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)
» May 28, UNMOVIC Report on Iraqi Missiles
» June 11, 2004: UN Report renews concerns about Iraqi missile proliferation
» More stories on: Iraq, Proliferation
