*****************************************************************
05/10/06 ****     RADIATION BULLETIN(RADBULL)       **** VOL 14.111
*****************************************************************
   RADBULL IS PRODUCED BY THE ABALONE ALLIANCE CLEARINGHOUSE
*****************************************************************
Send News Stories to news@energy-net.org with title on subject
line and first line of body

                         NUCLEAR POLICY
 
1 [NYTr] Bush Tries to Link Chavez to Iran's Nuke Program
2 Annan Voices Hope For Diplomatic Resolution On Iran's Nuclear Progra
3 [NYTr] Iran Accuses Major Powers of Testing Nukes
4 [southnews] Middle East Experts warn against war on Iran
5 [southnews] UK's new Foreign Secretary joins UN Iran crisis
6 [NYTr] Iran: Nuclear Standoff or Realpolitik?
7 Guardian Unlimited: Israeli Official: Time Running Out on Iran
8 Guardian Unlimited: Bush: Iran Letter Doesn't Answer Question
9 Guardian Unlimited: Iran Leader Dismisses Nuke Program Worries
10 Guardian Unlimited: Rice Backs European Diplomacy With Iran
11 Guardian Unlimited: Iranians Fault Rice's Dismissal of Letter
12 Guardian Unlimited: Iran: Worry Over Nuke Program 'A Big Lie'
13 IRNA: Main points of Ahmadinejad's letter to President Bush - part t
14 Guardian Unlimited: Ahmadinejad accuses west of nuclear 'big lie'
15 New York Times: Iranian Letter: Using Religion to Lecture Bush - 
16 IRNA: Indonesian president supports Iran's civilian nuclear activiti
17 IRIB PERSIAN NEWS: IRI seeks peace in the world 
18 AFP: Iran's president arrives in Indonesia amid nuclear row - 
19 AFP: World powers struggle to find common policy on Iran
20 IRNA: Main points of Ahmadinejad's letter to President Bush - part o
21 AFP: West gives Iran breather in nuclear row - Rice 
22 AFP: US official says China will not block action against Iran -
23 Le Monde.fr: La lettre de Mahmoud Ahmadinejad à George W. Bush
24 IPS-English NORTH KOREA: Focus Shifts From N-Bombs to Human
25 Guardian Unlimited: S. Korean President Says He Will Aid North
26 US: Guardian Unlimited: Nev. Mushroom Cloud Blast to Be Delayed
27 US: Spectrum: Divine Strake blast postponed
28 US: Deseret News: Test-blast battle not over yet 
29 Guardian Unlimited: Putin Zings U.S. Back After Criticism
30 Bellona: Russian society greets spring in the courtrooms 
31 BBC: Putin address to nation: Excerpts
 
                         NUCLEAR REACTORS
 
32 US: Columbian: Toppling Trojan's Tower
33 Albuquerque Tribune: Commentary: A tour of Chernobyl, 20 years after
34 US: toledoblade.com: Leak in old fuel rod caused present contaminati
35 WWF: WWF Report: No need for nuclear power in the UK
36 ITAR-TASS: Agency to submit nuclear industry development program in 
37 globeandmail.com: A nuclear thought
38 US: KATU 2: Crews are preparing for the Trojan implosion 
39 UPI: Bulgarian nuclear accident questioned
40 IRNA: D-8 to discuss draft resolution on peaceful N-energy use
 
                          NUCLEAR SECURITY
 
 
                          NUCLEAR SAFETY
 
41 US: [NukeNet] Depleted Uranium 3 Hour Update on The 'X' Zone Radio
42 US: BBC: Radioactive
43 US: Salt Lake Tribune: Hatch wants pledge blast will be safe
44 US: NJMRC: Diseases - Chronic Beryllium Disease
 
                         NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE
 
45 [CMEP] Yucca Mtn: Public Citizen Condemns Bush Attempts to
46 US: ICT: Censored film wins Trustee Award at festival
47 US: Waste News: Lawmakers urge EPA chief to establish perchlorate st
48 News &Star: Big new contract for troubled Mox
 
                           PEACE
 
 
                        US DEPT. OF ENERGY
 
49 KnoxNews: TVA deal means USEC layoffs
50 Contra Costa Times: Livermore lab seeks manager
51 Tri-City Herald: Handful attend Hanford meeting 
52 DOE: Secretary of Energy Advisory Board
53 NewsBlaze: Remarks Prepared for Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman
54 Knox News: ORNL chief: 'Producing science' is on agenda
55 KnoxNews: Bell's call for fairness for Oak Ridge workers has a famil
*****************************************************************
*****************************************************************
                         FULL NEWS STORIES
*****************************************************************
*****************************************************************
 1 [NYTr] Bush Tries to Link Chavez to Iran's Nuke Program
 
Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 17:02:00 -0500 (CDT)

Via NY Transfer News Collective  *  All the News that Doesn't Fit
 
CounterPunch - May 10, 2006
http://www.counterpunch.org/birns05102006.html

Is Venezuela the New Niger?

The Bush Administration is Trying to Link Hugo Chavez 
to Iran's Nuclear Program

By LARRY BIRNS and MICHAEL LETTIERI

Washington is no stranger to flimsy pretexts when it comes to justifying its
ill-conceived, and at times illicit, Latin American initiatives. The contra
epoch, the Bay of Pigs invasion, the Cuban missile crisis, Ollie North,
former U.S. ambassador John Negroponte's skullduggery in Honduras, and
countless acts of chicanery aimed at Havana, Santiago, Grenada and Guatemala
come to mind.

A spate of articles tying Hugo Chavez to Iran's covert nuclear program
suggests that Washington may now be finding it increasingly difficult to
resist further calumniating Venezuela by working to forge a new weapon for
its anti-Caracas jihad.

The only problem is that the basis for such a charge would be a complete
concoction, more worthy to be put to work in Iraq, where anything goes, than
in Latin America. Such a scenario would intimate that ties exist between
alleged Venezuelan uranium supplies and the Iranian nuclear program. In
other words, Caracas would be presented as a terrorist nation, illicitly
involved in trafficking bootleg uranium to the pariah Iranian regime in
exchange for nuclear devices and maybe other considerations.

The Plot

In the fall of 2005, Venezuelan officials began to explore the possibility
of acquiring nuclear reactor technology from either Argentina or Brazil,
both of which have nuclear energy programs and facilities for peaceful use.
This maneuver provoked a predictably prickly response from the State
Department, which made no effort to disguise the fact that it would not be
amused if this transaction would be carried out. While no agreement was ever
reached or shipments made, Caracas already had established close political
ties with Tehran, which became yet another reason why the White House was
suspicious of Chavez's ultimate intent. Iran's decision to resume enrichment
of uranium this year, which has now provoked an international uproar, also
brought new scrutiny to the purported burgeoning relationship between that
nation and Venezuela. At the U.N., Caracas helped fuel such suspicions, as
Venezuela was one of only a handful of member nations that expressed support
for Iran's resumption of peaceful nuclear activity which would effectively
not be under the U.N.'s supervision.

The wide-ranging, if somewhat vague, cooperation agreements between Iran and
Venezuela were repeatedly reiterated by Washington sources to suggest that
more malignant factors might be at play. The most popular rumor had Caracas
sending its uranium to Iran in exchange for nuclear technology, with the
most radical version beginning with accusations that Caracas was seeking to
obtain weaponry from Tehran. Some went so far as to suggest that nuclear
devices already had been clandestinely transported to Venezuela on chartered
oil tankers. Further speculative intrigue came about after the expulsion of
the New Tribes missionaries from the Amazonas region in February, as
stampeding rumors began to circulate that the evangelical group was somehow
involved in uranium exploration activities in the state of Bolmvar and that
the missionaries' airstrip was facilitating such anti-Chavez operations. The
allegations, which included purported links to the CIA, were heatedly denied
by the group.

Much to do about Nothing

Yet all of these theories concerning some diabolic plot linking Iran to Hugo
Chavez have been entirely based on a handful of anemic charges coming from
several former Chavez officials, who, at best, merely quote each other, but
fail to advance the core of their charge or provide minimum evidence that
Venezuela somehow has been complicit with Iran when it came to supplying
uranium to the latter. In turn, their diaphanous allegations are now being
picked up by kindred rightwing sources domiciled in the U.S. who write
enraged op-eds in Rev. Moon's Washington Times ("Showdown with Chavez") or
get like-minded congressional colleagues to make rabid speeches from the
floor of congress accusing Chavez of striving to hatch a nuclear plot with
Tehran or some other threatening complot.

While the rumors sometimes involve an alleged Israeli intelligence report
which speaks of covert uranium mining in Venezuela, the so-called findings
have never been seen, let alone validated. In fact, while Venezuela may
possess some yet to be established uranium deposits, there is no evidence
that these have been located, let alone worked. Venezuelan officials have
vehemently denied charges that the country is facilitating the enrichment of
uranium by the Iranians, and even the State Department has minimized such
suggestions, noting that while it is "aware of reports of possible Iranian
exploitation of Venezuelan uranium," it does not see any "commercial uranium
activities in Venezuela." Furthermore, the speculated ties overlook the fact
that Iran does not particularly need to import uranium all the way from
Venezuela for its projects, as it has ample supplies of its own.

All of this likely matters little to the Bush administration, which is
likely feeling increased pressure from its own policy hardliners to take an
anti-Chavez stand. The recent Bolivian gas nationalization has been cited by
extra conservative pundits, whose knowledge of Latin America is barely
enough for them to cite Venezuela's capital city as evidence of the
pernicious spread of Chavista influence.

They also derisively point to the lack of any U.S. response to this
challenge. Such militancy on their part, combined with Washington's growing
tension with Iran, may make the time ripe for some form of diplomatic or
even a retaliatory response to allegations of Venezuela's special
relationship with Tehran and other manifestations of anti-U.S. behavior.

Such a step by Washington would be entirely predicated on rumors,
inventions, and conjecture--a script, at this point at least, entirely based
on phony or no evidence--like the spurious yellowcake of Niger which
provided the basis for U.S. intervention in Iraq. By conceivably tying
Chavez into the Iranian crisis, the Bush administration possibly could be
laying the groundwork for its own dirty tricks campaign.

Yet the world would be well-advised to be wary of such machinations:
mysterious vials, contrived satellite images, or fuzzy photographs are now
beginning to be employed for tendentiously-pursued, if illusory, ends by a
brigade of Chavez-bashers serving under a variety of self-serving
ideological gods.

Larry Birns is director of the Council on Hemispheric Affairs.
Michael Lettieri is a research fellow at COHA.

       
                                *
================================================================
.NY Transfer News Collective    *    A Service of Blythe Systems
.          Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us         .
.339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012     http://www.blythe.org
.List Archives:   https://olm.blythe-systems.com/pipermail/nytr/
.Subscribe: https://olm.blythe-systems.com/mailman/listinfo/nytr
================================================================
*****************************************************************
 2 Annan Voices Hope For Diplomatic Resolution On Iran's Nuclear Programme
 
Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 19:00:52 -0400


 
ANNAN VOICES HOPE FOR DIPLOMATIC RESOLUTION ON IRAN’S NUCLEAR PROGRAMME
New York, May 10 2006  7:00PM
United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today expressed hope 
that intensified Security Council attention to Iran’s nuclear programme 
will lead to a diplomatic resolution of the matter, and advised 
Tehran to pursue dialogue on the issue.

“I think it is important that the Iranians remain open and that they 
back away from this aggressive posture, and be open to discussions,” 
Mr. Annan <"http://www.un.org/apps/sg/offthecuff.asp?nid=871">told 
the press after his monthly working luncheon with the 15-member 
body. Since 3 May, the Council has been considering its 
response to the latest report of the International Atomic Energy 
Agency (IAEA), which says Tehran has defied the Council’s call to 
suspend uranium enrichment and allow inspections of its programme. 


“No one is saying that they are not entitled to peaceful use of nuclear 
energy, but they have a responsibility to communicate and 
to show that their intention is peaceful,” he added.

“The Council has a greater voice when it speaks with one voice, and 
I hope we can find a solution,” said the Secretary-General.  “What 
is important here is that everybody seems to realize that we 
need to intensify diplomatic efforts and find a solution, and I 
hope in the meantime we will reduce the level of the rhetoric.”

Possible actions being considered by the Council include a draft 
resolution, backed by the United States, United Kingdom and France, 
that would demand compliance from Iran under the UN Charter’s 
Chapter VII – making it a legally binding decision that could be 
followed up by enforcement measures such as sanctions in the case 
of further defiance.

Earlier this year, the IAEA referred the matter to the Council after 
its Director-General, Mohamed ElBaradei, had repeatedly reported 
that although the Agency had not seen any diversion of material 
to nuclear weapons or other explosive devices, it was still not 
able to conclude that there were no undeclared nuclear materials 
or activities in Iran. 

