January 27, 2004

Libya Nuclear Components Arrive in U.S.

As blogged here, Libya is shipping the components of its nuclear program to Oak Ridge. The first planeload (55,000 pounds) arrived today. From a news report in Yahoo/AP: bq. An American plane carrying components of Libya's nuclear weapons and missile programs arrived Tuesday in the United States as Moammar Gadhafi follows through on a pledge to dismantle the program. bq. The plane landed at McGhee Tyson airport outside Knoxville, Tenn., carrying about 55,000 pounds of equipment, including stock to enrich uranium, centrifuge parts and guidance sets for long-range missiles, White House spokesman Scott McClellan said. bq. The equipment likely will be evaluated at the Oak Ridge nuclear weapons plant in Tennessee. The "most sensitive documentation" associated with Libya's nuclear program arrived by plane last week, McClellan said. bq. Also, the spokesman announced that Libya had begun destroying chemical munitions. bq. Gadhafi, trying to break out of diplomatic isolation and seeking a lifting of U.S. economic sanctions, promised last Dec. 19 to end development of nuclear and all other weapons of mass destruction. bq. "The world can see that Col. Gadhafi is keeping his commitment," McClellan said. Very very cool... Posted by DaveH at January 27, 2004 12:22 PM