Iraq paid N. Korea to deliver missiles

Washington Times ^ | Oct. 4, 2003 | Bill Gertz and Stephen Dinan

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

Saddam Hussein's government paid North Korea $10 million for medium-range Nodong missile technology in the months before the Iraq war, but never received any goods because of U.S. pressure, the chief U.S. weapons inspector in Iraq said yesterday.

David Kay, who is leading the Iraq Survey Group, said there is "a lot of evidence" Iraq was rebuilding its banned missile program, which it actively hid from U.N. weapons inspectors.

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

 Thanks, Tonkin!

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[Ragtime Cowgirl]

Under the terms of the North Korean deal, Iraq was to receive "missile technology for the Nodong, a 1,300-kilometer missile, as well as other nonmissile related but prohibited technologies."

"The Iraqis actually advanced the North Koreans $10 million," he said. "In late 2002, the North Koreans came to the Iraqis as a result of the Iraqis inquiring 'Where is the stuff we paid for?' and the North Koreans said, 'Sorry, there's so much U.S. attention on us that we cannot deliver it.' "

David Kay's preliminary report exposes axis of evildoers doing evil, ping!

If you want on or off my Pro-Coalition ping list, please Freepmail me. Warning: it is a high volume ping list on good days. (Most days are good days).

[blackie]

David Kay's preliminary report exposes axis of evildoers doing evil ~ Big Bump!

[livius]

Anybody remember the ship that was stopped and boarded by the Spanish Navy in the spring of this year, and was found to be carrying NK missiles buried under a load of cement? The ship itself may have been NK, in fact, and I think the load was bound for Yemen. The missiles, of course, were not declared on the manifest.

The story disappeared quietly after a couple of days, but I wonder if it was connected with this.

[Alamo-Girl]

Bump!

[Broadside Joe]

Sorry and yes I'm bumping all these threads.

BUMP!

[B.Bumbleberry]

Lol, North Korea stiffed Iraq! I say we go after NK for a refund to help reconstruction.

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

Thank you!

[browardchad]

(Kay) said European countries were involved in Iraq's three covert missile programs, which included a copy of the 620-mile-range Nodong missile.

"I can't name them right now," he said.

Gosh, who could these countries be? Maybe, just maybe, the countries that opposed the war so vehemently?

As for the assistance Iraq was receiving from the unnamed countries, he said: "Our fear is that that same assistance may be made available to other countries, and we would like to close off that avenue of proliferation.”

Blockade France?

[OldFriend]

No wonder the shrieks are all the same.....See I told you so, no WMD, no WMD, no WMD.......they would rather not let the truth be known.

[quesera]

I am willing to bet that the WMD's are there, buried deep underground and it's just a matter of finding them. I don't see Saddam shipping all his WMD's to Syria, maybe he was crazy but not stupid.

[pepsionice]

The boat story was....the US tracked the ship from NK, all the way to the Indian Sea and as it appeared to head toward the Straits...they had the Spanish Navy who was on patrol...halt the vessel. The missiles were onboard, and the captain accused them of international piracy. Within a few hours, the Yemen government stepped up and said that they were their missiles and that the US needed to step out of this mess quickly. The Spanish Navy was confused by the whole mess, and finally, they released the cargo boat and it unloaded the missiles in Yemen. My guess is that the missiles are still in some warehouse along the port area. The Yemen idiot (premier or president)...likely got $10 million for stepping up to the plate, and has the missiles as trade items. The NK government likely got paid in cash already, and doesn't care what happens. My guess is that Yemen is hunting around Africa for a country to purchase these short range missiles....but no one is going to buy these. Syria is going to stay way out of this deal, as will Libya and Iran. Its hard to figure who will get a cut-rate deal on these missiles. They may very well sit in Yemen for five years before some nut in Afghanistan coughs up $20 million to get them.

As for the story disappearing...the mainstream press didn't care...no smoking gun and no apparent documents. Why report this whole thing?

[OneLoyalAmerican]

Might you have referenced the "Stateless Vessel" (smuggling privateer) of North Korean origin?

The same "stateless vessel" which, after a short layover in a CHINESE port, departs with a NEWLY re-painted stern that conceals her true home port?

[livius]

Thanks for the details! I was sure I hadn't hallucinated the whole thing.

Now that I recall it, yes, it was orginally unclear what country they were being sent to - and then Yemen piped up. We backed off on it and basically told the Spaniards to let them go.

I do wonder where the missiles are now, but I can't believe we just let them float away like that. Hopefully, somebody somewhere in our government has an eye on them. (Well, somebody outside of the CIA and State Dept., I hope!)

[OneLoyalAmerican]

Educated guess: Since the liberal media only reports anti-Bush news, we would have heard if the following assumption was NOT the case.

The Yemeni economy got an unexpected "Gift" of cement. And some Yemeni men were gainfully employed in the scrap metal processing business.

[PhilDragoo]

He said European countries were involved in Iraq's three covert missile programs, which included a copy of the 620-mile-range Nodong missile.

"I can't name them right now," he said.

I'm going to go way out on a limb here.

FRANCE FRANCE
FRANCE FRANCE
FRANCE FRANCE

[SAMWolf]

You think france might have been inolved?

[snippy_about_it]

tsk tsk Phil, it's;

fRANCE fRANCE
fRANCE fRANCE
fRANCE fRANCE

[windchime]

Bump!