The Wasington Post has a devastating article on the damage that Pakistan has done to the world's stability by tolerating the AQ Khan network that distributed nuclear materials around the world.
Read that article here:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A50241-2005Mar19?language=printerSee a discussion of this on The Liberal Oasis:
http://www.liberaloasis.com/Remember this blast from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Hearing on Condiliar Rice? Somebody knew something wasn't kosher on the way the * Admin was handling the AQ Khan situation.
SEN. KERRY: There's one particular -- I'm not going to ask you to comment on anything classified, but I am going to ask you to comment on this. "A former high-level intelligence official told me, quote, 'They don't want to make any WMD intelligence mistakes as in Iraq. The Republicans can't have two of those. There's no education in the second kick of a mule.' The official added that the government of Pervez Musharraf, the Pakistan president, has won a high price for its cooperation: American assurance that Pakistan will not have to hand over A.Q. Khan, known as the father of Pakistan's nuclear bomb, to the IAEA or to any other international authorities for questioning."
Do you know whether or not that's accurate?
MS. RICE: I will just reiterate what was said about that article by the Defense Department. It is filled with inaccuracies, and it's credibility is sorely lacking.
The --
SEN. KERRY: But on that specific point.
MS. RICE: Let me -- let me just speak to the handling of A.Q. Khan. What we have been concerned about is that we are able to get the information that we need to break up the network. We have not made any deals about what happens with him.
SEN. KERRY: I'm sorry.
MS. RICE: We have not made any deals about what happens with him, but we have been concerned with the Pakistani government to get access to as much information as we possibly can. This is a matter that's being handled by the Pakistanis. It is not our place to talk about what should or should not happen with the IAEA, and we have not.
SEN. KERRY: So what about our own interests and our own efforts with respect to A.Q. Khan?
MS. RICE: Our own interests are being very well served by the fact that A.Q. Khan is now off the market, that we are working with the Pakistanis to get information about what he knows; very well served by cooperation on several -- with several other governments about members of his network. Several of them are in custody, some will be prosecuted. And so our interests are very well being served in this regard.
SEN. KERRY: Are they being served if we don't have direct access to them?
MS. RICE: We believe that we have a working relationship with Pakistan on dealing with the A.Q. Khan matter. At this point, we are getting cooperation from Pakistan on what we need with A.Q. Khan.
SEN. KERRY: But are they being served if we don't have direct access to them?
MS. RICE: They're being served at this point.
SEN. KERRY: Adequately?
MS. RICE: We are getting the information that we need to deal with the A.Q. Khan network.
Senator, I don't know what we will need to ask in the future, but at this point, we have a good working relationship with Pakistan on this matter.
On the record, under oath.