Posted on 09/08/2002 3:58:33 AM PDT by kattracks
Iraq has tried since the middle of last year to acquire from abroad thousands of pieces of equipment that could be used only to produce enriched uranium, which is needed to manufacture nuclear weapons, US officials disclosed said.
The officials, who spoke to AFP on condition of anonymity on Saturday, refused to name the country or countries where the government of President Saddam Hussein went on a nuclear shopping spree, or to reveal how it intended to bring the equipment into Iraq.
But they said Baghdad was targeting aluminum tubes that are used exclusively in centrifuges that produce enriched uranium, a key component of any nuclear warhead.
"In the recent months, Iraq has been trying to obtain these tubes for its uranian enrichment program, and some of these shipments have been stopped," said one US intelligence official, who declined to elaborate.
It was not immediately clear whether any of the shipments managed to get through.
Since the tubes have no other industrial use, administration officials see the smuggling effort as fresh evidence that contrary to Baghdad's spirited denials, the Iraqi secret nuclear program is alive and well.
"This is part of the record of Saddam Hussein's continuing efforts to acquire nuclear weapons," said one senior administration official.
The Iraqi leader has also held several secret meetings in recent months with the country's top nuclear scientists in what is seen as attempt to personally monitor Baghdad's resurgent nuclear program, the officials said.
The Central Intelligence Agency has refused to comment on the evidence, which was first reported by The New York Times on its Web site earlier in the day.
But the senior administration official indicated that "additional information will come to light" and "old information will be viewed in a new light" in coming days, as the debate over President George W. Bush's goal of seeking regime change in Iraq gathers momentum.
Our son is writing a paper regarding a pro-war stance against Iraq and he is interested in doing extremely thorough research as his English teacher is a die-hard Democrat.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.