See #57; that's why!
It was a CIA black ops!
A British Telegraph journalist in Niger
recently reported that the former U.S. assistant secretary of state for African affairs, Herman Cohen, had told Niger’s president to stay quiet on the uranium issue.
Diatta is quick to address the potentially damaging media report, pointing out that Cohen is also a lobbyist for the Nigerien government and frequently travels to Niger to brief the government on his work in Washington. The former U.S. ambassador to Gabon, Joseph Wilson, is another key player who helped [* should be 'failed to'] debunk the claim that Niger sold uranium to Iraq. In 2002, he was sent by the U.S. government to check out the uranium allegations, and he reported back that it was highly unlikely that any such transaction had taken place—a fact apparently not absorbed by the White House until after the president’s State of the Union address. “I know [Wilson] very well also,” said Diatta. “And you know, something very strange—when he went to Niger in February 2002, I was myself in Niger and we had a meeting in my house and we spoke about this matter. So, it was not a secret mission. Everyone spoke about this secret CIA mission. I don’t understand why there is so much noise about this visit to Niger.
“Ambassador Wilson was requested by the CIA to go to Niger, yes, but he accomplished this for his government without any problem. He told everyone that he was sent by the U.S. government on the uranium issue, without any secrecy,” Diatta said.
117 posted on 10/31/2005 6:47:14 AM PST by kcvl | To 115