Iraq Nuclear Sites Systematically Dismantled
October 15, 2004 :: CNN :: News
The Associated Press and other news agencies have reported that a number of Iraqi nuclear sites show evidence of having been systematically emptied, and their materials removed. The removal apparently took place even after the invasion of Iraq in 2003, and continued through 2004.
The Duelfer report, released last week, also suggested that large quantities of materials, possibly weapons of mass destruction related, had gone to Syria before the war began.
These revelations again point to the possibility that Iraqi weapons of mass destruction did in fact exist, and may yet be found. But their removal serves to significantly undermine the rationale for the war, and the impetus for future preemptive strikes against, for example, Iran and North Korea.
News of the removal comes alongside the annoucement that the Russian-supported nuclear reactor in Iran is now complete. (Article, Link)
» Oct. 14, 2004: Iran nuclear reactor now complete
» More stories on: Iran, Iraq, Nuclear Weapons
U.N. Report: Iraq Exported Banned Missile Engines
September 8, 2004 :: Washington Post :: News
The new Iraqi authorities have been systematically shipping parts of formerly banned missiles to outside the country, according to a recently released report by the U.N. Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission, or UNMOVIC. The May report, to be presented before the UN today, found that at least 42 engines from banned missiles have been shipped to other countries as scrap, as well as other equipment useful for assembling weapons of mass destruction. Counties to which such materials have been shipped include Jordan and the Netherlands, but the report suggests that much more has been shipped to Asia and other parts of the middle east.
The missile engines came from SA-2 or Guideline missiles of Soviet origin, but could have been used in other Iraqi ballistic missiles, to exceed the 150km range limitation on Iraqi missiles imposed by the UN. The SA-2 or V-75 was a Soviet surface to air missile—incidentally, similar to those which were deployed with nuclear warheads around Moscow in 1964 as part of its air and missile defense system. The UN report also said that the new Iraqi government has been destroying and cleaning up former missile facilities and chemical weapons production establishments. (Article, Link)
» May 28, UNMOVIC Report on Iraqi Missiles
» June 11, 2004: UN Report renews concerns about Iraqi missile proliferation
» More stories on: Iraq, Proliferation
Russian Engineers Aided Iraq’s Long Range Ballistic Missile Programs
March 5, 2004 :: New York Times :: News
As often emphasized here, the greatest sources of ballistic missile proliferation are ultimately Russia and China, however much rogue state proxies may sometimes be involved. A story in today’s New York Times confirms this unappreciated fact, outlining how Russian ballistic missile technology aided Saddam Hussein’s missile programs until not too long before last year’s war.
The assistance of Russian engineers to Iraq’s missile programs constituted a violation of the United Nations sanctions. Like Russia’s assistance of Iran reported here yesterday, such aid also constitutes a reminder that Russia’s interests in proliferation are quite different than those of the United States. Russia’s contempt for parchment barriers such as UN resolutions or the Non-Proliferation Treaty would appear to be similar to that they had for the ABM Treaty, which they clearly violated.
It is worth nothing that whatever the status of Iraq’s formerly documented WMD programs, their work on ballistic missiles until just before the war began is undisputed. (Article, Link)
» Mar. 4, 2004: Russia Providing Equipment for Iranian Missiles
» Ties to Ukraine, Belarus, Serbia, North Korea
» More stories on: Iraq, Proliferation, Russia
CIA Report on WMDs and Ballistic Missile Proliferation
November 10, 2003 :: CIA :: News
The CIA’s most recent intelligence estimate to Congress outlines the state of weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile capabilities in a number of “countries of concern,” as well as continued proliferation by Russia, China, and North Korea. (More »»»)
» More stories on: China, Iran, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia
Iraq Planned 1,000km Ballistic Missiles
November 5, 2003 :: Jane's Information Group :: News
The authoritative Jane’s Missiles and Rockets magazine reports that Iraq was planning to develop ballistic missiles with ranges of at least 1,000 kilometers, far beyond the 150 km limit imposed by United Nations resolutions after the first Gulf War. Citing the interim report by David Kay of the Iraq Survey Group (ISG) to the U.S. Congress, those in charge of the missile production were ordered by Saddam Hussein to design and build them within six months. The original original requirement issued in 2000 was to produce a 400-500km-range missile, but by 2002 had been increased to 600-1,000km.
Even while United Nations (UNMOVIC) inspectors were in the country, work apparently continued into early 2003 to convert the Russian S-75 (SA-2 ‘Guideline’) surface-to-air missiles into ballistic (surface-to-surface) missiles with a range of 250km. Previous plans along these lines existed prior to the 1991 Gulf war with conversions of the S-75 to the Al Fahd 300 and 500. Similar modifications, reports Janes, with the S-125 (SA-3 ‘Goa’) as the Baraq missile, and the Kub (SA-6 ‘Guideline’) as the Kasir missile.
Evidence was also found of two Iraqi cruise missile programmes, based on the Chinese HY-2 coastal-defence cruise missile. The two programs were the Al Faw and the Jenin, with planned ranges of 150-180, and 1000km, respectively.
The ISG also found papers documenting efforts to purchase missiles and missile technology from North Korea, which included the technology for missiles with a range of 1,300km—likely, says Janes, related to the No-Dong. (Link)
» David Kay statement to House and Senate select subcommittees
» More stories on: Iraq, Proliferation
Rumsfeld on Ship Launched Missile Threat
September 16, 2002 :: Department of Defense :: News
On September 16, 2002, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Peter Pace, gave a press briefing, at which Rumsfeld forcefully underlined the capability, already possessed by such countries as Iran, Iraq, and North Korea, to deliver ballistic missiles against the United States. An excerpt from the press conference:
Question: “…as far as we know, Saddam Hussein does not have a delivery system of carrying weapons of mass destruction to CONUS—to the shores of the United States—no ICBMs that can reach us, as far as we know. And yet intelligence sources say that North Korea will have missiles capable of hitting Alaska in 2004 and, with a smaller warhead, the West Coast of the United States. Militarily, could not a case be made that North Korea poses a greater threat to the United States than Iraq does? …
Rumsfeld: “…September 11th suggested lots of ways to deliver lethal damage to the United States.
In addition, countries have placed ballistic missiles in ships—cargo ships, commercial ships, dime a dozen—all over the world. Any given time, there’s any number off our coast, coming, going, on transporter-erector-launchers, and they simply erect it, fire off a ballistic missile, put it down, cover it up. Their radar signature’s not any different than other 50 others in close proximity. So your comment that they don’t have the ability to deliver a ballistic missile to this country is flat wrong.
(Article, Link)
» More stories on: Iran, Iraq, North Korea, Proliferation, Ship-Launched Threat
National Intelligence Estimate on the Foreign Ballistic Missile Threat
January 9, 2002 :: CIA :: News
The National Intelligence Council released the latest report on Foreign Missile Developments and the Ballistic Missile Threat Through 2015. The report concludes that the missile threat to the United States has increased since 1999 and that any future analyses of the missile threat must also include the threat posed by rogue nations and terrorist groups. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Analysis, China, India, Iran, Iraq, North Korea, Pakistan, Proliferation