Iran says its activities are solely for energy purposes but the United 
States and other countries insist it is clandestinely seeking 
to produce nuclear weapons.
 2006-05-10 00:00:00.000 


________________

For more details go to UN News Centre at http://www.un.org/news

To change your profile or unsubscribe go to:
http://www.un.org/apps/news/email/
*****************************************************************
 3 [NYTr] Iran Accuses Major Powers of Testing Nukes
 
Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 19:09:47 -0500 (CDT)

Via NY Transfer News Collective  *  All the News that Doesn't Fit
 
Prensa Latina, Havana
http://www.plenglish.com

Iran Accuses Powers of Testing Nukes

Jakarta, May 10 (Prensa Latina) Countries trying to force Tehran to
abandon its uranium program are just the ones testing new kinas of
weapons of mass destruction, Iranian President Mahmund Ahmadinejad
warned on Wednesday.

Ahmadinejad, who is currently on a visit to Indonesia, told
journalists that the great powers which are increasingly stepping up
their nuclear activities say to be concerned, which is a big lie.

Honestly, I can assure you that they are not really concerned over
non-peaceful nuclear activity in any country in the world.

Today, the Iranian people are not only defending their rights, but
also the rights of all nations. We will not yield to increasing
international pressure, he added.

He said that Iran is the only International Atomic Energy Agency
country member which maintains a full transparency, with an absolutely
peaceful nuclear activity.

His remarks came after a meeting with his Indonesian counterpart
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who offered help to solve the nuclear issue.

Yudhoyono said there is still room to continue pursuing negotiations,
and he backs the carrying out of uranium enrichment process for
peaceful purposes in Iran.

He also said Tehran is able to defend its rights and interests and
cooperate to ease tension.

Both presidents signed a number of bilateral agreements including
millions of dollars in Iranian investments on Indonesian oil and gas
industry.

On Friday the Iranian President will travel to the Indonesian island
of Bali to attend the eighth summit of the eighth developing countries
(D-8).

D-8 groups Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria,
Pakistan and Turkey. Jakarta drafted a resolution on the use of
nuclear energy for peaceful purposes for this gathering.

hr/rma/dor

                               ***

China, Russia, the EU 3 and US to Discuss Iran Issue in London

Vienna, May 10 (Prensa Latina) The European Union troika (the UK,
France and Germany), the US, China and Russia will discuss Iran nuke
crisis on May 19.

Sources close to the International Atomic Energy Agency said the
London meeting will pass a new resolution on the US devised artificial
crisis.

The five Security Council permanent members plus Germany were given
ten days to ready proposals since Iran countered US claims on WMD with
its right to use nuclear energy for peaceful ends.

Russia and China oppose the use of force against Iran if the related
parties produce evidence on a military program.

It is said that the Troika and the US will invoke chapter 7 of the UN
Charter that okays a military strike to the style of Iraq.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad warned from Indonesia that he
will reject sanctions from both the IAEA and the Security Council if
they violate the Non Proliferation Treaty.

hr/emw/to

                                ***

Russia and Iran Hold Talks on Nuclear Plant

Moscow, May 10 (Prensa Latina) Iranian Atomic Energy Agency
vicepresident Mohammed Saidi arrived at this capital Wednesday to
analyze the start of the electronuclear plant of Busher with their
Russian counterpart, and the fuel supply.

Saidi will have conversations with leaders of the Russian Federal
Nuclear Energy Agency, said a source from the Iranian Embassy in
Moscow, and will meet Serguei Shmatko, president of the Russian
nuclear equipments and service exporting complex Atomstroiexport.

The final stage for construction of the atomic plant in the Iranian
city of Busher will be the main topic of these conversations.

Russia supervises Tehran in the construction and assembling of this
nuclear plant in Basher, for a contract for 800 million dollars.

Before coming back to Tehran Thursday, Saidi will talk to Russian
nuclear program chief Serguei Kiriyenko, to analyze supply of the fuel
elements and details for starting the plant.

Russia announced it would participate in the licit for two future
electronuclear plants in Iran, which Tehran is to finish in the next
months, Saidi said.

Kiriyenko said that Russia needs to get its way to free competition to
develop its energy potential, and pointed out that the difference
between peaceful and military use of atomic energy is too much narrow
at present.

"Wide access of all countries to peaceful use of nuclear energy must
be quite guaranteed," Kiriyenko stated. "Russia defends these two
criteria in the development of new initiatives, like for instance
Iran, and to ensure no proliferation of nuclear weapons."

hr/tac/jpm
       
                                *
================================================================
.NY Transfer News Collective    *    A Service of Blythe Systems
.          Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us         .
.339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012     http://www.blythe.org
.List Archives:   https://olm.blythe-systems.com/pipermail/nytr/
.Subscribe: https://olm.blythe-systems.com/mailman/listinfo/nytr
================================================================
*****************************************************************
 4 [southnews] Middle East Experts warn against war on Iran
 
Date: Thu, 11 May 2006 01:27:17 -0500 (CDT)

------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> 
Protect your PC from spy ware with award winning anti spy technology. It's free.
http://us.click.yahoo.com/97bhrC/LGxNAA/yQLSAA/7gSolB/TM
--------------------------------------------------------------------~-> 

Today more than 200 scholars, academics, commentators, and former U.S. 
government officials issued a strong condemnation of the threat of U.S. 
military action against Iran and called on the Bush administration to 
enter into face-to-face negotiations with the government in Tehran.

Middle East Experts Warn Against Military Option in Iran

Wed May 10, 11:55 AM ET

To: National Desk

Contact: Ahmad Sadri, 847-735-5251, sadri@lakeforest.edu or Jim Cason, 
202-903-2531, media@fcnl.org, both of the Friends Committee on National 
Legislation

WASHINGTON, May 10 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Today more than 200 scholars, 
academics, commentators, and former U.S. government officials issued a 
strong condemnation of the threat of U.S. military action against Iran 
and called on the Bush administration to enter into face-to-face 
negotiations with the government in Tehran.

In a letter sent to the White House Tuesday evening, the group urges 
diplomacy to resolve concerns over the development of nuclear materials 
that have magnified tensions between Iran and the U.S. and global community.

"As the International Atomic Energy Agency has found no evidence of 
research or diversion of materials toward atomic weapons in Iran, 
concerns about future dual use of nuclear technology ought to be 
addressed in face to face negotiations," write the signatories and 
supporters, a diverse group of well respected Middle East experts from 
around the world as well as former U.S. officials and journalists. The 
letter warns that the likely "catastrophic regional and global 
consequences of escalating this crisis will not serve the interests of 
the United States, the course of democratic development in Iran, or the 
cause of global peace."

Among the signatories are Professors Juan Cole, Charles Butterworth, 
Richard Falk, Ervand Abrahamian, Ahmad Sadri, and Noam Chomsky. On 
Wednesday, several signatories of the letter held a press conference in 
Washington to answer questions about their position. "We started the 
letter out of a sense of frustration that the experts in the field were 
not being consulted as the U.S. develops policy toward Iran," explained 
Professor Ahmad Sadri, who coordinated the project. "This is the same 
mistake the U.S. government made before going to Iraq. We're saying 
don't do that again."

The Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL), which hosted the 
press conference, is a non-partisan Quaker lobby in the public interest 
that has worked for more than 60 years to support peaceful alternatives 
to war and other deadly conflicts and promote nuclear disarmament. FCNL 
represents 26 Yearly Meetings of the Religious Society of Friends 
(called Quakers). FCNL speaks for itself and like-minded individuals.

For the full text of the letter and a list of signatories, visit 
http://antiwarpetition.com/

For more information on FCNL, visit http://www.fcnl.org

http://www.usnewswire.com/
_____________________________________-

Israel rated worlds sixth-largest nuclear power

Al Jazeera 5/10/2006 8:00:00 PM GMT

History repeats itself: a Middle Eastern country launches its own 
nuclear program. The international community suspects it is a cover for 
building atomic weapons. The United States calls for the countrys 
nuclear sites to be inspected. Another government urges the country to 
scrap its nuclear plans. It is answered by defiant boasts that the 
nation's sovereignty will not be compromised.

The country in question is not Iran in 2006, but Israel in 1969. The 
current dispute over Iran's nuclear program has shocking parallels with 
the tensions sparked off by Israels attempts to acquire the nuclear 
bomb in the 60s. The only major difference is that the U.S. decided at 
the time not to curb the Israeli nuclear program. Recently declassified 
documents reveal that the Nixon administration reached a secret 
understanding with the Israelis in 1969 that allowed them to pursue 
their nuclear program as long as they maintain a policy of deliberate 
ambiguity.

In fact, this understanding paved the way for Israel, the 4th largest 
military power in the world, to be the only nuclear power in the Middle 
East and the worlds sixth country to acquire atomic weapons, a title 
its government has never admitted nor denied, according to an article on 
AFP. Despite its policy of ambiguity, Israels nuclear arsenal is 
estimated between 200 and 300 warheads. According to Eldridge, editor in 
chief of Jane's Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Defense, this estimate 
"is based on the production capacity of the country's reactors.

Meanwhile, the International Institute of Strategic Studies estimates 
the number of warheads that Israel possesses as being "up to 200". And 
the Nuclear Threat Initiative, a U.S. advocacy group co-founded by Ted 
Turner, the founder of CNN and a former senator, believes that Israels 
arsenal "is comparable in quality and quantity to that of France and the 
United Kingdom."

With French assistance, Israel built a nuclear weapons facility at 
Dimona in the Negev desert in 1958. The Dimona site has a 
plutonium/tritium production reactor, an underground chemical separation 
plant, and nuclear component fabrication facilities. In the early years 
of its nuclear program, Israel may have used French testing data to 
confirm its own weapon designs. Moreover, recently declassified British 
documents show that Britain helped Israel in making its nuclear bomb 
forty years ago, when it sold the Jewish state 20 tonnes of heavy water, 
a key substance for the production of atomic bombs. Experts suggest that 
the Israeli Defense Forces had their first nuclear weapons ready before 
the Six-Day War.

In 1986, Mordechai Vanunu, a former technician at Dimona, revealed to 
the media evidence that Israel possessed and produced nuclear weapons. 
At the time of Vanunu's arrest, The Times reported that Israel had 
material for approximately 20 hydrogen bombs and 200 fission bombs.

According to AFP, an unspecified number of ground-to-ground missiles, 
comprising short range Jericho 1 and medium range Jericho 2 missiles, 
forms Israel's strategic force. At the end of the 1990s, the Jewish 
state also acquired three diesel-powered, Dolphin-class submarines, 
capable of launching nuclear-armed cruise missiles. Moreover, the 
Washington Post recently reported that Israel has succeeded in modifying 
U.S.-made cruise missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads to be 
launched from submarines.

Unlike Iran and North Korea, Israel has never signed the Nuclear 
Non-Proliferation Treaty, designed to prevent the global spread of 
nuclear weapons. As a result, it is not subject to inspections and the 
threat of sanctions by the United Nations nuclear watchdog, the 
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which has repeatedly asked 
Israel to give up its secret nuclear arsenal to avoid an arms race in 
the Middle East.

U.S. intelligence agencies often omit Israel from semiannual reports to 
Congress identifying countries developing weapons of mass destruction to 
protect the Jewish state from any economic or military sanctions. On the 
other hand, the U.S. is leading an international campaign against Iran 
over its nuclear program, which Tehran insists is for generating power.

Israel also stepped up rhetoric against Iran. Deputy Prime Minister 
Shimon Peres warned on Monday that Iranian President Mahmoud 
Ahmadinejad, who has called for Israel to be wiped off the map, should 
bear in mind that his own country could also be destroyed.

Although Peres didnt say who should attack Iran, he implied that 
military action should be led by the U.S., pointing to the wars in 
Afghanistan and Iraq.

The U.S. is striving to get a UN Security Council resolution demanding 
the Islamic Republic to halt uranium enrichment activities. But the 
truth is that Tehran hasnt violated the Nuclear Non-Proliferation 
Treaty (NPT) or any other international obligations.

Let me remind everybody that nothing Iran is accused of doing is 
illegal, said Scott Ritter, the former UN weapons inspector who 
challenged the Bush administration's drive to Iraq War. Were 
condemning Iran for doing that which is permitted under a treaty which 
it has signed and entered into in force, and has UN inspectors on the 
ground verifying Iranian compliance.

