In This Article
Subscribe to International Updates
Associated Press
A.Q. Khan, founder of Pakistan's nuclear
program
A.Q. Khan, founder of Pakistan's nuclear
program
Smuggling Ring May Have Disseminated Nuclear Secrets
June 17, 2008 09:41 AM
by
Josh Katz
Countries like North Korea, Iran and Libya may have accessed blueprints for strategic nuclear weapons, according to a report by a former UN arms inspector.
30-Second Summary
Former top UN arms inspector David Albright authored the report stating that the A.Q. Khan smuggling ring obtained blueprints for an advanced nuclear weapon and may have shared them with many “countries or rogue groups,” according to The Washington Post.
Information on how to produce a nuclear weapon has been given to such countries before, Albright indicates. But he says this case is different because of the weapon’s small size. The compact device could fit on a ballistic missile, and that is the “holy grail” for countries like Iran and North Korea, said BBC's Security correspondent Gordon Correra, the blog Nuclear Arms Wonk reports.
Abdul Qadeer Khan is renowned as the father of Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal, but in 2003 intelligence surfaced that he had provided other nations with nuclear secrets. In 2004 he confessed to heading an international smuggling ring, and he has been held under house arrest ever since.
But in late May, A.Q. Khan disavowed his prior confession, saying that President Pervez Musharraf forced him to admit to criminal activities. He is still considered a hero in Pakistan, and with Musharraf’s downfall, Khan’s travel restrictions have eased. The U.S. has warned Pakistan that releasing Khan could cause a “world of trouble.”
Many analysts agree that if Albright’s report is true the implications can be quite serious. But Nuclear Arms Wonk argues that the critical point occurred when North Korea first obtained possession of a nuclear bomb; the technology to place it on a missile should not make that much of a practical difference, the blog says.
Information on how to produce a nuclear weapon has been given to such countries before, Albright indicates. But he says this case is different because of the weapon’s small size. The compact device could fit on a ballistic missile, and that is the “holy grail” for countries like Iran and North Korea, said BBC's Security correspondent Gordon Correra, the blog Nuclear Arms Wonk reports.
Abdul Qadeer Khan is renowned as the father of Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal, but in 2003 intelligence surfaced that he had provided other nations with nuclear secrets. In 2004 he confessed to heading an international smuggling ring, and he has been held under house arrest ever since.
But in late May, A.Q. Khan disavowed his prior confession, saying that President Pervez Musharraf forced him to admit to criminal activities. He is still considered a hero in Pakistan, and with Musharraf’s downfall, Khan’s travel restrictions have eased. The U.S. has warned Pakistan that releasing Khan could cause a “world of trouble.”
Many analysts agree that if Albright’s report is true the implications can be quite serious. But Nuclear Arms Wonk argues that the critical point occurred when North Korea first obtained possession of a nuclear bomb; the technology to place it on a missile should not make that much of a practical difference, the blog says.
Headline Links: Smuggling ring may have spread nuclear technology
The blueprints may have been shared with many “countries or rogue groups,” according to The Washington Post. The bomb is small and compact, permitting use on a ballistic missile. “To many of these countries, it’s all about size and weight,” Albright said in an interview. “They need to be able to fit the device on the missiles they have.”
Source: The Washington Post (free registration may be required)
Recently, Pakistan has called A.Q.Khan’s case closed. A senior Bush administration official said, “We’ve been very direct with them that releasing Khan could cause a world of trouble. … The problem with Pakistan these days is that you never know who is making the decision—the army, the intelligence agencies, the president or the new government.”
Source: The New York Times (free registration may be required)
Background: Khan renounces confession
The Guardian reported May 30 that Khan had recanted his earlier confession, claiming that Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf forced it upon him. Khan had been under house arrest since 2004. The father of Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal, still seen as a national hero, blamed the West for his criminal public image: “They don’t like our God, they don’t like our prophet, they don’t like our holy book, the Qur’an. So how could they like me?”
Source: The Guardian
Opinion & Analysis: The seriousness of the threat, the culpability of Khan
Arms Control Wonk, written by physicist Dr. Jeffrey Lewis, argues that the media is making the recent smuggling situation appear more serious that it actually is. “I don’t want to underplay the seriousness of Khan selling weapon designs. But, from a proliferators perspective, mounting a warhead on a missile is surely only a modest strategic advantage compared to obtaining the Bomb in the first place.”
Source: Arms Control Wonk
Pakistani blogger Zubair Ahmed defends the good name of A.Q. Khan against attacks: “Isn’t it heroic that Dr. Khan, in a country that does not even build motor bike engines, successfully built a uranium enrichment plant? If all it takes was smuggling and putting together a team of scientists to reverse engineer, why so few countries in the world are nuclear capable?”
Source: Teeth Maestro
In an interview, Charles D. Ferguson, Fellow for Science and Technology, for the Council on Foreign Relations, claims that Khan’s former smuggling network still poses a threat, and explains how the United States is “trying to walk a fine line” on pressuring Pakistan to probe into the Khan issue.
Source: Council on Foreign Relations
Key Player: A.Q. Khan
The BBC writes, “Abdul Qadeer Khan, who has confessed to transferring nuclear technology to Iran and Libya, is regarded as a national hero for helping Pakistan become a nuclear state.”
Source: The BBC
Related Topic: Congressional hearing on Syrian-North Korean nuclear links
In April, the CIA briefed Congress that North Korea had been providing Syria with nuclear technology. Last September, Israel unilaterally destroyed the alleged Syrian nuclear facility.
Source: findingDulcinea
© 2009 Dulcinea Media, Inc.
