COLLECTIVE MADNESS


“Soft despotism is a term coined by Alexis de Tocqueville describing the state into which a country overrun by "a network of small complicated rules" might degrade. Soft despotism is different from despotism (also called 'hard despotism') in the sense that it is not obvious to the people."

Wednesday, May 09, 2007

"Ego, money, nationalism and a sense of Islamic fraternity" motivated Khan and his supporters to sell nuclear technology to other Muslim countries"


There simply is no other issue more important to the US and the West than nuclear proliferation into the Islamic world at a state or under-state level. None.

Analysis: Pakistan's nuke network may resume
By Claude Salhani
UPI International Editor

WASHINGTON -- The black-market nuclear network established by the father of Pakistan's nuclear program, A.Q. Khan, broken up in 2004, may be dormant but could resume operations in the future, according to a just-released report by the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies.

The IISS study found no evidence to indicate that Pakistan sanctioned or encouraged the sales of nuclear technology and equipment to Iran, Libya and North Korea as a means to fund its own nuclear program.

The report by Mark Fitzpatrick, a former U.S. deputy assistant secretary of state for non-proliferation, found that Khan ran a black-market operation beyond the reach of the Pakistani government. However, the truth behind Khan's activities is unlikely to ever be fully revealed.

"Pakistan would never allow any foreign intelligence organization to question Dr. Khan," said Fitzpatrick.

He added that the CIA had some knowledge of Khan's proliferation activities while they were in progress, yet did not pay enough attention to them. "There's no doubt that the CIA knew about some of Khan's activities at various stages of his proliferation," Fitzpatrick told a group of journalists in Washington. "There's also no doubt that the CIA didn't give enough attention to this area of private sector proliferation in looking at Iran's nuclear development program over the years."

The CIA, much like other Western intelligence services, was more focused on state-to-state activities rather than on individuals, like A.Q. Khan's network, said Fitzpatrick.

Fitzpatrick, the lead author of a dossier revealing the activities of the A.Q. Khan network, stated that Khan's sales to Libya, for example, "were almost exclusively private business transactions, beyond state control."

The centrifuges that Khan's black-market operation sold to Libya were produced in Malaysia, Turkey, Europe and South Africa and shipped via Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, according to the report.

But given the control Pakistan maintains over its nuclear technology it is hard to imagine that Khan did not enjoy the protection, if not the outright support of Pakistan's intelligence services -- the ISI -- who were known to be supportive of the Taliban in Afghanistan and other radical Islamist organizations, such as Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida
However, Fitzpatrick's report identified some "gray areas." It remains questionable whether prior to Sept. 11, 2001, Pakistan's government did not have knowledge of Khan's illicit activities or to what degree certain groups within the Pakistani government did not facilitate Khan's nuclear proliferation activities. Soon after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the United States, Washington communicated to Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf -- in no uncertain terms -- to stop Pakistan's support of Islamist groups.

In an interview with Pakistan's Dawn newspaper, Fitzpatrick said that former Pakistani army chief Gen. Aslam Beg "encouraged" the Khan network's sales to other countries.

"Ego, money, nationalism and a sense of Islamic fraternity" motivated Khan and his supporters to sell nuclear technology to other Muslim countries, he said. "Different motivations in different cases."

Fitzpatrick said in his report that he did not think Pakistan sold its nuclear technology in order to raise money for its nuclear program.

Additionally, Fitzpatrick also found no link between Khan's network of nuclear proliferators and the terrorist group responsible for the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon just outside Washington.

Although Khan was removed from Pakistan's nuclear program in January 2004 and placed under house arrest by President Musharraf, he remains a very popular and revered figure in Pakistan. However, despite an official pardon from Musharraf, Khan remains under house arrest.

Following Khan's arrest, Washington declared that the network had been shut down. But according to Fitzpatrick's report published by the IISS, it is believed that some of Khan's associates have escaped law-enforcement attention and "may resume their black-market business."

According to Fitzpatrick, Khan established a procurement network to keep Pakistan's nuclear program operational. Fitzpatrick said the Khan network was made up of about 50 members that included operators from Dubai, Turkey, Malaysia, Switzerland and Germany, as well as from Pakistan.

Given the strong demand for nuclear technology by governments as well as from terrorist groups, the possibility of Khan reactivating his black-market network remains a distinct possibility.


25 comments:

  1. The IISS also warns that the legacy of the Khan network may yet provide more nasty surprises. "How much help Khan gave Iran and North Korea and whether the Khan network had other customers are questions of intense interest to investigative agencies," it says.

    Some equipment thought to have been in the network's possession remains unaccounted for. Most ominously, the IISS report suggests that other nations, or even non-state actors such as al-Qaeda, could have received copies of a nuclear-weapon design that the Khan network is known to have peddled to Libya.

    (The Libyan regime, caught red-handed dealing with Khan, abandoned its nuclear program and handed over the blueprint, together with other nuclear related technology, to the U.S., in exchange for improved relations with the West.) According to the IISS report, "the bomb designs were apparently digitalised and copied onto computer disks at one of Khan's offices in Dubai.