It is obvious that Israel, which already possesses nuclear weapons, 
poses danger to Middle East stability. The U.S.--the only nation to have 
ever used nuclear weapons against human beings-- should bear in mind 
this fact before it presses Tehran over its nuclear ambitions. 
Washingtons refusal to consider Irans proposal to make the Middle East 
a nuclear-free zone shows what all the U.S. hype about Irans nuclear 
program is really about. It simply doesnt want to eliminate nuclear 
weapons in the Middle East as long as they remain in the hands of an ally.

http://www.aljazeera.com/me.asp?service_ID=11200

The archives of South News can be found at
http://southmovement.alphalink.com.au/southnews/ 

*****************************************************************
 5 [southnews] UK's new Foreign Secretary joins UN Iran crisis
 
Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 02:02:18 -0500 (CDT)

UK's new Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett is joining talks on the
growing Iran nuclear crisis with UN Security Council members in New
York. Just three days into her new job, Ms Beckett will join foreign
ministers from the US, Russia, China France and Germany for a private
dinner.

Mr  Straw repeatedly insisted military action against Iran was
"inconceivable" and recently dismissed suggestions of a pre-emptive US
strike as "nuts".

There have been claims Mr Straw was replaced at the Foreign Office
because his views on Iran had upset President Bush.

                                 *

Beckett joins UN Iran crisis talks

Press Association
Monday May 8, 2006 6:08 AM

New Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett is joining talks in New York on
the Iran nuclear crisis.

Just three days into her new job, Ms Beckett will be plunged into the
diplomatic maelstrom at the meeting aimed at finding a common approach
towards Tehran.

Foreign ministers from the five permanent members of the United Nations
Security Council - Britain, the United States, Russia, China and France
- plus Germany will attend a private dinner.

European diplomats are trying to win support for a draft Security
Council resolution demanding Iran honours its international obligations
and ends its uranium enrichment work - a key step in developing a
nuclear bomb.

However, Russia and France are wary, fearing it could lead to a re-run
of the Iraq crisis.

Observers will be watching Ms Beckett for any indication her appointment
represents a shift in the policy pursued by her predecessor Jack Straw.

Mr Straw repeatedly insisted military action against Iran was
"inconceivable" and recently dismissed suggestions of a pre-emptive US
strike as "nuts".

There have been claims Mr Straw was replaced at the Foreign Office
because his views on Iran had upset President Bush.

) Copyright Press Association Ltd 2006, All Rights Reserved.

The archives of South News can be found at
http://southmovement.alphalink.com.au/southnews/ 

*****************************************************************
 6 [NYTr] Iran: Nuclear Standoff or Realpolitik?
 
Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 14:27:36 -0500 (CDT)

Via NY Transfer News Collective  *  All the News that Doesn't Fit
 
CounterPunch - May 10, 2006
http://www.counterpunch.org/baroud05102006.html

Iran and the US

Nuclear Standoff or Realpolitik?

By RAMZY BAROUD

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice couldn't possibly have been more
accurate when she accused Iran of "playing games" with the international
community.

Rice was specifically referring to an announcement made April 30, by the
deputy head of the Iranian Atomic Energy Agency Muhammad Saeedi, that his
country is willing to allow "snap inspections" by the U.N. nuclear watchdog,
the International Atomic Energy Agency on the condition that the U.N.
Security Council is excluded from any involvement in inspecting Iran's
nuclear-enrichment facilities.

Iran is playing games in the sense that it is repeatedly testing U.S.
resolve to see how far the Bush administration is willing to go to escalate
the conflict. Naturally, the outcomes of Iran's political experimentations
help adjust -- escalate or downgrade -- the government's political attitude
toward the issue.

Ironically, the "games" to which Rice was protesting are called
"realpolitik," where practical matters are weighed, considered and taken
into account based exclusively on statistical, cost-effective analysis, and
where ethics and law carry little weight.

It's ironic because no Middle Eastern government comes close to the United
States and the so-called EU-3 -- Germany, France and Britain -- in playing
such games. After all, realpolitik was coined by a German writer to describe
the attempt to balance the powers of European empires in the 19th century.

True, Iran is no empire and is unlikely to metamorphose into one. Moreover,
the chances are that no balance of power -- in the real sense -- is possible
between Iran and its Western nemesis, considering U.S. military might
combined with that of "willing allies," no matter how hard Iranian President
Ahmadinejad labors to create a fearsome aura around his nation's military
force.

But thanks to other factors -- precisely President George W. Bush's low
ratings at home and his embattled military in Iraq -- Iran is finding itself
in a much more comfortable state than that of former Iraqi President Saddam
Hussein and his government, prior to the U.S. invasion in March 2003.

Some rightfully observe that the U.S. government's rhetoric concerning
Iranian nuclear enrichment is almost an exact replica of that employed
before the Iraq war. First, there was the exaggeration of Iraq's military
might, which was seen as a "threat" to its neighbors -- most notably Israel
-- and U.S. regional interests. Then came the sanctions, formidable and
suffocating, meant to "contain" the Iraqi regime and impede Hussein's
alleged incessant drive for chemical, biological and nuclear weapons.

Then there was the muscle flexing and awesome military deployment. Finally
came the showdown: war, forced regime change and occupation.

The Bush administration and the pro-war clique in Congress -- and they are
many -- sound equally enthused for another Middle East showdown, and Tehran
is the new destination. Once again, it's not respect for the law -- since
Iran's nuclear enrichment is not in violation of its commitment under the
Nonproliferation Treaty -- or respect for democracy -- for Iran is much
closer to an actual democracy than many corrupt and authoritative U.S.
allies
-- or respect for human rights -- since the U.S., as the effective ruler of
Iraq, is the region's top human-rights violator -- that stimulates such
enthusiasm.

Rather, it's realpolitik. Iran alone provides 5 percent of the world's oil
exports. At a time when access to and control of energy sources translates
into political power and strategic affluence, and in an age of uncertain oil
supplies and fractious markets, the Iran prize is most enviable.

But that alone can hardly justify the seemingly irrational readiness to
expand the battlefield for an already overstretched U.S. military. That's
where the infamous pro-Israel neoconservative warmongers are most effective.
In the same way they managed to concoct a pro-war discourse before the
disastrous war on Iraq -- using the military and ever willing mainstream
media -- they're working diligently to create another false doomsday
scenario required for a military encroachment on Iran.

If all of this is true, then why is Iran "playing games"?

The answer is multifaceted. While Iran is no match for an empire, it also
understands that it holds great leverage through its significant influence
over Iraq's Shiite population and their representatives. While the invasion
of Iraq has disaffected most of the country's population regardless of their
sectarian affiliation, the Shiite leaderships have yet to outwardly demand
an American withdrawal and, for strategic reasons, have yet to join the
flaring insurgency. Using its influence in Iraq, Iran could significantly
alter the equation, a decision that would unlikely suit the U.S. long-term
interests in occupied Iraq.

But Iran can do more, even if indirectly. When the price of a barrel of oil
recently reached $ 75, the Group of Seven industrial nations sent terrible
warnings of an impending global economic crisis. Imagine if the prices hit
the $ 100 mark -- or even $ 120. How will already fractious energy markets
treat such a possibility, keeping in mind already vulnerable Nigerian oil
production and the less accommodating -- read: more independent --
Venezuelan oil supplies? Needless to say, "unexplained" acts of sabotage
against Iraq's oil production facilities and export pipelines will likely
add fuel to the fire.

All of these outcomes exclude entirely the implausible likelihood that the
U.S. military is in fact capable of leading a ground war or maintaining a
long-term occupation of a country several times the size of Iraq, which has
not been weakened by years of debilitating sanctions.

As optimistic as it may sound, one can, to an extent, speak of a "balance of
power." Wherever such balance can be struck, realpolitik and its associated
"games" can also be found in profusion.

While the U.S. wishes to maintain the posture of the uncompromising,
hardheaded party, ready to mull its many "military options" at the strike of
an executive order, Iran is calling its bluff, confidently speaking of its
own options.

Iran 2006 is certainly not Iraq of 1990-1991, or 2003. Some major changes to
the political map of the Middle East have taken place and serious challenges
are appearing day after day to the astonishment of the beleaguered U.S.
government and its president.

Whether it still genuinely believes in military options as decisive retorts
to its many global challenges, the Bush administration must learn to deal
with new political realities, and it must also accept that playing politics
is no longer restricted to empires alone.

[Ramzy Baroud teaches mass communication at Curtin University of Technology
and is the author of The Second Palestinian Intifada: A Chronicle of a
People's Struggle. He is also the editor-in-chief of PalestineChronicle.com.]
       
                                *
================================================================
.NY Transfer News Collective    *    A Service of Blythe Systems
.          Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us         .
.339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012     http://www.blythe.org
.List Archives:   https://olm.blythe-systems.com/pipermail/nytr/
.Subscribe: https://olm.blythe-systems.com/mailman/listinfo/nytr
================================================================
*****************************************************************
 7 Guardian Unlimited: Israeli Official: Time Running Out on Iran
 
From the Associated Press        
	 
[UP] 

Wednesday May 10, 2006 10:31 PM
 	
AP Photo MVD102 
By STEVEN GUTKIN Associated Press Writer 

JERUSALEM (AP) - The outgoing head of Israel's National Security
Council said Wednesday that time is running out to find a
diplomatic solution to Iran's nuclear program, but cautioned
against talking about military action. 

Israel has grown increasingly concerned in recent months by
calls from Iran's leader to wipe out Israel, and by Iran's
efforts to develop a nuclear capability. Iran insists the
program is for peaceful purposes, but Israel and the West
believe Iran is trying to develop an atomic bomb. 

``We do believe that a political solution to the problem is
still achievable although time is running out,'' Giora Eiland
told foreign reporters in Jerusalem. ``The relevant time terms
can be measured in months.'' 

``I don't think that any military option should be discussed
right now,'' added Eiland, who is about to end his stint as head
of the policy-making council after a new Israeli government took
office last week. 

Eiland's comments were in contrast to Israeli Vice Premier
Shimon Peres' warning on Monday that Iran could be threatened
with destruction if it continues to vow to destroy Israel. 

``Be careful with your threats,'' Peres told Channel 1 TV.
``Those who threaten to destroy are in danger of being
destroyed.'' 

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Wednesday dismissed
Western concerns over its nuclear program as ``a big lie,'' a
day after key U.N. Security Council members agreed to present
Tehran with a choice of incentives or sanctions in deciding
whether to suspend uranium enrichment. 

Ahmadinejad told reporters in Jakarta, Indonesia that Iran will
``absolutely not back out'' of defending its right to pursue new
technology, accusing the United States and other Western nations
of monopolizing the nuclear technology market to secure profits
while engaging in non-peaceful proliferation. 

In recent months Israel has expanded its military arsenal,
acquiring dozens of warplanes and long-range fuel tanks to allow
them to reach Iran. However, officials have said they want to
let diplomacy take its course and that joint action with other
countries is preferable to Israeli unilateral moves. 

Israeli officials have described Iran's nuclear quest as the
Jewish state's greatest threat. Military experts disagree over
whether Israel would be capable of taking out Iran's nuclear
program on its own. 

Such a mission would be more complicated than the 1981 Israeli
raid that destroyed an unfinished Iraqi nuclear reactor, because
of the existence of multiple targets scattered throughout Iran -
some of which are underground - and because of Iran's
increasingly sophisticated defense systems. 
		 	 	   
      Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006
*****************************************************************
 8 Guardian Unlimited: Bush: Iran Letter Doesn't Answer Question
 
From the Associated Press        
         
[UP] 

Wednesday May 10, 2006 6:16 PM
 	
AP Photo FLPM103 

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) - President Bush says a lengthy letter from
Iran's leader doesn't answer the question the world is asking,
which is: ``When will you get rid of your nuclear program?'' 
The president made his first public comment on the letter from

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in a session with
reporters from several Florida newspapers in Orlando. 

The president tells reporters that the U.S. and other nations
are in agreement that Iran shouldn't have a nuclear weapon or
the capacity to make one. But he says the letter didn't address
that question. 

Yesterday, the president said he's confident diplomacy will work
with Iran, although the U.N. Security Council hasn't reached
agreement yet on a measure to deal with Iran's nuclear program. 

Meanwhile, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Wednesday
that a new proposal that European diplomats will soon present to
Iran makes plain the international cost of going forward with
disputed nuclear development. 

Rice acknowledged that any attempt to punish or coerce Iran
through the United Nations Security Council is on hold while
Britain, France and Germany renew diplomatic efforts to persuade
Iran to back down. 

``Iran knows that there are two options that have been there all
along. They can have a civilian nuclear program that is
appropriate and that the international community can support, or
they can face isolation,'' Rice told reporters in Washington. 
		 	 	   
