Hot
Zone: Iraq and Weapons of Mass Destruction
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A
San Diego, CA TV station captures a mother waving to her husband
as she holds her 4 year old daughter. The USS Comstock left
Naval Station San Diego around 8 a.m., followed by the amphibious
transport ship USS Dubuque, amphibious assault ships USS Bonhomme
Richard and USS Boxer, amphibious transport ship USS Cleveland,
and dock landing ships USS Anchorage and USS Pearl Harbor.
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Ships have
departed from both the East and West coast of the U.S. as U.S.
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld ordered an additional 35,000
troops to the Persian Gulf region. The British have also boosted
their military might in recent days, sending the helicopter carrier
Ark Royal last Thursday, Jan. 16, 2003, from Loch Long in Scotland
The increased
activity comes as UN inspectors uncovered 12 empty chemical weapon
warheads that the Iraqis forgot to mention in their 12,000 page
declaration to the UN.
Meanwhile,
evidence that Saddam has never given up his quest for amassing
the world’s most deadliest threats to human life are becoming
easier to recognize as Iraq’s denials don’t match information
that is already known to the public. In October 2002, a Public
Affairs Magazine reported that Abdul Qadeer Khan, the father of
Pakistan’s nuclear program, is one of a group that is believed
to have helped Iraq with its continued nuclear and missile efforts.
Last September,
Prime Minister Tony Blair released the UK dossier, which reads
on page 30: "Iraq has managed to rebuild much of the missile
production infrastructure destroyed in the Gulf War and in Operation
Desert Fox in 1998. New missile-related infrastructure is also
under construction. Some aspects of this, including rocket propellant
mixing and casting facilities at the al-Mamoun Plant, appear to
replicate those linked to the prohibited Badr-2000 programme (with
a planned range of 700-1000km) which were destroyed in the Gulf
War or dismantled by UNSCOM. A new plant at al-Mamoun for indigenously
producing ammonium perchlorate, which is a key ingredient in the
production of solid propellant rocket motors, has also been constructed.
This has been provided illicitly by NEC Engineers Private Limited,
an Indian chemical engineering firm with extensive links in Iraq,
including to other suspect facilities such as the Fallujah 2 chlorine
plant. After an extensive investigation, the Indian authorities
have recently suspended its export licence, although other individuals
and companies are still illicitly procuring for Iraq."
Still, as
the military buildup intensifies in the Persian Gulf region, Russia
and France are urging for the utmost care in giving the UN inspectors
all the time that they need to follow through with the process.
Overall, global leaders are aware of Saddam’s extreme arsenol
of weapons of mass destruction, but are holding out for a peaceful
resolution.
Russian Foreign
Minister Ivanov, speaking at the UN special session, indicated
that he believes that all diplomatic and political efforts have
not been exhausted and said "we
must be careful not to take unilateral action."
Recently,
Russia has received some pressure from Jordanian prime-minister
Abu Ragheb Ali to intercede in preventing military action against
Iraq. RIA Novosti stated in October 2002 that "he
was hopeful that Russia would intensify its efforts and would
completely prevent the threat of a military attack"
On Monday
at the UN, the U.S. and Britian were reminding the council of
the extreme danger Iraq poses to global safety. U.S. Secretary
of State Powell told the council "if Iraq is not disarming,
the United Nations cannot turn away from its responsibilities…
no matter how difficult the road ahead may be with respect to
Iraq, we must not shrink from a need to travel down that road…
There is no question that Iraq continues to misunderstand the
seriousness of the position that it’s in,"said Powell. Iraq
has a responsibility now to avoid a conflict, to avoid a war..we
will not allow Iraq to frustrate the will of the world."