U.S., EU fear Syria "sanitized" alleged nuclear sites

[Moby]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20081128/wl_nm/us_nuclear_iaea_syria_4
By Mark Heinrich Mark Heinrich – Fri Nov 28, 1:10 pm ET

VIENNA (Reuters) – The United States and the European Union said on Friday they were disturbed by apparent Syrian efforts to "sanitize" sites U.N. inspectors want to examine in a probe into alleged covert nuclear activity.

Washington accused Damascus of adopting Iranian tactics to impede a nuclear watchdog investigation into what U.S. officials say was a secret atomic reactor that could have made plutonium for atom bombs if Israel had not bombed the site last year.

A November 19 International Atomic Energy Agency report said satellite imagery of the site revealed a layout resembling that of a reactor. Traces of uranium, or nuclear fuel, were found by inspectors allowed to scour the Al-Kibar site in June.

The IAEA's director urged Syria on Thursday to heed multiple agency requests for a return trip to Al-Kibar and to three military sites, as well as documentation about their uses, to help inspectors draw conclusions about what they were.

U.S. and EU envoys told a meeting of the IAEA's 35-nation Board of Governors that Syria needed to clarify why Syria had landscaped all four sites and removed objects after inspectors asked to see them, as revealed by satellite pictures.

U.S. Ambassador Gregory Schulte said the pictures, which inspectors screened last week for governors, offered "dramatic evidence that Syria took immediate steps to sanitize" the locations in question.

Syria has dismissed the intelligence as fabrications and ruled out more inspection visits on national security grounds.

"So far Syria seems to be testing the tactics of hindrance and unhelpfulness that Iran has so finely honed," U.S. Ambassador Gregory Schulte told the closed-door gathering.

The IAEA says Iran is stonewalling a longer-running probe into intelligence material that Washington says shows Tehran illicitly studied how to design atom bombs. Iran denies this but has not provided back-up evidence, the U.N. watchdog says.

SYRIA STANDS GROUND

Syria's top envoy reiterated to the meeting that the site Israel hit was a conventional military building. He also ruled expanded IAEA inspections on national security grounds.

Still, a diplomat close to the IAEA said it had resumed contacts with Syria about follow-up steps in the investigation and the next agency report would be issued in February.

An official summary of the meeting said some members -- an allusion to developing nations who comprise half the board -- complained that tardy sharing of intelligence and Israel's "unilateral use of force" had severely hampered the inquiry.

Western delegations said that, given Syria's assertion that the uranium traces came with missiles used to destroy Al-Kibar, the only way to verify their origin was to let the IAEA examine debris and equipment whisked away from the desert site.

Schulte said the case underlined the IAEA's limitations in a country that has not ratified the Additional Protocol, a crucial tool in detecting clandestine nuclear behavior since it permits short-notice inspections beyond declared nuclear sites.

"Syria is one state that declined to adopt the protocol. Perhaps we now understand why," he said.

Schulte and French Ambassador Francois-Xavier Deniaud, speaking for the European Union, urged Syria to embrace the protocol to help rebuild confidence in its intentions.

Syria has ruled this out as long as Israel refuses to do so as well as join the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and give up its undeclared nuclear arsenal, the only one in the Middle East.

(Editing by Richard Williams)

[Linkster]

Why should a sovereign country allow BS inspections when they are just doing the same thing Israel has done for the last 40 years when it comes to nuclear inspections - interesting that one country can do it and the other has to get dissed by the press for exactly the same thing

[Mr. Blue]

Why should a sovereign country allow BS inspections when they are just doing the same thing Israel has done for the last 40 years when it comes to nuclear inspections - interesting that one country can do it and the other has to get dissed by the press for exactly the same thing

Depends on who owns the press I suppose :thumbsup:

[Smurf-Herder]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20081128/wl_nm/us_nuclear_iaea_syria_4


No Shit!

http://www.dcjunkies.com/showthread.php?t=7177

[Frankg]

Why should a sovereign country allow BS inspections when they are just doing the same thing Israel has done for the last 40 years when it comes to nuclear inspections - interesting that one country can do it and the other has to get dissed by the press for exactly the same thing
Because Syria is a known sponser of terrorist groups while Israel is not

[Smurf-Herder]

Because Syria is a known sponser of terrorist groups while Israel is not

Another point is, Israel never signed the NPT; whereas Iran and Syria did. There is no legal framework for inspections in a country who is not a signatory to the treaty.