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006
*****************************************************************
 9 Guardian Unlimited: Iran Leader Dismisses Nuke Program Worries

From the Associated Press        

[UP] 
	Wednesday May 10, 2006 7:16 PM
 	
AP Photo JAK110 
By CHRIS BRUMMITT Associated Press Writer 

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) - Iran's president on Wednesday
dismissed Western concerns over its nuclear program as ``a big
lie,'' a day after key U.N. Security Council members agreed to
present Tehran with a choice of incentives or sanctions in
deciding whether to suspend uranium enrichment. 

Meanwhile, in a letter to Time magazine published on its Web
site, a representative of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei
offered new options for solving the impasse with the United
States and its allies. 

Hassan Rohani, Iran's former top nuclear negotiator, said Tehran
would consider ratifying an International Atomic Energy Agency
protocol that provides for intrusive and snap inspections and
would also address the question of preventing a pullout from the
Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. 

Sean McCormack, the State Department spokesman, says of the Time
magazine letter, ``We've seen it. ... I think there really isn't
anything new in it.'' He said the letter does not deal at all
with enrichment. 

The current Iranian negotiator, Ali Larijani, said Tuesday that
Tehran had no intention of withdrawing from the treaty and
promised to cooperate if the U.N. atomic watchdog agency, rather
than the Security Council, dealt with the issue of its nuclear
program. 

Iran ended all voluntary cooperation with the IAEA in February,
including allowing snap inspections of its nuclear facilities. 
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told reporters Wednesday
in Indonesia's capital that Iran will ``absolutely not back
out'' of defending its right to pursue new technology, accusing
the United States and other Western nations of monopolizing the
nuclear technology market to secure profits while engaging in
non-peaceful proliferation. 

``They pretend that they are concerned about the nature of the
nuclear program of the Islamic republic of Iran,'' he said after
meeting with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

``This is a big lie.'' 

``Today the people of Iran are not just defending their own
rights, but also those of other nations,'' he said. ``They (the
United States and other Western powers) want to prevent other
countries from reaching the pinnacle of science and
technology.'' 

At a meeting Tuesday, representatives of the United States,
Russia, China, Britain and France as well as Germany agreed to
tell Iran the possible consequences of its refusal to halt its
enrichment program and the benefits if it abandons it. 

The move will delay a U.S.-backed draft U.N. resolution that
could lead to sanctions and possible military action if Iran
does not suspend uranium enrichment. 

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Wednesday she and
her counterparts on the U.N. Security Council agreed to give
Iran another two weeks to reconsider its position. 

``We agreed to continue to seek a Security Council resolution
but that we would wait for a couple of weeks while the Europeans
design an offer to the Iranians that would make clear they have
a choice that would allow them to have a civil nuclear program,
if that is indeed what they want,'' Rice said on U.S. TV network
ABC's ``Good Morning America.'' 

The Chinese and Russians have balked at the British, French and
U.S. efforts to put the resolution under Chapter 7 of the U.N.
Charter. Such a move would declare Iran a threat to
international peace and security and set the stage for further
measures if Tehran refuses to comply. Those measures could range
from breaking diplomatic relations to economic sanctions and
military action. 

Representatives from the three European countries that had been
spearheading negotiations with Iran - Britain, France and
Germany - will now spend the next few days preparing a package
of incentives and sanctions, a European official said, speaking
on condition of anonymity because there has been no official
announcement. 

The official said the package is likely to include issues
related to energy security and civilian nuclear power. The
package will be presented to European Union foreign ministers on
the sidelines of an EU meeting in Brussels on Monday, and if
approved will be presented to the Iranian government, the
official said. 

The United States accuses Iran of seeking to develop nuclear
weapons, a charge Tehran denies, saying it aims only to generate
energy. 

Yudhoyono, speaking at a joint news conference after he met with
Ahmadinejad for about 90 minutes, said he believed Iran was
willing to resolve the nuclear standoff peacefully through
further negotiations, and offered to help mediate. Yudhoyono's
spokesman, Dino Pati Djalal, said Iran was very receptive to the
offer. 

``We need to breathe new life into the negotiations,'' he said. 
Ahmadinejad was in Indonesia for a three-day state visit
followed by a development conference on the resort island of
Bali. 

Associated Press writer Edith M. Lederer contributed to this
story from the United Nations. 
		 	 	   
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006
*****************************************************************
 10 Guardian Unlimited: Rice Backs European Diplomacy With Iran
 
From the Associated Press        

[UP] 

Wednesday May 10, 2006 6:46 PM
 	
AP Photo DCCD101 
By ANNE GEARAN AP Diplomatic Writer 

NEW YORK (AP) - A new proposal that European diplomats will soon
present to Iran makes plain the international cost of going
forward with disputed nuclear development, Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice said Wednesday. 

The top U.S. diplomat acknowledged that any attempt to punish or
coerce Iran through the United Nations Security Council is on
hold while Britain, France and Germany renew diplomatic efforts
to persuade Iran to back down. 

``Iran knows that there are two options that have been there all
along. They can have a civilian nuclear program that is
appropriate and that the international community can support, or
they can face isolation,'' Rice told reporters in Washington. 

President Bush, meanwhile, shrugged off a letter from Iranian
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, saying it fell short as a
diplomatic opening on the nuclear issue. ``It looks like it did
not answer the main question that the world is asking and that
is, ``When will you get rid of your nuclear program?'' Bush
said. He made his comments in an interview with Florida
reporters, according to an account on the St. Petersburg Times
Web site. 

Rice's remarks were the first official U.S. confirmation of a
new overture and a delay in other action, although European
diplomats had described it in vague terms this week. The United
States has pushed for Security Council action for more than two
years, and Rice spent the last two days in New York discussing
Iran and other issues with her counterparts. 

Iran says its nuclear development is for peaceful production of
nuclear energy. The United States, European nations and others
accuse Iran of using the civilian energy program to hide
ambitions to build a nuclear weapon. The Security Council has
already said Iran must account for questionable activities in
the past and stop its current program of enriching uranium, a
key ingredient to make both energy and bombs. 

``We agreed to continue to seek a Security Council resolution
but that we would wait for a couple of weeks while the Europeans
design an offer to the Iranians that would make clear they have
a choice that would allow them to have a civil nuclear program
if that is indeed what they want,'' Rice said on ABC. 

The European Union's chief diplomat, Javier Solana, met with
Rice and told reporters that his organization would take up its
proposal for Iran on Monday in Brussels, but added, ``We will
not finalize it'' then. 

Also on Monday, Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns will meet
in London with British, French, German, Russian and Chinese
counterparts, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said. 

In two weeks, give or take a day, ``there will be some action in
the Security Council,'' McCormack said. ``We will see what the
action will be.'' 

The United States had hoped to move ahead toward possible
sanctions against Iran this week, but a meeting among Rice and
representatives of the other permanent Security Council members
ended with no sign that Iran's allies, Russia and China, are
prepared to back tough measures. 

The council members agree that Iran cannot be allowed to have a
weapon or to possess the most sensitive technology that could
lead to one, Rice said during a round of interviews on morning
television shows. 

``We have some tactical differences about how to express that in
Security Council,'' Rice said on NBC's ``Today'' show, ``but we
have agreement that we need to express it in the Security
Council and I can tell you that that we believe that to give a
couple of weeks for this agreement to come together is a good
thing, but there will be action in the Security Council.'' 

The powerful council could impose a range of sanctions against
Iran if it presses ahead with uranium enrichment, including
economic penalties or even an embargo on the oil exporter,
although that is very unlikely. 

Any penalties would require agreement or a vote to abstain from
Russia and China, which have extensive commercial ties with Iran
and have said they are opposed to sanctions. As permanent
members, they can veto Security Council action. 

Russia and China agreed to allow Iran's case to come before the
council after the failure of European-led talks that would have
given Iran a package of economic incentives and free hand to
develop civilian nuclear energy within international controls,
so long as it gave up disputed portions of the program. 

A Russian compromise to enrich uranium on Iran's behalf has gone
nowhere. Iran insists that it must have control of the full
nuclear fuel development process. This spring Tehran restarted
nuclear facilities that it had voluntarily shuttered during the
European talks. 

In an interview on Fox News' ``Fox and Friends,'' Rice said the
delay can build consensus among council members. 

``We are going to take the time to try to bring the Security
Council together in a more unified way,'' she said. ``We are
going to take the time so that the Europeans can show the
Iranians what a path might look like.'' 

Eds: Associated Press Diplomatic Writer Barry Schweid
contributed to this story from Washington. 

      Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006
*****************************************************************
 11 Guardian Unlimited: Iranians Fault Rice's Dismissal of Letter
 
From the Associated Press        

[UP] 

Wednesday May 10, 2006 7:16 AM
 	
AP Photo JAK106 
By ALI AKBAR DAREINI Associated Press Writer 

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's abrupt
dismissal of a letter from Iran's president might only
strengthen hardline attitudes and mistrust of America, some
Iranians warned Tuesday. 

As President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad began a high-profile visit to a
key Muslim country, Indonesia, a former top Iranian official
said Rice's response will give new justification to those who
oppose ties with the U.S. 

Iran's former ambassador to France, Sadeq Kharrazi, said the
letter - the first from an Iranian head of state to an American
president in 27 years - ``could have been a turning point in
relations.'' But he said Rice squandered the opportunity with
what he called a ``hasty reaction.'' 

``This gives a pretext to those in Iran who oppose
re-establishment of ties with America,'' he said. 

Ahmadinejad's 18-page letter to President Bush touched only
indirectly on the hottest dispute between the two countries -
Iran's nuclear program. Instead, it focuses on a long list of
grievances against the United States and seeks to build on a
shared faith in God to resolve them. 

Rice told The Associated Press the letter ``isn't addressing the
issues that we're dealing with in a concrete way.'' 

Iranian political analyst Saeed Leilaz said Rice's quick
brushoff would fuel anti-American feelings in Iran. 

``It could have been the beginning of a new process,'' he said.

Rice's response ``strengthens the suspicion (inside Iran) that
the U.S. is thinking of a military option only and not a
political solution'' to the standoff over Iran's nuclear
program, he said. 

As he boarded a plane for Indonesia on Tuesday, Ahmadinejad said
his letter contained ``the demands of Iranian people and our
nation.'' 

``I discussed our views, beliefs and positions regarding
international issues as well as some ways out of problems
humanity is suffering from,'' he told the official Islamic
Republic News Agency. ``We will wait for reaction ... and then
we'll make decisions.'' 

He arrived hours later in Indonesia - the world's most populous
Muslim nation, which has friendly ties with the U.S. and
European countries - where he was welcomed by President Susilo
Bambang Yudhoyono. 
After meeting with the Indonesian leader, Ahmadinejad insisted
that his country's nuclear program was peaceful and that Iran
will ``absolutely not back out'' of defending its right to
pursue new technology. 


The United States is backing a draft U.N. resolution that could
lead to sanctions and possible military action if Iran does not
suspend uranium enrichment. The United States accuses Iran of
seeking to develop nuclear weapons, a charge Tehran denies,
saying it aims only to generate energy. 

Officials declined to provide any details of the substance of
the meeting between the Iranian and Indonesian leaders.
Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda had said earlier
that they would discuss the Iranian nuclear standoff. 

The Iranian was also expected to attend a summit of developing
nations. 

``We want Iran to be more transparent in its program,''
Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda told reporters
Tuesday. 

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi said the
letter was not intended to address the nuclear issue. ``We have
sufficient logic and legal reasoning (to defend our program),''
Asefi was quoted by the radio as saying. 

``Our aim was to express our opinions about global problems and
the way out of these problems,'' he said. 

Reaction to the letter was mixed in Iran and across the Mideast. 
Iranian newspapers described the message as ``an initiative in
global diplomacy'' and ``dialogue under the shadow of war.'' 

But conservative lawmaker Hashmatollah Falahatpisheh lambasted
Ahmadinejad for failing to consult parliament before sending the
letter to the country Iran considers its greatest enemy. 

``This message is the outcome of a series of taboo-breaking
behaviors in Iran's foreign policy. ... That the parliament is
not aware of (the contents of the) letter is questionable,''
Falahatpisheh told an open session of the parliament broadcast
live on state-run radio Tuesday. 

Among Gulf nations, the letter fueled suspicions toward Iran. 

The Saudi-owned daily Asharq Al-Awsat called the letter proof
that ``Iran is not enriching uranium for peaceful purposes as it
says, and is striving for leadership and control of the
region.'' 

Such Iranian leadership would mean the Israeli-Palestinian peace
process ``would be stalled, the Iraqi dream (of democracy) would
be thwarted and we would witness a new wave of armament,'' wrote
Tariq Alhomayed, the paper's editor-in-chief. 

