Posted on 07/10/2002 5:07:20 PM PDT by flamefront
Vancouver and Halifax Ports Go Unguarded
Amid renewed concern over new terror attacks against America, Canada has left its ports unguarded. Canada has removed its police on the ground inside the port facilities of Vancouver and Halifax, reportedly in response to budget shortfalls.
According to U.S. and Canadian intelligence officials, the ports are currently "wide open" for terrorist infiltration. The lack of police to patrol and inspect these ports of entry has raised concerns inside the U.S. that al-Qaeda terrorists may use the unguarded entry points as landing areas for attacks on America.
Seattle, Los Angeles, Chicago and Boston are considered particularly vulnerable to terrorists who could use the unguarded Canadian ports to enter North America.
Canada Is a Terrorist Entry Port
In 1999, U.S. Customs officials foiled a planned millennium bombing attack on Los Angeles at a Washington state border crossing. Customs officials captured Ahmed Ressam, a known al-Qaeda terrorist, who was armed with a carload of explosives while trying to enter the United States. Ressam was based in Vancouver, Canada.
Ressam's capture was considered more luck than police work: He was detected only because a vigilant U.S. Customs border guard noticed that he was acting nervous and requested permission to examine his auto.
In addition, Mohamed Atta, the suicide pilot who flew a Boeing 767 into the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, also entered the United States via Canada.
Canadian Liberal Government Was Warned
According to the former executive director of the Canadian Police Association, the Canadian government was warned that the unprotected seaports would become the targets of terrorist organizations and organized crime rings if the Ports Canada Police were disbanded.
"They [the Liberal-led government] received strong and clear warnings from virtually every branch of law enforcement in this country," said Scott Newark.
Newark noted that provincial attorneys general, police chiefs, Crown prosecutors and even international security organizations warned the Liberals they were preparing to open Canada's ports to uncontrollable illegal activity, including drug trafficking, human smuggling and terrorism.
"It's entirely dishonest for them to say they've suddenly discovered this problem. They created it. They just got it in their heads that they were going to do this [disband the ports police force] and now we're paying for it," noted Newark.
Newark and others had warned the Liberal-led government in submissions and testimony before the Commons transport committee that cutting the ports police would leave North America vulnerable to increased activities by Asian organized crime, terrorists and other illegal organizations.
"There has never been another instance where [Canadian law enforcement] has been more clear and unanimous in its recommendations to the government, and they were rejected," stated Newark.
"If they are looking for a source of the problem, they need only look in the mirror."
Links to Red Chinese and Canadian Prime Minister
U.S. and Canadian authorities are concerned because the port facilities in Vancouver are now under the control of the state-owned China Ocean Shipping Company, or COSCO. COSCO is officially part of the Chinese navy and has been directly linked to illegal arms smuggling.
"COSCO," according to Defense Department intelligence officials "operates a fleet of ELINT (electronic intelligence) trawlers for the PRC government. ... When China delivers missiles or chemical agents to the Middle East, specially outfitted COSCO ships deliver them."
Immediately after the ports police were disbanded in Vancouver, the Canadian government granted special docking and container facilities to COSCO. Just by coincidence, of course, COSCO hired former Captain of the Port Norm Stark.
The links to COSCO go even higher than the former port captain, however. COSCO is intimately linked to CITIC, the China International Trust and Investment Corp., on whose board sits the Canadian prime minister's son-in-law, Andre Desmerais. Desmerais is also a shareholder, along with Chinese billionaire Li Ka Shing and Robert Kuok. Li Ka Shing, along with Henry Fok, provided the seed money to establish CITIC.
Chinese Army Companies Involved in Arms Smuggling
According to the Rand Corporation, CITIC is an "investment concern under China's governmental State Council." CITIC "became identified with the PLA [People's Liberation Army] as a result of the scandal surrounding Wang Jun and his visit to the White House on 6 February 1996."
In February 1996, President Clinton met with Chinese arms dealer Wang Jun after taking a donation from Arkansas DNC donor Charlie Trie. The Rand Corp. noted that "Wang Jung is both director of CITIC and Chairman of Poly Group, the arms trading company of the General Staff Department."
According to the Rand Corporation report, "Poly Technologies, Ltd., was founded in 1984, ostensibly as a subsidiary of CITIC, although it was later exposed to be the primary commercial arm of the PLA General Staff Department's Equipment Sub-Department. Throughout the 1980s, Poly sold hundreds of millions of dollars of largely surplus arms around the world, exporting to customers in Thailand, Burma, Iran, Pakistan, and the United States."
The Rand report concluded, "CITIC does enter into business partnerships with and provide logistical assistance to PLA and defense-industrial companies like Poly. Poly's U.S. subsidiaries were abruptly closed in August 1996. Allegedly, Poly's representative, Robert Ma, conspired with China North Industries Corporation's [NORINCO] representative, Richard Chen, and a number of businessmen in California to illegally import 2000 AK-47s into the United States."
Leaks in Clinton Administration Foiled Bust
The Poly Tech story goes deeper than just a few Chinese generals and a princeling or two. According to another document obtained from the Commerce Department, the 2,000 machine guns were to be transferred to the Long Beach port in California onboard the COSCO ship Empress Phoenix. However, "a leak from the State Dept. alerted the company, which then canceled the delivery."
Allegedly, Poly Tech's man in America, Robert Ma, conspired with NORINCO representative Richard Chen to import the 2,000 fully automatic AK-47s into the United States. Chen and Ma agreed to sell the machine guns to Customs agents posing as Miami drug smugglers. Lu Yi Lun, described in court documents as NORINCO's No. 2 official, was also charged in the case.
U.S. investigators say arms broker Hammond Ku, a key figure in the case, told undercover U.S. agents three times that China's government knew what was happening. According to the 100-page federal indictment from one of the key undercover agents, Chen and Ma had difficulty in getting the "barrels" because they required "higher-level permission."
Customs officials added that the Chinese apparently believed the automatic rifles were going to U.S. street gangs. U.S. investigators also said company representatives tried to sell rocket launchers, anti-aircraft missiles, machine guns and even tanks.
"Unfortunately for them," states the Rand report, "their 'customers' turned out to be undercover U.S. Customs and BATF agents, posing as members of a Miami syndicate. Poly's representative, Robert Ma, fled the country one step ahead of Federal law enforcement officials who had a warrant for his arrest, and his current whereabouts are unknown."
I've got some even worse news -- the U.S. has been "wide open for terrorists" for years.
Hell, the INS even gave Mohammed Atta an extension on his student visa six months after he flew a plane into the side of the World Trade Center.
And we still give them MFN status, send most of our manufacturing there, supply them with sensitive data and equipment, and allow their people to come here and work in high-tech engineering positions on H1-B visas...
Anyway, one of their segments tomorrow night will be a undercover expose of middle eastern types crossing the mexican border illegally.
Fortunately, this program is for the 'general' FOX TV stations as regular programming so those of us that do not receive FNC will have access to this new program...
I did not know this. Any other references to Atta coming to the US from Canada?
That they sourced from Canada or not, that question is good. But why risk crossing if not as an easy entry point?
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