    Market for Iran?

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  2. Olmert reaps a whopping 0% in a recent poll.

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  3. THIS article doesn't even mention the real danger, a nuclear Iran.

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  4. btw,
    The Refugee camp in Ft Dix was supposed to be named "The Village" to honor Ms Clinton's ideals, and those of Pres Bubba, for bringing TWENTY THOUSAND of them, in, w/o background checks, until "later!"
    ---
    Yet the little eternal Zionist among us makes the insensitive suggestion that Non-Halal Pizza could have been made on base.
    I suggest you make ammends, Mat Zion, by sending some complementary vittles such as those below to those now incarcerated.
    ---
    - Midamarhalal.com Crescent Chicken

    Midamar is excited to introduce a new line of Vegetarian Fed, Hand- Slaughtered, Zabiha Halal Chicken from our friends and one of our suppliers at Crescent Foods. In addition, we would like to thank Crescent Foods for recognizing Midamar as their official online source for home delivery of Crescent Foods Brand Zabiha Halal Chicken.
    Look for this exciting line to continue to grow as we expand the options you will have available.

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  5. Melamine Free!
    CRESCENT CHICKEN CHILI PATTIES $8.00/each

    For those Strategy Sessions with unfairly incarcerated Members of La Raza, and Narcoterrorists from South of the Border.

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  6. From Filthy Semi Halal Rat Trap to Tony Sopranos Pizza!

    ""He was high strung, always arrogant and narcissistic about himself. He was stocky and muscular and * always wore a wife-beater T-shirt.* He was always flexing his muscles."

    NY Post

    The Dukas, who are ethnic Albanians, moved to the United States more than a decade ago and once owned a pizzeria in Turnersville, about 35 miles from Fort Dix. They sold it in 2005 to Tony Giordano, who now operates it as Tony Sopranos Pizza.

    Giordano called the pizzeria a "filthy rat trap" before he remodeled it.
    "

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  7. Cutler,
    Maybe Romney's talkin about 4 percent of today's budget equaling Reagan Era Defense Spending?

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  8. Gates envisions a troop reduction
    Defense secretary says if the current Iraq strategy shows signs of success by autumn, the U.S. may cut back on forces.
    Iraqi lawmakers' vacation plans anger U.S.
    Cheney makes surprise visit to Iraq

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  9. I think we're making a big mistake testing to this old Shiia Sunni divide. Iran and Pakistan are working in concert. My instinct tells me we're being had.

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  10. So, the Bush Administration did not decide on what to decide.
    Maybe is a hell of a deterence.

    A bird in hand, bob, is worth two in the bush.
    The Pakistani have 48 or so birds, today.
    They are a greater threat to stability than a possible Iranian nuke, someday.

    The idea that Dr Khan operated without the tacit approval of the Generals is nonsensical.

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  11. What is even more nonsensical is Mr Cheney putting "pressure" on Mr Malik to pressure the Parliment to pass laws that none or the principals support, when Mr Cheney and Mr Bush cannot pressure the US Congress to fund the continued military operations in Iraq.

    A case of the pot callin' the kettle black. Mr Bush is more likely to get the funding, then Mr Maliki is of obtaining an oil deal or reBaathification of the Iraqi Government.

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  12. Jihadist "Mickey Mouse" taken off the air

    An update on this story. "Militant 'Mickey Mouse' pulled off air," by Mohammed Daraghmeh for the Associated Press:

    RAMALLAH, West Bank - Hamas militants have suspended a TV program that featured a Mickey Mouse lookalike urging Palestinian children to fight Israel and work for global Islamic domination, the Palestinian information minister said Wednesday.
    Information Minister Mustafa Barghouti said the character — a giant black-and-white rodent with a high-pitched voice — represented a "mistaken approach" to the Palestinian struggle against Israeli occupation.
    Translation: We're sorry we got caught.

    He said that the program was pulled from Hamas-affiliated Al Aqsa TV at his ministry's request and "placed under review."

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  13. White House counsellor Dan Bartlett accused the Democrats of deliberately framing legislation "that we cannot accept."

    It was unclear if Bush would ever have to wield his veto as chances of a split funding bill making it through the more closely divided Senate appeared dim, and composite legislation must be agreed between both chambers before being sent to the president.

    As the fierce wrangle over Iraq intensified, Vice President Dick Cheney arrived in Baghdad on an unannounced visit, and said he was confident Iraq's government understood the urgent need for progress.


    Unacceptable Legislation

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  14. Elijah's link: A week or so ago I did this post and it did not generate much discussion. It discussed Israel's nuclear reply to various scenarios. The US needs to do something similar.

    The first relates to the Fort Dix problem and that relates to the British problem with Muslims in Britain being radicalized against them and the lack of self policing in the Muslim community. Simply stated:

    " Where are the Muslim snitches?"

