Bush Asks Congress To Legalize The Sale Of Nuclear Technology To Turkey

[Gold9472]

Bush Asks Congress To Legalize The Sale Of Nuclear Technology To Turkey

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2008/01/20080123-6.html

(Gold9472: I can't think of any reason in the world why they would want to do something like that.)

1/23/2008

Message to the Congress of the United States

TO THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES:

I transmit to the Congress, pursuant to sections 123 b. and 123 d. of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (42 U.S.C. 2153(b),(d))(the "Act"), the text of the proposed Agreement for Cooperation between the United States of America and the Republic of Turkey Concerning Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy (the "Agreement") together with a copy of the unclassified Nuclear Proliferation Assessment Statement (NPAS) and of my approval of the proposed Agreement and determination that the proposed Agreement will promote, and will not constitute an unreasonable risk to, the common defense and security. The Secretary of State will submit the classified NPAS and accompanying annexes separately in appropriate secure channels.

The Agreement was signed on July 26, 2000, and President Clinton approved and authorized execution and made the determinations required by section 123 b. of the Act (Presidential Determination 2000 26, 65 FR 44403 (July 18, 2000)). However, immediately after signature, U.S. agencies received information that called into question the conclusions that had been drawn in the required NPAS and the original classified annex, specifically, information implicating Turkish private entities in certain activities directly relating to nuclear proliferation. Consequently, the Agreement was not submitted to the Congress and the executive branch undertook a review of the NPAS evaluation.

My Administration has completed the NPAS review as well as an evaluation of actions taken by the Turkish government to address the proliferation activities of certain Turkish entities (once officials of the U.S. Government brought them to the Turkish government's attention). The Secretary of State, the Secretary of Energy, and the members of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission are confident that the pertinent issues have been sufficiently resolved and that there is a sufficient basis (as set forth in the classified annexes, which will be transmitted separately by the Secretary of State) to proceed with congressional review of the Agreement and, if legislation is not enacted to disapprove it, to bring the Agreement into force.

In my judgment, entry into force of the Agreement will serve as a strong incentive for Turkey to continue its support for nonproliferation objectives and enact future sound nonproliferation policies and practices. It will also promote closer political and economic ties with a NATO ally, and provide the necessary legal framework for U.S. industry to make nuclear exports to Turkey's planned civil nuclear sector.

This transmittal shall constitute a submittal for purposes of both section 123 b. and 123 d. of the Act. My Administration is prepared to begin immediate consultations with the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the House Foreign Affairs Committee as provided in section 123 b. Upon completion of the period of 30 days of continuous session provided for in section 123 b., the period of 60 days of continuous session provided for in section 123 d. shall commence.

GEORGE W. BUSH

THE WHITE HOUSE,

January 22, 2008.

[Gold9472]

Why Bush Wants to Legalize the Nuke Trade with Turkey
Exonerating Neocon Criminals

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article19193.htm

By Joshua Frank

26/01/08 "Dissident Voice" According to FBI whistleblower Sibel Edmonds there is a vast black market for nukes, and certain U.S. officials have been supplying sensitive nuclear technology information to Turkish and Israeli interests through its conduits. It’s a scathing allegation which was first published by the London Times two weeks ago, and Edmonds’ charge seems to be on the verge of vindication.

In likely reaction to the London Times report, the Bush Administration quietly announced on January 22 that the president would like Congress to approve the sale of nuclear secrets to Turkey. As with most stories of this magnitude, the U.S. media has put on blinders, opting to not report either Edmonds’ story or Bush’s recent announcement.

The White House Press Release claims that President Clinton signed off on the Turkey deal way back in 2000:
However, immediately after signature, U.S. agencies received information that called into question the conclusions that had been drawn in the required NPAS (Nuclear Proliferation Assessment Statement) and the original classified annex, specifically, information implicating Turkish private entities in certain activities directly relating to nuclear proliferation. Consequently, the Agreement was not submitted to the Congress and the executive branch undertook a review of the NPAS evaluation … My Administration has completed the NPAS review as well as an evaluation of actions taken by the Turkish government to address the proliferation activities of certain Turkish entities (once officials of the U.S. Government brought them to the Turkish government’s attention).
What “private entities” the Press Release refers to is not clear, but it could well include the American Turkish Council, the “entity” revealed in the Times article. The Bushites seem to be covering their own exposed backsides, for the timing of Bush’s call to sell nuke secrets to Turkey is certainly suspicious, if not overtly conspicuous.

It appears the White House has been spooked by Edmonds and hopes to absolve the U.S. officials allegedly involved in the illegal sale of nuclear technology to private Turkish “entities”. One of those officials is likely Marc Grossman, the former ambassador to Turkey during the Clinton Administration who also served in the State Department from 2001-2005. Grossman has been named by Edmonds who claims he was directly involved in the nuclear smuggling ring that she says has allowed the intelligence agencies of Pakistan, Israel and Turkey to operate in the U.S. with impunity. Totally complicit in the nuke trade, the U.S. government, according to Edmonds, has known of the expansive criminal activities of these foreign nations’ presence in the States, which has included all sorts of illegal activities like drug trafficking, espionage and money laundering.