The Kuwaiti newspaper Arab Times ran an editorial in which
editor-in-chief Ahmed Al-Jarallah accused Ahmadinejad of acting
``as if he owns the region.'' 

Some of Iran's Arab neighbors have expressed fears over Iran's
nuclear program - particularly over pollution in case of an
accident - as well as over the standoff with the West, fearing
possible Iranian retaliation against American military bases in
Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain should the U.S. launch a pre-emptive
strike. 

But an editorial in Lebanon's The Daily Star newspaper called
the letter ``a cause for hope that a peaceful solution'' to the
nuclear standoff and called on Washington to initiate direct
talks with Tehran. 

--- 
On the Net: 
http://hosted.ap.org/specials/interactives/-documents/ahmadinejad
050 9.pdf 
		 	 	   
      Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006
*****************************************************************
 12 Guardian Unlimited: Iran: Worry Over Nuke Program 'A Big Lie'
 
From the Associated Press        

[UP] 

Wednesday May 10, 2006 12:31 PM
 	
AP Photo JAK110 
By CHRIS BRUMMITT Associated Press Writer 

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) - Iran's president on Wednesday
dismissed Western concerns over its nuclear program as ``a big
lie,'' a day after key U.N. Security Council members agreed to
present Tehran with a choice of incentives or sanctions in
deciding whether to suspend uranium enrichment. 

Meanwhile, in a letter to Time magazine published on its Web
site Wednesday, a representative of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali
Khamenei offered new possibilities toward solving the impasse
with the United States and its allies on the issue. 

Hassan Rohani, Iran's former top nuclear negotiator, said Tehran
would consider ratifying an International Atomic Energy Agency
protocol that provides for intrusive and snap inspections and
would also address the question of preventing a pullout from the
Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. 

The current Iranian negotiator, Ali Larijani, said Tuesday that
Tehran had no intention of withdrawing from the treaty and
promised to cooperate if the U.N. atomic watchdog agency dealt
with the issue of its nuclear program, rather than the Security
Council. 

Iran ended all voluntary cooperation with the IAEA in February,
including allowing snap inspections of its nuclear facilities. 

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told reporters Wednesday
in Indonesia's capital that Iran will ``absolutely not back
out'' of defending its right to pursue new technology, accusing
the United States and other Western nations of monopolizing the
nuclear technology market to secure profits while engaging in
non-peaceful proliferation. 

``They pretend that they are concerned about the nature of the
nuclear program of the Islamic republic of Iran,'' he said after
meeting with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

``This is a big lie.'' 

``Today the people of Iran are not just defending their own
rights, but also those of other nations,'' he said. ``They (the
United States and other Western powers) want to prevent other
countries from reaching the pinnacle of science and
technology.'' 

At a meeting Tuesday, representatives of the United States,
Russia, China, Britain and France as well as Germany agreed to
tell Iran the possible consequences of its refusal to halt its
enrichment program and the benefits if it abandons it. 

The move will delay a U.S.-backed draft U.N. resolution that
could lead to sanctions and possible military action if Iran
does not suspend uranium enrichment. 

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice stressed, however, that
Tuesday's decision is not a substitute for a strong message to
Iran from the Security Council ``that their behavior to date is
unacceptable, and that they need to return to the negotiating
table.'' 

The Chinese and Russians have balked at the British, French and
U.S. efforts to put the resolution under Chapter 7 of the U.N.
Charter. Such a move would declare Iran a threat to
international peace and security and set the stage for further
measures if Tehran refuses to comply. Those measures could range
from breaking diplomatic relations to economic sanctions and
military action. 

Representatives from the three European countries that had been
spearheading negotiations with Iran - Britain, France and
Germany - will now spend the next few days preparing a package
of incentives and sanctions, a European official said, speaking
on condition of anonymity because there has been no official
announcement. 

The official said the package is likely to include issues
related to energy security and civilian nuclear power. The
package will be presented to European Union foreign ministers on
the sidelines of an EU meeting in Brussels on Monday, and if
approved will be presented to the Iranian government, the
official said. 

The United States accuses Iran of seeking to develop nuclear
weapons, a charge Tehran denies, saying it aims only to generate
energy. 

In Jakarta, Ahmadinejad also shrugged off Washington's dismissal
of a letter he sent days ago to President Bush - the first such
letter to an American leader in 27 years. The 18-page letter
touched only indirectly Iran's nuclear program. Instead, it
focused on a long list of grievances against the United States
and sought to build on a shared faith in God to resolve them. 

Rice told The Associated Press on Monday the letter ``isn't
addressing the issues that we're dealing with in a concrete
way.'' 

Ahmadinejad said he was not ``disquieted'' by the reaction and
felt it was the correct decision to send the letter. ``If they
choose not to answer our question, it depends on them,'' he
said. 

Yudhoyono, speaking at a joint news conference after he met with
Ahmadinejad for about 90 minutes, said he believed Iran was
willing to resolve the nuclear standoff peacefully through
further negotiations, and offered to help mediate. Yudhoyono's
spokesman, Dino Pati Djalal, said Iran was very receptive to the
offer. 

``We need to breath new life into the negotiations,'' he said. 

Yudhoyono also said he hoped Iran would continue dialogue with
the IAEA. 

``There is still room for a peaceful and just solution,'' he
said. ``President Ahmadinejad was more than willing to have a
genuine and fair negotiation.'' 

Ahmadinejad said his country has already cooperated with
international agencies, saying Iran has allowed ``2,000
man-hours'' of inspections by the IAEA. 

Ahmadinejad was in Indonesia for a three-day state visit
followed by a development conference on the resort island of
Bali. 

--- 
Associated Press Writer Edith M. Lederer contributed to this
story from the United Nations. 
		 	 	   
      Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006
*****************************************************************
 13 IRNA: Main points of Ahmadinejad's letter to President Bush - part two
      
, May 10, IRNA                                                                                                           

--Ahmadinejad's Letter 

* The people will judge whether we were on the side of people or
the occupiers and oppressors.


 * Liberalism and Western style democracy have not been able to
help realize the ideals of humanity. Today these two concepts
have failed.


 * Those with insight can already hear the sounds of the
shattering and fall of the ideology and thoughts of the Liberal
democratic systems.


 * All independent observes have confirmed that the newly
elected Palestinian administration represents the electorate.
Unbelievably, they have put the elected government under
pressure and have advised it to recognize the Israeli regime,
abandon the struggle and follow the programs of the previous
government.


 * September 11 was a horrendous incident. The killing of
innocents is deplorable and appalling in any part of the world.
Our government immediately declared its disgust with the
perpetrators and offered its condolences to the bereaved and
expressed its sympathies.


 * After September 11 incident, instead of healing the wounds of
the survivors and the American people some Western media only
intensified the climate of fear and insecurity - some constantly
talked about the possibility of new terror attacks and kept the
people in fear. Was that in line with serving the American
people?

 * How long must the people of the world pay for the incorrect
decisions of some rulers? How much longer will the specter of
insecurity - raised from the stockpiles of weapons of mass
destruction -- hunt the people of the world? How much longer
will the blood of the innocent men, women and children be
spilled on the streets, and people's houses destroyed over their
heads?

 The next generations will judge whether we managed to bring
peace, security and prosperity to the people or we only provided
them with insecurity and unemployment.


 * Did we intend to establish justice or just supported special
interest groups, and by forcing many people to live in poverty
and hardship, made a few people rich and powerful -- thus
trading the approval of the people and the Almighty with theirs?

 * Did we defend the rights of the underprivileged or ignore
them? Did we defend the rights of all people around the world or
imposed wars on them, interfered illegally in their affairs,
established hellish prisons and incarcerated some of them?

 * Did we tell the truth to our nation and others around the
world or presented an inverted version of it?

 * Did our administrations set out to promote rational behavior,
logic, ethics, peace, fulfilling obligations, justice, service
to the people, prosperity, progress and respect for human
dignity or the force of guns, intimidation, insecurity,
disregard for the people, delaying the progress and excellence
of other nations, and trample on people's rights?

 * If Prophet Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Ismael, Joseph, or Jesus
Christ (PBUH) were with us today, how would they have judged
such behavior?

 * Is there no better way to interact with the rest of the
world? Today there are hundreds of millions of Christians,
hundreds of millions of Muslims and millions of people who
follow the teachings of Moses (PBUH). All divine religions share
and respect one word and that is "monotheism" or belief in a
single God and no other in the world.

 Will you not accept this invitation?

 * The people of the world are not happy with the status quo and
pay little heed to the promises and comments made by a number of
influential world leaders. Many people around the world feel
insecure and oppose the spread of insecurity and war and do not
approve the dubious policies.


 * The people of the world have no faith in international
 organizations, because their rights are not advocated by these
organizations.		 				 		 			

 			 			 				News sent: 15:48 Wednesday May 10, 2006 				Print
*****************************************************************
 14 Guardian Unlimited: Ahmadinejad accuses west of nuclear 'big lie'
 
Putin hits out at Washington as Iran dispute intensifies 

Staff and agencies
Wednesday May 10, 2006 		 

The Russian president, Vladimir Putin, today compared the US to
a wolf who "eats without listening" as a public spat between the
two countries on the best way to deal with Iran intensified.
Washington and Moscow are split on the appropriate action to
take against Iran following the announcement last month from
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad that the country had mastered
uranium enrichment.

Russia has made clear that it agrees Iran should not have nuclear 
weapons but questions whether the country is actively seeking a 
bomb and whether sanctions would be effective. 

Responding for the first time to accusations last week by the US 
vice-president, Dick Cheney, that Moscow had rolled back 
democracy, Mr Putin said: "Where is all this pathos about 
protecting human rights and democracy when it comes to the need 
to pursue their own interests?

"Here, it seems, everything is allowed; there are no
restrictions whatsoever. We are aware what is going on in the
world. Comrade wolf knows whom to eat, he eats without
listening, and he's clearly not going to listen to anyone."

In an apparent reference to suspicions that the US is planning
military action against Iran, Mr Putin added: "Methods of force
rarely give the desired result, and often their consequences are
even more terrible than the original threat." 

Iran is under pressure from the US and the EU to rein in its
nuclear programme. Iran insists the project is for peaceful
purposes, but some countries fear its aim is to develop weapons.

Mr Ahmadinejad today called western governments' concern over
his nuclear programme a "big lie". Speaking on a visit to
Indonesia, the Iranian leader said the countries that criticised
Iran's nuclear project were themselves involved in nuclear
activities that were "expanding day by day".

"They test the new brands of weapons of mass destruction every
day. Big powers pretend [they] are concerned, but it's a big
lie," he said.

Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim country, has offered
to help mediate in the dispute over Iran's nuclear aspirations.

"We can cooperate well in reducing the tension and move toward
continuing talks and negotiations," said the Indonesian
president, Susilo Yudhoyono.

A spokesman for the Indonesian government said Tehran had been
"very receptive" to its offer. Jusuf Kalla, vice-president of
Indonesia, told reporters after meeting Mr Ahmadinejad that
Indonesia supported nuclear programmes for peaceful use.

The official purpose of Mr Ahmadinejad's visit to Jakarta is the
development of closer economic ties. Iran is in the process of
investing billions of dollars in the Indonesian oil and gas
sector. Both nations are members of the Organisation of the
Petroleum Exporting Countries and are keen to boost trade with
one another.

The US has pushed for international action on Iran and, with
China and Russia, has authorised Britain, France and Germany to
draw up a plan to persuade its government to relinquish its
nuclear enrichment programme.
 
[UP] 

      Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006
*****************************************************************
 15 New York Times: Iranian Letter: Using Religion to Lecture Bush - 

By Published: May 10, 2006 			 

CAIRO, May 9 — With the tone of a teacher and the certainty of a
believer, the president of wrote to President Bush that Western
democracy had failed and that the invasion of Iraq, American
treatment of prisoners and support for Israel could not be
reconciled with Christian values. 

 Ed Wray/Associated Press 

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran arriving early today in
Jakarta, Indonesia. 

(lemonde.fr) 

Locked in a conflict with the West over its nuclear program, the
Iranian, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, made the observations in
a letter on Monday that the Iranian government said "raised new
ways of solving problems." 

The 18-page letter, whose text was made available to The New
York Times by diplomats on Tuesday, did not offer any concrete
proposals for dealing with the crisis, but suggested that the
United States give up its liberal, democratic, secular system
and turn more toward religion.

"Those with insight can already hear the sounds of the
shattering and fall of the ideology and thoughts of the liberal
democratic systems," Mr. Ahmadinejad wrote.

State Department officials said there was nothing in the letter
relevant to current talks with Iran about its nuclear programs.

Though the letter was dismissed by American officials, some said
it provided an interesting window into the mindset in Tehran,
especially with its emphasis on grievances. 

