National News

Head of U.N. nuclear watchdog agency to lead first weapons inspection in Libya

VIENNA (AP) - The head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency, Mohammed ElBaradei, said Dec. 22 he will lead the first inspection of Libya's nuclear facilities, aiming to start the elimination of the country's programs for weapons of mass destruction.

Soon after Libya's surprise admission, Pakistan said Dec. 22 there was a possibility that some of its scientists may have provided nuclear technology to foreign nations.

Pakistan's government has strongly denied allegations that it gave such information to countries such as Iran, North Korea and Libya, but said it is pursuing an inquiry into whether any of its scientists acted without authorization.

Both Libya and Iran have imported centrifuges for uranium enrichment, although Libya, which publicly admitted Dec. 19 to having weapons of mass destruction, says it stopped short of an enrichment program. Sources have said that Pakistan is one source of Iran's equipment procurement.

ElBaradei said much of Libya's technology came from abroad. He would not say whether there was a common source for Libya, Iran or prewar Iraq, or whether the three nations exchanged equipment and expertise.

He said Libya's decision to come clean and get rid of its weapons of mass destruction appeared prompted both by the U.S. invasion of Iraq and the international pressure put on Iran to reveal activities that point to a nuclear weapons program.

ElBaradei praised what he described as a positive step on the part of Libya "to rid itself of all programs or activities that are relevant or could lead to the production of weapons of mass destruction."

Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's decision to come clean is the latest in a series of moves to end his country's international isolation and shed its reputation as a rogue nation.

Shukan ST: Jan. 2・9, 2004

(C) All rights reserved