[Bill]

Too bad your side never got around to attacking Syria while you had the chance.

Now we have to go back to diplomatic pressure.

It's gonna be hard to calm down the nations that Israel might attack, when everybody knows Israel has nukes.

[Hog Trash]

Why should a sovereign country allow BS inspections when they are just doing the same thing Israel has done for the last 40 years when it comes to nuclear inspections - interesting that one country can do it and the other has to get dissed by the press for exactly the same thingIf a nation openly displays hostility towards other non-muslim nations and expresses a desire to annihilate them,

I'm not in the least surprised when they become viewed as a threat and are forced to forfeit many of their sovereign rights.

A nations right for survival trumps a nations sovereignty.....It's a matter of priorities.....Nothing more, nothing less.

[SeedyROM]

Why should a sovereign country allow BS inspections when they are just doing the same thing Israel has done for the last 40 years when it comes to nuclear inspections - interesting that one country can do it and the other has to get dissed by the press for exactly the same thing

Clearly you are clueless as to the differences in democratic nations and terrorist harboring nations.

[ROdger Right]

Too bad your side never got around to attacking Syria while you had the chance.

Now we have to go back to diplomatic pressure.

It's gonna be hard to calm down the nations that Israel might attack, when everybody knows Israel has nukes.
Yea i guess isreal could just go off at any moment now
They have only had those nukes for how long? We all know who the bad guys are because we obviously support the good guys. Afetr the death camps from nazis to a nucleur arms race with the rag heads. How can you trust someone who can be so willingly give their life to kill random people and to make it worse those randoms are all jewish

[Linkster]

Another point is, Israel never signed the NPT; whereas Iran and Syria did. There is no legal framework for inspections in a country who is not a signatory to the treaty.

Obviously you dont understand the NPT - there are only 5 countries that are allowed to have nuclear weapons by the NPT - and those 5 countries are tasked with enforcing that requirement through the UN - however 3 countries - Israel, India and Pakistan are known for sure to have weapons but are not signatories - and none including the US has enforced the inspections on them - they pick who they want the UN (through the IAEA) will get inspected

There is a legal framework, to not only inspect the country of Israel - through the enforcement clause of the NPT - as well as through all the other nuclear non-proliferation treaties that exist in international law, as there is cause to do it since the US supplied most of the parts and technology for all three nuclear countries (and you could add Iran for their reactor and centrifuge technology) through Babcock and Wilcox, GE and Westinghouse companies.

[Linkster]

Because Syria is a known sponser of terrorist groups while Israel is not

I would counter that Israel is just as much a sponsor of terrorism as Syria is - just because the US press is dominated by persons involved in Jewish politics doesnt give the country a free pass on their attacks

[Linkster]

If a nation openly displays hostility towards other non-muslim nations and expresses a desire to annihilate them,

I'm not in the least surprised when they become viewed as a threat and are forced to forfeit many of their sovereign rights.

A nations right for survival trumps a nations sovereignty.....It's a matter of priorities.....Nothing more, nothing less.

So you are saying that Israel should be viewed as a threat and forced to forfeit their sovereign rights? I suppose because you qualified it with the displaying of hostility towards a "non-muslim" state gets them out of that since they only make open threats towards muslim states????

[Linkster]

Clearly you are clueless as to the differences in democratic nations and terrorist harboring nations.

