed, Gen John Abizaid, the head of US Central Command, repeated the unequivocal message that action must be taken against Khan.
"We were told that failure to take action will most certainly jeopardise [Pakistan's] ties with the US and other important nations of the world," said the official. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) later confirmed the allegations by passing on evidence from inspections of nuclear facilities in Libya and Iran.
"Both the US government and the IAEA separately reminded Pakistan that its failure to pin the responsibility of proliferation activities might lead to sanctions by the US and the United Nations," another Pakistani official told The News.
Nonetheless, Gen Musharraf did not capitulate immediately. He ordered Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence agency to conduct an inquiry. When this verified many of the major American claims, he placed Khan under house arrest last November.
American concern over Khan is not new. As long ago as 2001, Gen Musharraf bowed to US demands for him to be removed as head of the Khan Research Laboratories, nerve centre of the nuclear weapons programme.
In 1998, Pakistan took delivery of long-range Nodong missiles from North Korea. These weapons, capable of carrying a nuclear warhead for 900 miles, brought almost every Indian city within range of a nuclear strike from Pakistan. Khan has since confirmed the quid pro quo for this deal: centrifuge technology for producing weapons-grade uranium.
America tracked this movement of materials and Colin Powell, the secretary of state, made his suspicions clear during a meeting with Gen Musharraf in July 2002.
Yet only the application of maximum pressure brought the downfall of Khan and the end of his nuclear smuggling ring last week.
Most telling...
In 1998 and Clinton did NOTHING! Why isn't anyone investigating that?
...and, the king of Nepal just called for democratic elections.
bump!
...And voted against every military weapons system. To quote a fellow Lefty of Kerry's: Radical Leftist is as Radical Leftist does.
And, GW had done an AWESOME JOB!
http://nuclearweaponarchive.org/Pakistan/AQKhan.html
He's been under the microscope for two decades.
I'll venture a guess... Because the lamestream media loves and coddles all lefties no matter what and they are loser lefties as well? Now, if GWB or any non-lib innocently burped and somehow contributed to the left's vacuous greenhouse gas scenario, they would hold his cute toned ass to the fire in a NY minute. Then they would tar and feather him. Then they would draw and quarter him. Then they would...well, you get the idea. Alas, I am not saying anything you do not already know far too well.
Just an incredible achievement by President Bush and his administration. And the damn Demonic Rats are whining about the removal of Saddam after they said he was a huge danger to the United States:
Some serious reading:
PRESIDENT CLINTON VIDEO, December 16, 1998 Sadaam has nuclear arms, poison gas/bio weapons.
Statement of Senator John D. Rockefeller IV - On the Iraq Resolution - October 10, 2002
Remarks of Senator John Kerry on Iraq | October 09, 2002 |
Larry Elder: Were we misled? (about Iraq's WMD)
I need to add the Master list on Kerry:
John Kerry- some selected, informative links... compiled by Backhoe
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