UK, CIA Reports
List Pakistan, Iran as Targets after Iraq
By
Elissa Sherry
LONDON:
Who after Iraq is the biggest question being asked by every think
tank round the world. Latest official documents released by the
US and UK give some idea of who it could be and Pakistan is one
of them, in fact high on their list.
Alongside
Iraq and North Korea, NATO and the European Union countries consider
Pakistan, Iran, Libya, Syria and Sudan as potential threats to
global security with their weapons of mass destruction and missile
capabilities, these documents show.
The
possible responses suggested in the British government document,
among a host of other measures, include disruption of the defense
programs including missile and nuclear programs, of countries
considered as a cause of concern to the NATO-EU countries.
The
US document, a CIA report submitted to the US Congress on January
7, includes damaging ‘speculations and concerns’ that
Pakistan, along with India and Iran might be in the group of countries
considered as secondary proliferators - a term used to describe
countries trading the WMDs.
“…Some
traditional recipients of WMD and missile-related technology,
particularly maturing state-sponsored programs, are beginning
to supply technology and expertise to other proliferators. Such
"secondary proliferators" as India, Iran, North Korea
and Pakistan are not members of control regimes like the Nuclear
Suppliers Group, Australia Group, and Missile Technology Control
Regime and do not adhere to their export constraints,” the
CIA report says. Click to View
Text
The
British Ministry of Defence (MoD) in the document titled “Missile
Defence: A Public Discussion paper,” claims that North Korea
provided ‘Nodong missile’ technology to Iran and Pakistan,
enabling them to acquire their own versions. Click
to View Text: PDF Format
The
British document, like the US CIA report, examines the growing
threat posed by the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction
and their means of delivery and considers possible responses to
these potential threat.
The
claims in the British and the American official documents were
preceded by media reports in both the US and the UK that Pakistan
was a key supplier to North Korea’s secret nuclear program
in exchange for the missile technology. However, the press reports
were vehemently denied by Islamabad before its coalition partners
in London and Washington gave them official stamp.
“The
potential threat of most concern both to national populations
and to deployed forces is not from the strategic arsenals of Russia
and China but from the increasing proliferation of ballistic missiles,
not least owing to the potential for their combination with chemical,
biological and nuclear weapons of mass destruction,” the
British MoD document said.
Interestingly,
apart from North Korea as the supplier for ballistic missiles,
the British document mentions only the Muslim countries with missile
systems posing a threat to UK, US, NATO or the Allied forces.
The British document is silent about the missile programs of a
number of non-Muslim countries, including Israel and India.
On
the other hand, the US CIA report, while it included India along
with the list of Muslim countries mentioned in the British document,
remains silent about Israel and it’s WMDs.
Analysts
in the Islamic world believe the two reports make the intentions
of the US and the UK governments clear about the possible list
of target Muslim countries in the unfolding new world (dis)order.
In
the CIA report, Iran is mentioned before Iraq with a claim that
“despite Iran's status in the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation
of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), the US is “convinced” Teheran
is pursuing a nuclear weapons program.”
While
the CIA report mentions that the US is “convinced”
about Iran pursuing the nuclear weapons program, it expresses
only “added concern” about Iraq, which is currently
being subjected to UN weapons inspections under US prodding.
As
opposed to conviction about Iran’s nuclear weapons program,
the CIA report in a not so convincing manner said, “Saddam’s
repeated publicized exhortations to his "Nuclear Mujahideen"
to "defeat the enemy" added to our concerns that since
the Gulf War Iraq has continued research and development [R&D]
work associated with its nuclear program.”
The
CIA report, covering the period from July 1 to December 31, 2001,
said that during the reporting period, Pakistan continued to acquire
nuclear-related equipment, some of it dual use, and materials
from various sources, principally in Western Europe.
“If
Pakistan chooses to develop more advanced nuclear weapons, seeking
such goods will remain important…We cannot rule out, however,
the possibility of continued contacts between Chinese and Pakistani
entities on Pakistani nuclear weapons development. Pakistan's
ballistic missile program continued to benefit from significant
Chinese entity assistance during the reporting period.”
According
to the UK MOD document, the British government has in recent years
identified a number of countries of concern. Detailing the threat
posed specifically by Iraq, Iran, Libya and North Korea, the document
claims these countries are working to obtain longer-range ballistic
missiles with the potential ability to target the UK, US, NATO
or the allied deployed forces.
“It
is this combination of ballistic missiles and weapons of mass
destruction, coupled with the intent and a demonstrated willingness
to use these capabilities, that makes Iraq the most immediate
state threat to global security. Elsewhere the most credible potential
missile threat comes from North Korea, Iran, and Libya.”
North
Korea is the world’s biggest supplier of ballistic missiles
and related technology to
countries of concern, the document said, adding, it supplied technology
to Pakistan and Iran.
The UK MOD document claimed that North Korea over the past 15
years exported some 400 missiles. Moreover, the document said,
North Korea sold SCUD technology to Iran, Syria, Libya, Egypt,
United Arab Emirates and Yemen.
The
document said the British government agrees with the United States
and other NATO allies that the proliferation of ballistic missiles
must be taken seriously.
“We
already have a range of responses for dealing with this, from
diplomacy, deterrence and arms control to non-proliferation and
counter-proliferation.
The
preamble to the UK MOD document said on 22 November, 2002, the
19 Heads of State and government of the NATO nations meeting in
Prague agreed on the need to pay increased attention to the issue
of missile defense.
The
words of the summit communiqué said, “We are determined
to deter, disrupt, defend and protect against any attacks on us,
in accordance with the Washington Treaty and the Charter of the
United Nations… We have therefore decided to… examine
options for addressing the increasing missile threat to Alliance
territory, forces and population centers in an effective and efficient
way through an appropriate mix of political and defense efforts,
along with deterrence….”
Both
the US and the UK documents have added to the concerns in the
Muslim world about Iran being the first possible next target of
the NATO-EU alliance after Iraq.