"There was not a single substantive proposal in the letter, but
it was a revealing insight into their mentality," a senior State
Department official said. 

While the letter laid out a litany of policy disputes with the
United States, it was also personal, urging President Bush, who
is candid about his religious conviction, to examine his actions
in the light of Christian values. As he has done in the past,
the Iranian struck a prophetic tone, which is certain to be well
received by his core supporters and mocked by his opponents.

 "We increasingly see that people around the world are flocking
towards a main focal point that is the Almighty God," he wrote.
"Undoubtedly through faith in God and the teaching of the
prophets, the people will conquer their problems. My question to
you is: 'Do you want to join them?' " 

The letter was framed entirely in religious terms but also laid
out a populist manifesto of anti-Americanism, offering
illustrations of what has won the Iranian a following among many
ordinary people throughout the Middle East. He presented himself
as the defender not only of Muslims but of all oppressed people,
including those in Africa and Latin America.

But his primary focus was on religious principles central to
Shiite Islam, specifically the concept of a just ruler and the
fight against oppression. With a respectful, if superior, tone,
he used a question and answer style to present a case for
American hypocrisy. 

He seemed to try to shame President Bush when he asked: "Are you
pleased with the current condition of the world? Do you think
present policies can continue?"

The letter marked a significant gesture, the first direct
contact between an Iranian head of state and an American
president since the revolution of 1979. Mr. Ahmadinejad also
left himself open to criticism that this would aggravate a
nuclear showdown, and from those who see his contact with Mr.
Bush as a betrayal.

The letter focused repeatedly on the notion that America is a
sinner.

"My basic question is this: Is there no better way to interact
with the rest of the world? Today there are hundreds of millions
of Christians, hundreds of millions of Muslims, and millions of
people who follow the teachings of Moses. All divine religions
share and respect one word, and that is monotheism, or belief in
a single God and no other in the world."

While sticking to a script of grievances against the United
States, the tone also marked a shift from Mr. Ahmadinejad's past
discussions. He did not use the terms "Great Satan" or "World
Oppressor." And the letter did seek to identify a common ground
for starting discussions.

 "It would be a big mistake if the United States dismissed it or
if they only consider it as a philosophical, religious,
historical letter," Nasser Hadian, a political science professor
at Tehran University, said by telephone. "It would be a good
idea if President Bush responds to it. It can open up some
space." 

The letter also included many standard views of conservatives in
Iran, including the comment that those responsible for planning
the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, were never charged or tried,
hinting darkly of conspiracy.

"Sept. 11 was not a simple operation," he wrote. "Could it be
planned and executed without coordination with intelligences and
security services, or with extensive infiltration? Of course,
this is just an educated guess. Why have the various aspects of
the attacks been kept secret?"

Since he was elected last June, the Iranian has promised to
return to the principles of the revolution, and his letter
echoed Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who wrote to in September
1989 that Communism was dead, and then invited him to study
Islam. 

Citing the war in Iraq and reports of secret prisons around
Europe, Mr. Ahmadinejad argued that the United States had failed
to live up to its own stated values, an argument that resonates
in the streets of the Middle East.

 While the notion that a head of state might write such a
document may be perceived as naïve, it is another effort by Mr.
Ahmadinejad to demonstrate his Everyman style.

 "His letter was addressed more to young people in the Islamic
world than to the American president," said Wahid Abdel Maguid,
deputy director of the government-financed Al Ahram Center for
Political and Strategic Studies in Egypt. "He wants to play the
hero, mobilizing and inciting the enthusiasm of the young
people. This is not a kind of letter that a head of state sends
to another."

Mona el-Naggar contributed reporting for this article.

*****************************************************************
 16 IRNA: Indonesian president supports Iran's civilian nuclear activities
      
, May 10, IRNA                                                                                                           

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono of Indonesia in an official
meeting with his visiting Iranian counterpart Mahmoud
Ahmadinejad here Wednesday strongly supported Iran's right to
acquire civilian nuclear energy.

 President Ahmadinejad arrived in Jakarta, heading a
high-ranking politico-economic delegation early Wednesday to
attend the fifth summit of the D-8 (Group of 8 developing Muslim
countries) slated to open in the island of Bali on Saturday.

 President Yudhoyono said that Jakarta was keen to promote its
bilateral ties with Tehran in the fields of energy and
technology in particular.

 Yudhoyono said that after talking to President Ahmadinejad, he
has realized that he holds rational stance on every issue.

 As for facilitating Iran-Indonesia relations, President
Yudhoyono said every Iranian national with a diplomatic or
service passport would not need to receive visas to enter
Indonesia.

 He added that entry permission would be issues for ordinary
Iranian nationals upon their arrival in Indonesia.

 Meanwhile, President Ahmadinejad, for his part, praised
President Yudhoyono for his support for Tehran's peaceful
nuclear programs saying sciences and technologies are not under
the monopoly of any country.

 "Sciences belong to all nations and have to be used for the
progress of humanity," President Ahmadinejad stressed.

 He criticized certain big powers for trying to use scientific
technologies as a means to follow their expansionist policies
and ominate independent nations.

 Reiterating the peaceful and transparent nature of Iran's
entire nuclear programs, the Iranian president said Tehran's
nuclear activities were completely in compliance with the rules
and regulations of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

 He added if the international bodies use their laws and
regulations against the legitimate rights of the Iranian nation,
"Then Tehran will reconsider its policies."

 Ahmadinejad noted that Western powers were mounting their
propaganda and psychological campaign against Iran because "They
are not capable of harming the Iranian nation."

 "The people of Iran have made their decision and will continue
defending their indisputable (nuclear) rights by relying on the
God and their unity," stressed the president.

 Moreover, Ahmadinejad said that Tehran would support Jakarta's
membership in the United Nations Security Council in 2007 and
2008.

 The two presidents also stressed the need for supporting the
cause of Palestine and the process of formation of an
independent government for the Palestinian nation.

 They also urged all Muslim nations to support their fellow
Muslims in Iraq and Afghanistan.		 				 		 			

*****************************************************************
 17 IRIB PERSIAN NEWS: IRI seeks peace in the world 

2006/05/10   
  
Athens, May 10 - Visiting Secretary of Iran's Supreme National
Security Council (SNSC) Ali Larijani said here on Tuesday that
Greece could play a major, constructive role in the
international arena.

 Speaking to representatives of the Greek press and mass media,
Larijani, who arrived in the Greek capital Wednesday morning
heading a delegation, said Iran's nuclear case had now reached a
critical stage and consultations with friendly countries like
Greece would be "highly important and effective."

 "America meddling in Iran's nuclear case has created tensions,"
Larijani said.

 He regretted that the America was trying to mislead world
public opinion by using its influence on the media.

 Asked what Tehran expected from Athens in its current nuclear
standoff with the West, Iran's chief nuclear negotiator said:
"We expect them to strike a balance between Iran's commitments
as a signatory to the Non- Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and its
rights as guaranteed therein when deciding on the nuclear issue."

 Larijani stressed that Iran was seeking nothing more than its
legal rights under international law and IAEA rules and
regulations.

 Asked how Tehran would react if Athens allowed Washington to
use its military base in Souda, southeastern Greece, to launch
military action against Iran as reported, Larijani said: "As far
as I know, Greek Foreign Minister Theodora Bakoyianni has
dismissed the report." But he warned that the US was itself
"vulnerable in many points," and did not elaborate.

 The Souda Air Force base is located on a bay with the same name
in the village of Mouzouras in southeastern Greece. It is used
as a center for the US Naval Support Activity (NSA). 

Referring to President Ahmadinejad's letter sent to US President
George W Bush on Monday, Larijani said the letter showed the
Iranian president's desire for peace and stability in a world
threatened by many problems.

 "We support a rational and logical solution to Iran's nuclear
case," larijani added, and recalled the history of Iran's
nuclear program which, he said, was launched 40 years ago when
the US signed a contract with the then Shah of Iran to construct
nuclear facilities for the country capable of producing 20,000mw
of electrical power.

 The contract, he said, was cancelled by the Americans after the
victory of Iran's Islamic Revolution in 1979.   

  Copyright 2004, 
All Rights Reserved By Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting
News Network 
Sponsored By IRIB News Computer Center. 
E-Mail: webmaster@IRIBNEWS.ir
*****************************************************************
 18 AFP: Iran's president arrives in Indonesia amid nuclear row - 

 Wed May 10, 1:39 AM ET 
		 	 
JAKARTA (AFP) - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad arrived in
Jakarta for a visit during which he may ask Indonesia to play a
mediating role with Western nations over his country's contested
nuclear program. 

Ahmadinejad was greeted amid tight security by Indonesian
Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda and about two dozen Indonesian
and Iranian officials.
 
Wearing a light brown jacket and looking relaxed, he waved to
reporters but made no comment before leaving for his south
Jakarta hotel.
 
Wirayuda, asked if Iran
" /> Iran's nuclear program would be raised in bilateral talks,
said: "Certainly it will be discussed, it's an important issue."
 
The Iranian president's arrival in the world's most populous
Muslim country came as the White House said there would be no
formal written response to a surprise letter Ahmadinejad wrote
to President George W. Bush
" /> President George W. BushMonday, in which he criticized US
policy in the Middle East.
 
Bush said that diplomacy remained the number one option in the
dispute over Iran's nuclear program, telling reporters in
Florida: "In the short term ... we'll keep diplomacy going,
knitted up with as many nations as possible."
 
He highlighted a meeting in New York Monday of the major powers
to try to find a strategy to force Iran to give up uranium
enrichment. The meeting of the United States, Russia, Britain,
China, France and Germany produced no agreement, however.
 
That meeting came hours after Ahmadinejad wrote to Bush,
breaking a quarter century of official silence between the top
levels of government in Washington and Tehran.
 
In the 18-page letter, Ahmadinejad touched on the nuclear
crisis, but gave no sign that Iran would adhere to UN demands to
freeze uranium enrichment work which is at the heart of fears
that Tehran is using an atomic energy drive as a mask for
weapons development.
 
Indonesian foreign ministry spokesman Desra Percaya said
Indonesia could "play the role of a middleman" between Iran and
its Western opponents.
 
During his five-day visit, Ahmadinejad is expected to sign
agreements on energy cooperation and tourism, and to meet
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.
 
He is also due to give a speech at the University of Indonesia,
hold talks with students at the Syarif Hidayatullah Islamic
University and meet the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce.
 
His plans include attending Friday prayers at Jakarta's Istiqlal
mosque after meeting Islamic leaders, and then flying to Bali to
attend a meeting of the Developing-8 (D-8) group of large Muslim
countries which opens Friday.
 

Copyright © 2006 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved. The
*****************************************************************
 19 AFP: World powers struggle to find common policy on Iran

 Wed May 10, 5:58 AM ET 
		 	 
WASHINGTON (AFP) - World powers struggled to agree a common 
approach to Iran " /> 's nuclear ambitions, as US President 
George W. Bush " /> vowed to pursue diplomacy to resolve the 
crisis. 

 With Russia and China still opposed to imposing sanctions on
Iran, the United States and its European allies were now looking
at possible incentives as well as penalties to defuse the
nuclear crisis.
 
Iran has rejected international demands to end its uranium
enrichment work, which Washington and its allies believe hides a
nuclear weapons drive. Tehran insists its research is for
peaceful purposes.
 
Bush said that even China and Russia agreed that Iran must not
be allowed to have a bomb, but that he was determined to seek a
negotiated settlement rather than more coercive measures.
 
"The first option and the most important option is diplomacy,"
the US president said Tuesday at an appearance in Florida when
asked about the Iran dispute.
 
He refused to comment on whether economic sanctions could be
applied.
 
"I think it's very important for good negotiators to keep their
cards close to the chest and at the appropriate time, make it
clear what our intentions are," he said. "This is a serious
issue, taking a lot of our time as it should."
 
After talks among top diplomats from the United States, Russia,
China, Britain, France and Germany in New York failed to produce
agreement, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
" /> said Tuesday the group was weighing a package of carrots
and sticks to persuade Iran to drop its defiance.
 
The diplomats however were "very clear that there is a path that
if Iran continues down it, is going to lead them to isolation,"
she said.
 
French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy said the major
power ministers reviewed a series of possible incentives and
punishments.
 
Incentives, he said, included "ambitious proposals, first in the
area of civilian nuclear energy, then in the commercial domain,
in the technological domain and, why not, in the area of
security."
 
The United States has refused to offer Tehran security
guarantees, saying military action remained an option to prevent
Iran from building a nuclear arsenal.
 
The United States, Britain and France want a resolution under
Chapter 7 of the UN Charter, which would probably start with a
warning to Iran that could be followed by economic sanctions and
even military action.
 