Not whatsoever - other than what you have read in the press - do you have proof that Israel does not harbor terrorists? Or are you trying to say that only democratic nations can get that free pass on harboring them???

[ROdger Right]

Isreal knows all you can do with nukes is hold and maintain them in their silos while we do not know what iranians will do with its nukes once they are made

[Linkster]

Rodger - what insider info do you have that Israel has nukes in silos? That would be a huge revalation if you actually had some info on that.
Why in the world worry about some country like Iran that wont have the capability for at least 5-10 years dependant on what reliable info is available(I tend to discard all these idiots worrying about the immediate threat since its physically impossible right now in Iran)
I suppose if you really took the president of Iran seriously (which no one in Iran does) you might get all worked up - but then we used to have a group called the John Birch Society that did the same thing when South Africa was getting their nukes as well

[Smurf-Herder]

Too bad your side never got around to attacking Syria while you had the chance.

Now we have to go back to diplomatic pressure.

It's gonna be hard to calm down the nations that Israel might attack, when everybody knows Israel has nukes.

We have to make Syria an offer the can't refuse.

Assad wants to maintain power and Israel wants Assad to stay in power. They're willing to give up a lot for a peace deal - provided Syria cuts ties with Iran and Hezbollah. Syria wants security and economic guarantees. Assad has a price. Hitting his nuke connection was a stick. Israel is now offering carrots.

Assad wants protection, as well as geopolitical gains. Syria and Iran technically have a MAD unwritten understanding, because of Syria's huge CW stockpiles and missiles. They and Israel have general parity. Israel can hit Russia if they wanted to. They have ground-based missiles with a 4000 km range and sub-launched cruise missiles with a 700 mile range, that can be fired out torpedo tubes when the sub's submerged.

But anyway, Assad wants to be guaranteed protection, in addition to getting the Golan back; for any chance of him agreeing to cut ties with Iran and Hezbollah. Then they can deal with Hezbollah and Iran.

'Hizbullah to Help Overthrow Al-Asad if Reaches Peace with Israel'
Written by The Media Line Staff
Published Monday, December 01, 2008

An unconfirmed report in the Kuwaiti press claimed that Lebanon's Hizbullah had planted clandestine cells across Syria since the latter began its indirect peace talks with Israel 10 months ago.

The cells have been ordered to help in an "imminent coup against the Syrian regime" in case it signed a peace agreement with Israel, the report says.

The report was based on Lebanese security sources, who were fired during the 1990s and replaced by officers chosen by the Syrian regime. These sources quoted members of a Lebanese Shi'ite party, who oppose Hizbullah and its Iranian patron, the Kuwaiti daily A-Siyasa reported.

The Iranian-backed Hizbullah, said the sources, is worried that should Syria reach an agreement with Israel, it would "deliver Hizbullah to Israel on a silver platter."

The unconfirmed report further claimed that Hizbullah's former chief of operations, 'Imad Mughniyya, was responsible to the formation of several of the 40 cells in Syria. Mughniyya was assassinated last February in a mysterious explosion in Damascus.

The cell members are disguised as public sector workers, restaurant waiters and owners of small companies, A-Siyasa reported. Hizbullah agents have recruited hundreds of Syrian citizens with low incomes, and paid them large sums of money.

"The Asad regime is currently undergoing a massive reconstruction in preparation for its future status in the region," two figures close to Hizbullah Chairman Hassan Na'srallah allegedly told the paper's sources.

"The regime is trying to mobilize Syrian public opinion to accept the notion of its returning to the Western realm of influence and its negotiations with Israel. Hizbullah leaders do not know when the imminent Syrian coup will occur, but they are sure it will happen sooner or later," the sources concluded.

A political science professor at the American University in Beirut has, however, expressed his opinion that A-Siyasa is aiming for sensation.

"A-Siyasa is known for its low working standards," Prof. Hilal Khashan told The Media Line.

Khashan, nevertheless, did assess that relations between Hizbullah and Syria were not good. Khashan described them as being tactical, rather than strategic.