Edmonds says “several arms of the government were shielding what was going on” which included an entire national security apparatus associated with the neoconservaties who have profited by representing Turkish interests in Washington. As Justin Raimondo recently reported in Antiwar.com:
…this group includes not only Grossman, but also Paul Wolfowitz, chief intellectual architect of the Iraq war and ex-World Bank president; former deputy defense secretary for policy Douglas J. Feith; Feith’s successor, Eric Edelman; and Richard Perle, the notorious uber-neocon whose unique ability to mix profiteering and warmongering forced him to resign his official capacity as a key administration adviser … Edmonds draws a picture of a three-sided alliance consisting of Turkish, Pakistani, and Israeli agents who coordinated efforts to milk U.S. nuclear secrets and technology, funneling the intelligence stream to the black market nuclear network set up by the Pakistani scientist A.Q. Khan. The multi-millionaire Pakistani nuclear scientist then turned around and sold his nuclear assets to North Korea, Libya, and Iran.
Is the Bush Administration seeking to exonerate these “officials” with its plea to allow Turkey to obtain U.S. nuclear secrets? Besides Grossman, who else was involved in Edmonds’ grim tale of the nuke-for-profit underground? As the news that U.S. officials have allegedly been supplying Turkey with nuclear technology begins to creep in to the mainstream media, the Bush team appears to be moving to legalize the whole shady operation.

If Congress does not block or amend Bush’s legislation to sell nukes to Turkey within 90 days, it will become law automatically, likely acting retroactively to clear the alleged crimes of Marc Grossman and his neocon, nuke-trading friends.

© 2008 Dissident Voice

[Gold9472]

I just can't believe how blatantly criminal our Government is. It just boggles my mind.

[Gold9472]

So you're going to tell me that the individuals in Washington D.C. that are capable of selling Nuclear Secrets to those that may use that technology to kill millions of people, wouldn't have the chutzpah to kill 2,973+ people on 9/11?

[Gold9472]

I am in awe of this criminality.

[simuvac]

I think we tend to lose sight of the scale of this empire.

The scale of their atrocities is in keeping with the scale of their ambitions and their power.

It's not really surprising, in that context, but it is definitely appalling.

[orAntilogic]

watching sibel's situation twist and turn is what doesn't surprise me. what does surprise me at this point (and i know i'm going to ruffle some feathers right now) is that so many americans assume every single federal employee to be "guilty" before proven "innocent."

just look at the plames. the only crime libby was convicted of was bumbling his story. i know there was an atomic energy act in 1954. i know they're scrambling to retroactively legalize these nuclear sales. but the point is, they'll do whatever they have to, from changing laws to lining up best-pal-special-prosecutors. connecting sibel with plame just looks bad, unless she's seeking a joint vanity fair article or a book deal with plame's publisher.

the gov't hired the plames to look into weapons sales with the turks for another perspective on the sales they hired grossman to actually do. if the plames / sibel / any other gov't employee found evidence of american hands in international arms trade, narcotics trade, terrorism, whatever, once they reported it to their superiors, they did their jobs.

i find all of this very interesting, but to assume i know what's going on way up top, to the extent that i think everyone needs to be aware of what our gov't insists it does behind the scenes, is just pompous. until we've got something better to replace capitol hill with, this sort of attention is what weakens US. it weakens you, it weakens me, and it weakens the cash in my back pocket. everyone knows the quickest way to cause a recession is to say it's happening as loud as possible. the quickest way to bring a nation to its knees is to convince your countrymen they're already on them.

whichever direction this country goes in, blogging international affairs will have an increasing effect. i'm all for tearing pakistan wide open for all to see, as are the nid and cia, but unless we're ready to replace our entire federal government, weakening the offices themselves just weakens us.

[Gold9472]

So you're saying revealing/investigating/holding those possibly responsible accountable should not happen because it would be bad for the country? Of course I think they're guilty. There is more than enough information to suggest that Sibel is credible than not. I do believe that in America, you are innocent until proven guilty, but we can't even get someone in America to start the process to prove one way or the other. We have a serious problem in this country.

[orAntilogic]

Any retroactive cup&ball trick with legislation means the activity's illegal when it occurs and legal when it matters. I'm no lawyer, and If I were to judge, I'd say Marc is probably guilty of committing a crime as of right now. Give it a month and I'm betting he'll be reprieved.

I'm by no means saying Sibel isn't an honest source or a genuine person, not to mention hott, but she just doesn't have all the information her superiors do.

I am saying that there's a realm of intelligence which should be outside of the public sphere because sometimes rules do need to be broken which the public doesn't have the time or interest for.

Imagine a perfect world where criminality weren't a pre-req to holding various federal positions. You or I could make our way into those positions and do some good, unless of course the power of that office depends on the credibility associated with it.

Most people have no idea who the current director of the CIA is, but they KNOW that there were no WMD in Iraq (ever) and that was the CIA's fault. Not that the CIA has been in any decent shape in a while, but their downhill slide has become a freefall since 2003.

If Marc Grossman were acting outside his jurisdiction or without the approval of his superiors, we probably wouldn't see the actions taken against him, we'd probably not have heard this much about it, but we'd very likely not be seeing the suggestions currently being made to Congress.

And as I started, I recognize that today, right now, his previous actions are probably still illegal, but the point I'm really getting at is who is Sibel, let alone who are you or I, to say that these deals were unnecessary? We've seen it before, we're seeing it now, and we'll see it many times again: necessity, as is currently defined by the executive, begets legality, even retroactively.

[orAntilogic]

Bump?

[orAntilogic]

Bumpity Bump Bump, Bumpity Bump.

Reply please.

:)

[Gold9472]

You're trying to say that treasonous activity (keeping in mind that not everything Sibel knows has been cited by the London Times) is acceptable or "begets legality, even retroactively" if that treasonous activity is necessary.

I don't agree with that statement. Treason is never necessary. That's why they call it treason.