China and Russia have spoken out strongly against coercive
measures.
 
"Our position is very firm -- we think that at this stage there
is no necessity to discuss Chapter 7," Russia's Interfax news
agency quoted Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as saying.
 
Meanwhile Iranian officials said they were waiting for a reply
to the surprise 18-page letter President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
sent to Bush on Monday.
 
The White House said there would be no formal response to a
letter that Rice said contained "nothing new" to resolve the
nuclear dispute.
 
The letter was the first from an Iranian leader to a US
president in more than a quarter century. Tehran portrayed it as
an important diplomatic initiative, though US officials
dismissed it as more philosophical treatise than political
overture. 

In the letter, Ahmadinejad assailed the United States over Iraq
" /> , its reaction to the September 11, 2001 attacks, the
handling of "war on terror" detainees and even US policy in
Latin America. 

He suggested that the two countries return to religious
principles as a means of restoring confidence. "Will you not
accept this invitation?" Ahmadinejad asked. 

Ahmadinejad, currently on a visit to Indonesia, remained
defiant. When asked about Iran's nuclear program at a press
briefing after meeting Indonesian President Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono he said: "The Iranians are capable of defending their
own rights and interests." 

He continued: "We think that this is the right of every nation:
to use modern science and technology, and the right has been
enshrined in the previsions of the NPT," he said, referring to
the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. 

Yudhoyono in turn said that Indonesia believes Iran's nuclear
program is peaceful and that diplomacy can resolve the
international stand-off over its ambitions. 

"We hope that open conflict can be avoided. I also believe that
Iran can continue talks and negotiation. All parties must use
the opportunity to find a peaceful and diplomatic solution,"
Yudhoyono said. 

Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation, has offered
to help mediate in international talks aimed at resolving the
standoff over Iran's nuclear program, Yudhoyono's spokesman
said. 

Dino Patti Djalal told reporters that Yudhoyono suggested to
Ahmadinejad that representatives of Islamic nations should
assist in the talks. 

"In talks on the nuclear issue, Indonesia has proposed the
establishment of a larger forum," Djalal said.
 	 		 			
Copyright © 2006 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved. The
*****************************************************************
 20 IRNA: Main points of Ahmadinejad's letter to President Bush - part one
      
Tehran, May 10, IRNA                                                                                                             

Iran-US-Ahmadinejad's Letter 

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has written a letter to the US
President George W. Bush.

 "The letter to US President George Bush carries the Iranian
nation's views and comments on international issues as well as
suggestions for resolving many problems facing humanity," said
the Iranian president here Tuesday upon his departure for
Indonesia to attend a meeting of the D-8 (Group of eight
developing Muslim states).

 The letter was submitted to President Bush via the Swiss
embassy in Tehran, which takes care of the US interests in Iran.

 The following is the main points of Ahmadinejad's letter to
George Bush:

 * European investigators have confirmed the existence of secret
prisons in Europe. How such actions correspond to the liberal
values?
 * Are the ways to treat with prisoners in Guantanamo Bay based
on the tradition of Jesus Christ (PBUH), the Messenger of peace
and forgiveness?

 * Is support for a regime which does not show mercy even on
kids and keeps thousands of Palestinians in prison based on
liberal values?
 * Are those who support a regime that announces beforehand its
list and plans to assassinate Palestinian figures and at the
same time chant anti-terrorism slogans faithful?

 * Is allowing the original inhabitants of the Palestinian lands
to etermine their fate, runs counter to principles of democracy,
human rights and the teachings of prophets?

 * Why are all UN Security Council resolutions in condemnation
of Israel vetoed?

 * Aside from the Middle Ages, in what other point in history
has scientific and technical progress been a crime?

 * The brave and faithful people of Iran want to know why
billions of dollars of its assets have been frozen in the US.


 * The Iranian nation wants to know why Washington supported
Saddam regime in the 1980-88 Iraqi imposed war against Iran.


 * The Iranian people want to know why the Iranian passenger
plane was shot down.


 * Could the September 11 incident be planned and executed
without coordination with intelligence and security services or
their extensive infiltration?

 * Why those elements responsible for the September 11 incident
are not identified and put on trial?

 * Is intensifying the climate of fear and insecurity to the
benefit of the American people?

 * What has the hundreds of billions of dollars, spent every
year to pay for the Iraq campaign, produced for the American
citizens?
 * Israel was established at the cost of murdering of thousands
of people and homelessness of millions of others.


 * Why is a regime which does not show mercy even on kids and
destroys houses while the occupants are still in them supported
by the US?
 * Is support for the Zionist regime in line with the teachings
of Jesus Christ (PBUH) or Moses (PBUH) or liberal values?

 * Spending hundreds of billions of dollars every year to pay
for the Iraq campaign cannot be justified by the American
citizens.		 				 		 			

*****************************************************************
 21 AFP: West gives Iran breather in nuclear row - Rice 

 by Peter Mackler Wed May 10, 2:08 PM ET 
		 	 
NEW YORK (AFP) - The United States, facing stubborn opposition to 
sanctions against Iran " /> , gave its European allies "a couple 
of weeks" to draft new incentives for Tehran to halt its 
controversial nuclear program. 

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice " /> made the announcement 
after two days of intensive consultations by the United States, 
Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany that ended with no 
consensus on tough UN action.
 
Washington has pushed for sanctions to punish Iran for its
suspected efforts to develop nuclear weapons, but has been
stymied by resistance by Russia and China, which hold veto
rights in the UN Security Council.
 
"We agreed that we will continue to seek a Security Council
resolution, but that we would wait for a couple of weeks while
the Europeans design an offer to the Iranians that would make
clear that they have a choice that would allow them to have a
civil nuclear program," Rice told ABC television.
 
Diplomats said negotiators from the Council's five permanent
members plus Germany would meet in London on May 19 to consider
new incentives as well as sanctions if Iran does not halt
suspected efforts to build a nuclear bomb.
 
A Western envoy in Vienna said they hoped to finalize the
package within 10 days for presentation to Iran by Britain,
France and Germany, the so-called EU-3 which have taken the lead
in negotiations with Tehran.
 
But Rice said Washington was not abandoning efforts to seek a
forceful response to Iran's rejection of a Security Council
injunction to stop its uranium enrichment activities.
 
"We are all in agreement that the Security Council has got to
send a very strong message to Iran that it can't continue to
defy the international community. And that's what we're going to
do," Rice said.
 
"And we felt that waiting a couple of weeks is the way to allow
diplomatic options to be fully pursued."
 
She told NBC television the EU-3 would present Tehran with two
options: "Iran can either defy the international community and
face isolation and UN Security Council action; or Iran can
accept a path to a civil nuclear program that is acceptable to
the international community."
 
Rice did not discuss the content of the proposals but said the
bottom line was that Iran could not have access to technologies
to make a bomb. "That means that enrichment and reprocessing on
their territory can't be permitted."
 
French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy said early Tuesday
the carrots included civilian nuclear energy cooperation, trade
and technological exchanges "and, why not, in the area of
security." Washington has refused to give Iran security
guarantees.
 
Rice held talks Monday night with her counterparts from the
other four permanent Security Council members plus Germany and
the European Union
" /> .
 
Their political directors followed up Tuesday with no consensus
in sight on a US push for a resolution under chapter seven of
the UN charter, which could authorize sanctions or military
force against Iran.
 
Iran, which insists its nuclear program is peaceful, spurned
earlier efforts by the EU-3 to wean it off its alleged weapons
ambitions with economic and other incentives.
 
It has also waffled at a proposal by Moscow to enrich uranium
for the Iranians on Russian soil.
 
Tehran this week made an apparent attempt to open a direct
dialogue with Washington in a letter from its hardline leader
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to President George W. Bush
" /> .
 
But Rice again dismissed the letter as falling short of a
serious attempt to address issues between Iran and the West. 
"It really doesn't offer a solution to the nuclear impasse," she
told ABC. "It doesn't talk about Iran's role in terrorism around
the world. And there really isn't anything there to consider it
a diplomatic overture." 

She said that "no one in the international system is prepared to
allow the Iranians to get a nuclear weapon" and again refused to
rule out military action if diplomacy fails. 

"We fully believe that a diplomatic course of a unified
international community will bring the Iranians to understand
that they have no choice but to agree to a civil nuclear program
that the international community can support." 

In his first public reaction to a letter sent him by
Ahmadinejad, Bush also said it failed to respond to
international concern about Tehran's nuclear program. 

"It looks like it did not answer the main question that the
world is asking and that is, 'when will you get rid of your
nuclear program?'" Bush said in Orlando in a roundtable
discussion Tuesday with several Florida newspapers. 

Indonesia's president meanwhile backed Tehran's claim that its
nuclear program was peaceful while Ahmadinejad dismissed Western
concerns over the Islamic regime's ambitions as "a big lie." 

In Jakarta, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said he believed
diplomacy could resolve the international stand-off over Iran's
ambitions and offered to help mediate in talks. 

"Indonesia believes that Iran's nuclear program is peaceful and
all problems related to the Iranian nuclear program can be
solved in a good manner and diplomatically by involving many
parties in the international community," Yudhoyono told a press
briefing after meeting Ahmadinejad.

Copyright © 2006 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved. The
*****************************************************************
 22 AFP: US official says China will not block action against Iran -
     
 Wed May 10, 3:59 PM ET 
		 	 
WASHINGTON (AFP) - A top US administration official said that 
China would not be an "obstacle" to increasing international 
pressure on Iran " /> Iranover its nuclear programme. 

 US Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick
" /> Robert Zoellicktold a Congress committee that Chinese
officials had made it clear "they agree in principle: they don't
want Iran to have a nuclear weapon and they understand the
danger of that process."
 
Zoellick added that Chinese officials had told Washington there
may be differences over the tactics to be used because they were
worried about "energy security issues", as Iran is a key
international oil supplier.
 
China has joined Russia, among the major powers on the UN
Security Council, in opposing talk of sanctions against Iran.
 
The United States, Britain and France want a UN resolution under
Chapter 7 of the UN Charter that would give a warning and follow
this with a threat of economic sanctions, and if necessary
military action.
 
But Zoellick told the House of Representatives foreign affairs
committee: "If we can bring Russia along with some of this, my
own sense is that China will not be an obstacle in the process."
 
He added that Beijing recognizes that the Iran dispute is "a
very important issue in the US-China relationship. We need to
keep stressing that."
 
Zoellick emphasized that China has "shown some cooperation" in
increasing pressure on Iran over the nuclear programme which
Washington and its allies believe camouflages efforts to build
an atomic bomb.
 
China voted for an International Atomic Energy Agency
" /> International Atomic Energy Agency(IAEA) board decision to
report Iran to the UN Security Council.
 
"They joined the rest of the Security Council on March 29 in
adopting the presidential statement" which set a deadline for
Iran to meet IAEA demands, said Zoellick.
 
"They have sent senior officials to Iran, and they've reported
back to us, and we have a sense of the message that they're
trying to deliver."
 
Zoellick said Russia and China were hesitant because Chapter 7
"suggests to some the possibility of a use of force".
 
"They want to be willing to ratchet up the pressure, but they're
worried about that aspect," the US official said. "In part
because of some of their own history, they get worried about the
use of sanctions as you move forward."
 
Copyright © 2006 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved. The
*****************************************************************
 23 Le Monde.fr: La lettre de Mahmoud Ahmadinejad à George W. Bush
 
Iran et les Etats-Unis sur l&#039;Irak, le 8 avril
2006. | AFP/BEHROUZ MEHRI' ] 


Can one be a follower of Jesus Christ (PBUH), the great
Messenger of God, 
Feel obliged to respect human rights, Present liberalism as a
civilization model, Announce one's opposition to the
proliferation of nuclear weapons and WMDs, Make War and Terror
his slogan, And finally, Work towards the establishment of a
unified international community – a community which Christ and
the virtuous of the Earth will one day govern, But at the same
time, Have countries attacked; The lives, reputations and
possessions of people destroyed and on the slight chance of the
… of a … criminals in a village city, or convoy for example the
entire village, city or convey set ablaze. Or because of the
possibility of the existence of WMDs in one country, it is
occupied, around one hundred thousand people killed, its water
sources, agriculture and industry destroyed, close to 180,000
foreign troops put on the ground, sanctity of private homes of
citizens broken, and the country pushed back perhaps fifty
years. At what price? Hundreds of billions of dollars spent from
the treasury of one country and certain other countries and tens
of thousands of young men and women – as occupation troops – put
in harms way, taken away from family and love ones, their hands
stained with the blood of others, subjected to so much
psychological pressure that everyday some commit suicide ant
those returning home suffer depression, become sickly and
grapple with all sorts of aliments; while some are killed and
their bodies handed of their families.

