Maybe you could learn the rules at FR instead: we leave the titles like they are:
 |
 Other Sections
Our Newspapers
|
.google_bold {
font-weight: bold;
font-family: Arial;
font-size: 11px;
}
|
US confirms uranium seizure By Matthew Lee in Washington January 1, 2004 THE United States today confirmed it had led an operation to seize uranium enrichment components from a German freighter headed for Libya that may have sealed Tripoli's decision to publicly renounce weapons of mass destruction this month. He declined to discuss specifics of the operation - details of which were first reported in The Wall Street Journal and confirmed to AFP by senior US officials - but said it showed the value of the US-led Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI). "What this incident shows is that the PSI is robust, producing results, fulfilling the mission for which it was intended," Ereli said. PSI was launched by US President George W Bush earlier this year to prevent the spread of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons.
Sixteen countries have now signed on to the program, which envisions seizing weapons of mass destruction, their components and delivery systems while in transit on the high seas, in international airspace or overland. US officials said the October seizure had not involved boarding the freighter in international waters but rather that the ship had been diverted to Italian port where local authorities searched it. The White House said Bush called Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi today to thank him for Rome's assistance in the global war on terrorism and especially in helping to stem the spread of unconventional weapons. Ereli would not comment on whether the October seizure of thousands of centrifuge parts from the freighter had been the main impetus in convincing Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi to give up weapons of mass destruction. He noted that the seizure had occurred months after Gaddafi initiated secret talks with the United States and Britain on giving up such arms. But he also pointed out that, shortly after the seizure, Libya had agreed to allow US and British experts to inspect its weapons facilities. "After this diversion, there were certain actions that took place," Ereli said. "Was there a causality? I think one could argue that, but coming to a definitive conclusion about it is hard." His comments mirrored what appears to be a division within the Bush administration about how much the seizure influenced Gaddafi in the run-up to his surprise December 19 announcement that Libya would give up its nuclear, biological and chemical weapons programs. One senior US official, speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity, said the confiscation of the components appeared to have sped up secret negotiations between the United States, Britain and Libya. "This definitely had an impact," the official said. "I'm not a mind reader, but I am sure it had an impact on the Libyans. They knew we were on to them." But another senior official cautioned that it was not entirely clear that the seizure had been the "only straw to break Gaddafi's back." "Some argue that Libya wouldn't have come to the table if they didn't know we had the goods on them," said the second official, who, like the first, spoke on condition of anonymity. "But others would say that bringing Libya on board was a painstaking and time-consuming process that involved a lot of things, including PSI," the official said. The seizure of centrifuge parts has been hinted at in US and British news reports since December 21, but until The Wall Street Journal's story today, specifics of the previously secret operation had remained elusive. While Ereli declined to go into detail, the US officials who spoke to AFP confirmed the Journal's account of the raid on the "BBC China" freighter, which is owned by the German firm BBC Chartering and Logistic GmbH. According to those officials, US and British intelligence discovered in September that the ship carrying the centrifuge parts destined for Libya would be leaving from a port in a Gulf nation. German authorities were then notified and shortly after the BBC China cleared the Suez Canal, they informed the shipowner, which then instructed the captain to change course for Italy, the officials said. A US naval vessel shadowed the freighter as it passed through the Mediterranean Sea to an Italian port, where it was boarded and searched, yielding the centrifuge parts, the officials said. The officials would not identify the equipment's country of origin, the Gulf nation from which the BBC China embarked, nor the Italian port where the search was conducted. They also stressed the important roles played by British, German and Italian authorities in the seizure. 
table.adlinks a:link {color:#0000FF;} table.adlinks a:active {color:#0000FF; } table.adlinks a:visited {color:#0000FF;} table.adlinks a:hover {color:#0000FF; text-decoration:underline;}
|
ul.rp_storylist {list-style-image: url(/images/red_arrow.gif); margin-left:21px; margin-top:0px; margin-bottom:0px;}
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