"Hizbullah is concerned that the Syrian regime will eventually sign a peace treaty with Israel. People I know in Hizbullah are very upset with the Syrians and even blame them for the assassination of 'Imad Mughniyya.

“But as far as Hizbullah setting up cells in Syria with the aim of staging a coup against the regime – I believe this is farfetched," said Khashan.

http://www.themedialine.org/news/news_detail.asp?NewsID=23472

NOTE: A high promotion-value "Peace Deal" involving Obama is sequential ... if it happens.

(I'm thinking early summer - must be before Iran goes nuclear. Not that it means an attack will happen on Iran at that time. But this falls into the Dec. 2012 timeframe. Although it doesn't preclude something happening sooner as well.)

[SeedyROM]

Not whatsoever - other than what you have read in the press - do you have proof that Israel does not harbor terrorists? Or are you trying to say that only democratic nations can get that free pass on harboring them???


That's funny, you spin doctor and accuse Israel of harboring terrorists. They used to have terrorist squads, Obama's Chief of Staff's (Emanual)father was one of them. The US government convinced the Jews to stop attacking civilian targets.

Name a democratic nation that harbours terrorists? We'll leave Saudi Arabia out of the question as well as India and Pakistan. 2 of those 3 refuse to police thier countries as much as we'd like them too.
You can't seem to answer the question.

[Hog Trash]

So you are saying that Israel should be viewed as a threat and forced to forfeit their sovereign rights? I suppose because you qualified it with the displaying of hostility towards a "non-muslim" state gets them out of that since they only make open threats towards muslim states????Please Linkster, lets not play silly word games....You know the situation.

[Kinky Jones]

Why should a sovereign country allow BS inspections when they are just doing the same thing Israel has done for the last 40 years when it comes to nuclear inspections - interesting that one country can do it and the other has to get dissed by the press for exactly the same thing

seeing as we already attacked them once i would tell us to go fuck ourselves as well :thumbsup:

[SeedyROM]

Not whatsoever - other than what you have read in the press - do you have proof that Israel does not harbor terrorists? Or are you trying to say that only democratic nations can get that free pass on harboring them???

More spin! You have shown no proof that Israel still uses terrorist methods. I've already shown they did so after WWII. They agreed to a pact. Israel wants to buy a war that the USA will lead if Obama follows his neocon advice. You still have not answered my questions in the previous post # 18 so I take it you don't know?

I can tell you that Israel has aircraft equipped to handle Nukes and they have the outrigger equipmet to mount bombs external or thru internal bomb bays. They buy our aircraft. Thier official position is no nukes but that info may be a cover up. The Pentagon will no longer address the matter, so the official answer is not commensurate with the rumors.

http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/world/israel/nuke.htm
Although the United States government did not encourage or approve of the Israeli nuclear program, it also did nothing to stop it. Walworth Barbour, US ambassador to Israel from 1961-73, the bomb program's crucial years, primarily saw his job as being to insulate the President from facts which might compel him to act on the nuclear issue, alledgedly saying at one point that "The President did not send me there to give him problems. He does not want to be told any bad news." After the 1967 war, Barbour even put a stop to military attachés' intelligence collection efforts around Dimona. Even when Barbour did authorize forwarding information, as he did in 1966 when embassy staff learned that Israel was beginning to put nuclear warheads in missiles, the message seemed to disappear into the bureaucracy and was never acted upon.

In early 1968, the CIA issued a report concluding that Israel had successfully started production of nuclear weapons. This estimate, however, was based on an informal conversation between Carl Duckett, head of the CIA's Office of Science and Technology, and Edward Teller, father of the hydrogen bomb. Teller said that, based on conversations with friends in the Israeli scientific and defense establishment, he had concluded that Israel was capable of building the bomb, and that the CIA should not wait for an Israeli test to make a final assessment because that test would never be carried out.


http://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/israel/nuke/