    Over the last few years, I took a stand that few would articulate and that was the simple declaration that "Islam was the problem." I took the stand back when we were bombing Serbia over Kosovo and asking why we were killing Christians for Muslims? My antipathy towards Islam went back to the idiocy of supporting the mujahadeen in Afghanistan against the Russians. I remember back in 1987 flying into Kennedy from Iceland and seeing the airport loaded with tough young Afghans who were spending an extremely short period of time going through immigration and then spilling onto the streets of NYC. I thought to myself, does anyone have a clue about what these people believe in?

    Obviously they did not then , but do now. Islam is still the problem and their weapon of choice will be nuclear. Our professed response must be to articulate that in the event of a nuclear attack on the US, by Islamists, that Islam in the broadest sense will pay the price. At a minimum we have to let Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Iran know that they will not participate in any Islamic satisfaction if the US is hit with a nuclear weapon. Their's will be a complete no more questions asked termination.

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  15. Israel and France once made a secret deal to produce a nuclear bomb together, according to a new biography of Israeli elder statesman Shimon Peres.

    ...

    France ultimately scrapped that agreement several years later under the weight of enormous U.S. diplomatic pressure for it to cease its nuclear cooperation with Israel.

    ...

    After finally becoming prime minister for a second time, after a right-wing Jew assassinated Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in 1995, Peres dismissed his advisers' pleas to call an early election.


    Nuclear Role

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  16. Dennis Miller had Robert Spencer as a guest.
    He says one thing the left shares with Jihadis which bonds them is a utopian vision they are willing to impose by use of force.
    ---
    Miller's neighbor, Peter Noone (Herman) of Herman's Hermits also dropped in.
    The perfect example of a non-selfcentered celebrity.
    Great stories he willingly shares with anyone.
    ---
    mp3 available here:
    http://www.dennismillerradio.com/

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  17. the Republican congressmen went on to say, "The word about the war and its progress cannot come from the White House or even you, Mr. President. There's no longer any credibility. It has to come from General Petraeus.

    The meeting lasted an hour and fifteen minutes, and was, in the words of one, " remarkable for the bluntness, and no holds barred honesty and the message delivered by all these Republican congressmen.

    BRIAN WILLIAMS: And Tim...how did the president react and how did this then affect the instructions for VP Cheney heading off to Iraq?

    RUSSERT: One congressman said, "How can our daughters and sons spill their blood while the Iraqi parliament goes on vacation? The president responded, "The Vice President is over there to tell them, 'Do not go on vacation.'"

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  18. "Cutler,
    Maybe Romney's talkin about 4 percent of today's budget equaling Reagan Era Defense Spending?"


    I'd have to crunch the numbers to see if it was equal in raw funding, as opposed to GDP.

    But the problem is, as it has always been, that if you have a bad strategy all the money in the world won't help you.

    Funding doesn't seem to be our problem compared to our enemies. We already can smash our enemies with nice toys, we just can't convert it into a meaningful win.

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  19. " Where are the Muslim snitches?"

    I think the even more glaring fact is that even with millions of Arab citizens, we have shortages of Arabic translators.

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  20. The FT, May 8:

    David Frum, a former speechwriter to Mr Bush, says Mr Bush’s principal concern is that Iraq policy will increasingly be driven by a rebellious Congress and by army generals on the ground. Last week Mr Bush vetoed the Democratic Congress’s Iraq spending bill because it attached a timeline for troop withdrawal. General David Petraeus, who heads US military operations in Iraq, has said the effects of the 30,000 troop “surge” will not be apparent until September. “The real concern is that the Bush administration is losing its ability to control Iraq policy,” said Mr Frum.

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  21. 2164th,

    Am I correct in interpreting your nuclear policy vis a vis Islam is that if any Islamic person hits US then we will take out all of Islam?

    Aside from the feasibility of taking out all of Islam is this a reasonable way to formulate deterrence philosophy? For example if India hits Pakistan with a nuke is it then reasonable in your eye for Pakistan to also hit US (surely we have helped India in their program). Or, if religion is the kicker, if France hits India with a nuke, then fair game for India to also hit US in retaliation?

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  22. Ash,

    If a nuclear weapon from Any Islamic source hits the US, the Islamic world must pay an extremely disproportionate price with a nuclear response from the US. It differs little from the unfair response the Soviet Union would have received had they ever struck the US with a nuclear weapon. 

There is a substantial lack of cooperation from a large percentage of all Muslims in the war against radical Islam. The polled numbers of those who hold sympathy for AQ are depressingly high. However, I do believe that the vast majority of Muslims want to live a long and normal life, and are in no hurry to meet Allah. With that said the best deterrence against a nuclear strike from an Islamic terror group is intelligence provided by knowledgeable Muslims. I want to give them a strong incentive to cooperate in our determination to eliminate a growing and real threat.

    I want the Islamic states to know there will be severe consequences from acts committed by the rotten fruit of Islam. It is a notice for them to clean up their own problems. The problem is within Islam.

We missed an opportunity to demonstrate our resolve at Tora Bora. We demonstrated something else. That was a mistake.

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