Posted on 08/09/2003 7:48:03 AM PDT by joesnuffy
GEOSTRATEGY-DIRECT INTELLIGENCE BRIEF China expands missile proliferation to Mideast Egypt, Iran, Libya, Syria, North Korea benefiting from campaign
Posted: August 9, 2003 1:00 a.m. Eastern
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The United States believes China is expanding missile exports to the Middle East in violation of its pledges to the international community and its own nonproliferation laws.
The Bush administration has determined Beijing has violated its pledges to end the proliferation of missiles, U.S. officials said. The action is part of a Chinese campaign to increase exports and expand its Mideast clients.
China has been exporting missiles directly to Egypt, Iran, Libya and Syria and has transferred missiles via North Korea, the officials said.
The missile exports were discussed during a hearing last month by the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission. Officials expressed concern over China's increasing failure to enforce its own nonproliferation laws, announced in August 2002.
"China does not appear to be enforcing controls at its borders, allowing unauthorized transfers to go undetected," said Paula DeSutter, assistant secretary of state for verification and compliance. "Furthermore, it must establish a system of end-use verification checks to ensure that items approved for transfer are not diverted," she told the commission on July 24.
The State Department has accused China of transferring missiles to Iran, Libya, North Korea and Pakistan. The department's most recent Noncompliance Report said the exports violated China's commitments to the United States and calls into "serious question China's stated commitment to controlling missile proliferation."
"China is a key to achieving the administration's goal of stopping the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction technology throughout the world," DeSutter said. "While there are many buyers in the market for WMD [weapons of mass destruction] and missiles, there are only a handful of states with the capability to be dealers in that market. China's sophistication with many of these technologies has made it possible for Chinese entities to become key exporters of WMD and missile technology."
Congress helped create the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission in 2000. The panel has been mandated to analyze and assess the Chinese role in the proliferation of WMD to countries listed by the State Department as sponsors of terrorism.
The Bush administration has approved sanctions against several leading Chinese companies in connection with their missile and WMD exports to Iran. They include China North Industries Corp., known as Norinco, which conducts extensive business with the United States.
Other Chinese companies in the missile and WMD market in the Middle East include the China Great Wall Industry Corp. and the China Precision Machinery Import-Export Corp., both of which sold M-11 missiles to Pakistan.
Officials said China began violating its missile nonproliferation commitments issued as early as 1992. In the mid-1990s, the officials said, China provided what they termed significant assistance to the missile and WMD programs of Iran and Syria.
The assistance included components and technology in liquid- and solid-fuel missiles.
In November 2000, China provided its most specific commitment to the United States. Beijing pledged not to assist any country in developing a missile that would violate the Missile Technology Control Regime. The MTCR bans the transfer of missiles with a range of 300 kilometers and a payload of 500 kilograms.
Within a year, officials said, China violated the commitment and exported missile-related technology to Pakistan. The export was arranged by the China Metallurgical Equipment Corp.
In her testimony, DeSutter termed Norinco and CPMIEC as major suppliers to Iran's missile program. She said Beijing has taken no action to stop the Chinese state-owned companies, both of which were sanctioned by Washington this year.
"The U.S. remains concerned, however, about the role of Chinese entities providing CW related equipment, technology, and precursor materials to Iran," DeSutter said. "The U.S. continues diplomatic efforts to encourage China to prevent exports to CW-related end-users, particularly in Iran."
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President George W Bush
A REPORT IN A LOCAL US newspaper said that a Magnequench unit in Valparaiso which specializes in so-called smart bomb technology is to be outsourced to the People's Republic of China.
What kind of unit is being outsourced? Is it data entry, accounting, or some other non-threatening work?
Also, they are insuring that Congress can't limit how much defense department work is done overseas.
To make sure we are truly an open society in every sense of the term, they are pushing FTAs granting unlimited access via permanent business visas to countries all over the world...Singapore and Chile are the first two of 28 others.
There is nothing about this that I saw in the linked article. Where did you get the info? If true, I, you, and all other Americans should raise Hell
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