 On the pretext of the existence of WMDs, this great tragedy
came to engulf both the peoples of the occupied and the
occupying country. Later it was revealed that no WMDs existed to
begin with.

 Of course Saddam was a murderous dictator. But the war was not
waged to topple him, the announced goal of the war was to find
and destroy weapons of mass destruction. He was toppled along
the way towards another goal, nevertheless the people of the
region are happy about it. I point out that throughout the many
years of the … war on Iran Saddam was supported by the West.

 Mr President, 
You might know that I am a teacher. My students ask me how can
theses actions be reconciled with the values outlined at the
beginning of this letter and duty to the tradition of Jesus
Christ (PBUH), the Messenger of peace and forgiveness.

 There are prisoners in Guantanamo Bay that have not been tried,
have no legal representation, their families cannot see them and
are obviously kept in a strange land outside their own country.
There is no international monitoring of their conditions and
fate. No one knows whether they are prisoners, POWs, accused or
criminals.

 European investigators have confirmed the existence of secret
prisons in Europe too. I could not correlate the abduction of a
person, and him or her being kept in secret prisons, with the
provisions of any judicial system. For that matter, I fail to
understand how such actions correspond to the values outlined in
the beginning of this letter, i.e. the teachings of Jesus Christ
(PBUH), human rights and liberal values.

 Young people, university students and ordinary people have many
questions about the phenomenon of Israel. I am sure you are
familiar with some of them. 
Throughout history many countries have been occupied, but I
think the establishment of a new country with a new people, is a
new phenomenon that is exclusive to our times.

 Students are saying that sixty years ago such a country did no
exist. The show old documents and globes and say try as we have,
we have not been able to find a country named Israel.

 I tell them to study the history of WWI and II. One of my
students told me that during WWII, which more than tens of
millions of people perished in, news about the war, was quickly
disseminated by the warring parties. Each touted their victories
and the most recent battlefront defeat of the other party. After
the war, they claimed that six million Jews had been killed. Six
million people that were surely related to at least two million
families.

 Again let us assume that these events are true. Does that
logically translate into the establishment of the state of
Israel in the Middle East or support for such a state? How can
this phenomenon be rationalised or explained?
 Mr President, 
I am sure you know how – and at what cost – Israel was
established : Many thousands were killed in the process.

Millions of indigenous people were made refugees.

Hundred of thousands of hectares of farmland, olive plantations,
towns and villages were destroyed. 
This tragedy is not exclusive to the time of establishment;
unfortunately it has been ongoing for sixty years now.

A regime has been established which does not show mercy even to
kids, destroys houses while the occupants are still in them,
announces beforehand its list and plans to assassinate
Palestinian figures and keeps thousands of Palestinians in
prison. Such a phenomenon is unique – or at the very least
extremely rare – in recent memory.

 Another big question asked by people is why is this regime
being supported? Is support for this regime in line with the
teachings of Jesus Christ (PBUH) or Moses (PBUH) or liberal
values? Or are we to understand that allowing the original
inhabitants of these lands – inside and outside Palestine –
whether they are Christian, Muslim or Jew, to determine their
fate, runs contrary to principles of democracy, human rights and
the teachings of prophets? If not, why is there so much
opposition to a referendum?

 The newly elected Palestinian administration recently took
office. All independent observes have confirmed that this
government represents the electorate. Unbelievingly, they have
put the elected government under pressure and have advised it to
recognise the Israeli regime, abandon the struggle and follow
the programs of the previous government. 

If the current Palestinian government had run on the above
platform, would the Palestinian people have voted for it? Again,
can such position taken in opposition to the Palestinian
government be reconciled with the values outlined earlier? The
people are also saying why are all UNSC resolutions in
condemnation of Israel vetoed? 

Mr President, 
As you are well aware, I live amongst the people and am in
constant contact with them --many people from around the Middle
East manage to contact me as well. They dot not have faith in
these dubious policies either. There is evidence that the people
of the region are becoming increasingly angry with such
policies. 

It is not my intention to pose to many questions, but I need to
refer to other points as well.

 Why is it that any technological and scientific achievement 
reached in the Middle East regions is translated into and 
portrayed as a threat to the Zionist regime? Is not scientific 
R&D one of the basic rights of nations.

You are familiar with history. Aside from the Middle Ages, in 
what other point in history has scientific and technical progress 
been a crime? Can the possibility of scientific achievements 
being utilised for military purposes be reason enough to oppose 
science and technology altogether? If such a supposition is true, 
then all scientific disciplines, including physics, chemistry, 
mathematics, medicine, engineering, etc. must be opposed.

Lies were told in the Iraqi matter. What was the result? I have 
no doubt that telling lies is reprehensible in any culture, and 
you do not like to be lied to.

Mr President,
Don't Latin Americans have the right to ask, why their elected 
governments are being opposed and coup leaders supported? Or, why 
must they constantly be threatened and live in fear?
The people of Africa are hardworking, creative and talented. They 
can play an important and valuable role in providing for the 
needs of humanity and contribute to its material and spiritual 
progress. Poverty and hardship in large parts of Africa are 
preventing this from happening. Don't they have the right to ask 
why their enormous wealth - including minerals - is being looted, 
despite the fact that they need it more than others?
Again, do such actions correspond to the teachings of Christ and 
the tenets of human rights?
The brave and faithful people of Iran too have many questions and 
grievances, including : the coup d'etat of 1953 and the 
subsequent toppling of the legal government of the day, 
opposition to the Islamic revolution, transformation of an 
Embassy into a headquarters supporting, the activities of those 
opposing the Islamic Republic (many thousands of pages of 
documents corroborates this claim), support for Saddam in the war 
waged against Iran, the shooting down of the Iranian passenger 
plane, freezing the assets of the Iranian nation, increasing 
threats, anger and displeasure vis-…-vis the scientific and 
nuclear progress of the Iranian nation (just when all Iranians 
are jubilant and collaborating their country's progress), and 
many other grievances that I will not refer to in this letter.

Mr President,
September Eleven was a horrendous incident. The killing of 
innocents is deplorable and appalling in any part of the world. 
Our government immediately declared its disgust with the 
perpetrators and offered its condolences to the bereaved and 
expressed its sympathies.

All governments have a duty to protect the lives, property and 
good standing of their citizens. Reportedly your government 
employs extensive security, protection and intelligence systems - 
and even hunts its opponents abroad. September eleven was not a 
simple operation. Could it be planned and executed without 
coordination with intelligence and security services - or their 
extensive infiltration? Of course this is just an educated guess. 
Why have the various aspects of the attacks been kept secret? Why 
are we not told who botched their responsibilities? And, why 
aren't those responsible and the guilty parties identified and 
put on trial?
All governments have a duty to provide security and peace of mind 
for their citizens. For some years now, the people of your 
country and neighbours of world trouble spots do not have peace 
of mind. After 9.11, instead of healing and tending to the 
emotional wounds of the survivors and the American people - who 
had been immensely traumatised by the attacks - some Western 
media only intensified the climates of fear and insecurity - some 
constantly talked about the possibility of new terror attacks and 
kept the people in fear. Is that service to the American people? 
Is it possible to calculate the damages incurred from fear and 
panic?
American citizen lived in constant fear of fresh attacks that 
could come at any moment and in any place. They felt insecure in 
the streets, in their place of work and at home. Who would be 
happy with this situation? Why was the media, instead of 
conveying a feeling of security and providing peace of mind, 
giving rise to a feeling of insecurity?
Some believe that the hype paved the way - and was the 
justification - for an attack on Afghanistan. Again I need to 
refer to the role of media. In media charters, correct 
dissemination of information and honest reporting of a story are 
established tenets. I express my deep regret about the disregard 
shown by certain Western media for these principles. The main 
pretext for an attack on Iraq was the existence of WMDs. This was 
repeated incessantly - for the public to, finally, believe - and 
the ground set for an attack on Iraq.
Will the truth not be lost in a contrive and deceptive climate? 
Again, if the truth is allowed to be lost, how can that be 
reconciled with the earlier mentioned values? Is the truth known 
to the Almighty lost as well?
Mr President,
In countries around the world, citizens provide for the expenses 
of governments so that their governments in turn are able to 
serve them.
The question here is what has the hundreds of billions of 
dollars, spent every year to pay for the Iraqi campaign, produced 
for the citizens?
As your Excellency is aware, in some states of your country, 
people are living in poverty. Many thousands are homeless and 
unemployment is a huge problem. Of course these problems exist - 
to a larger or lesser extent - in other countries as well. With 
these conditions in mind, can the gargantuan expenses of the 
campaign - paid from the public treasury - be explained and be 
consistent with the aforementioned principles?
What has been said, are some of the grievances of the people 
around the world, in our region and in your country. But my main 
contention - which I am hoping you will agree to some of it - is 
: Those in power have specific time in office, and do not rule 
indefinitely, but their names will be recorded in history and 
will be constantly judged in the immediate and distant futures.
The people will scrutinize our presidencies

Did we manage to bring peace, security and prosperity for the 
people or insecurity and unemployment? Did we intend to establish 
justice, or just supported especial interest groups, and by 
forcing many people to live in poverty and hardship, made a few 
people rich and powerful - thus trading the approval of the 
people and the Almighty with theirs'? Did we defend the rights of 
the underprivileged or ignore them? Did we defend the rights of 
all people around the world or imposed wars on them, interfered 
illegally in their affairs, established hellish prisons and 
incarcerated some of them? Did we bring the world peace and 
security or raised the specter of intimidation and threats? Did 
we tell the truth to our nation and others around the world or 
presented an inverted version of it? Were we on the side of 
people or the occupiers and oppressors? Did our administration 
set out to promote rational behaviour, logic, ethics, peace, 
fulfilling obligations, justice, service to the people, 
prosperity, progress and respect for human dignity or the force 
of guns. Intimidation, insecurity, disregard for the people, 
delaying the progress and excellence of other nations, and 
trample on people's rights? And finally, they will judge us on 
whether we remained true to our oath of office - to serve the 
people, which is our main task, and the traditions of the 
prophets - or not?
Mr President,
How much longer can the world tolerate this situation? Where will 
this trend lead the world to? How long must the people of the 
world pay for the incorrect decisions of some rulers? How much 
longer will the specter of insecurity - raised from the 
stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction - hunt the people of 
the world? How much longer will the blood of the innocent men, 
women and children be spilled on the streets, and people's houses 
destroyed over their heads? Are you pleased with the current 
condition of the world? Do you think present policies can 
continue?
If billions of dollars spent on security, military campaigns and 
troop movement were instead spent on investment and assistance 
for poor countries, promotion of health, combating different 
diseases, education and improvement of mental and physical 
fitness, assistance to the victims of natural disasters, creation 
of employment opportunities and production, development projects 
and poverty alleviation, establishment of peace, mediation 
between disputing states and distinguishing the flames of racial, 
ethnic and other conflicts were would the world be today? Would 
not your government, and people be justifiably proud? Would not 
your administration's political and economic standing have been 
stronger? And I am most sorry to say, would there have been an 
ever increasing global hatred of the American governments?
Mr President, it is not my intention to distress anyone.
If prophet Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Ishmael, Joseph or Jesus Christ 
(PBUH) were with us today, how would they have judged such 
behaviour? Will we be given a role to play in the promised world, 
where justice will become universal and Jesus Christ (PBUH) will 
be present? Will they even accept us?
My basic question is this : Is there no better way to interact 
with the rest of the world? Today there are hundreds of millions 
of Christians, hundreds of millions of Moslems and millions of 
people who follow the teachings of Moses (PBUH). All divine 
religions share and respect on word and that is monotheism or 
belief in a single God and no other in the world.

The holy Koran stresses this common word and calls on an 
followers of divine religions and says : [3.64] Say : O followers 
of the Book! Come to an equitable proposition between us and you 
that we shall not serve any but Allah and (that) we shall not 
associate aught. With Him and (that) some of us shall not take 
others for lords besides Allah, but if they turn back, then say : 
Bear witness that we are Muslims. (The Family of Imran).

Mr President,
According to divine verses, we have all been called upon to 
worship one God and follow the teachings of divine prophets. To 
worship a God which is above all powers in the world and can do 
all He pleases. The Lord which knows that which is hidden and 
visible, the past and the future, knows what goes on in the 
Hearts of His servants and records their deeds. The Lord who is 
the possessor of the heavens and the earth and all universe is 
His court planning for the universe is done by His hands, and 
gives His servants the glad tidings of mercy and forgiveness of 
sins . He is the companion of the oppressed and the enemy of 
oppressors . He is the Compassionate, the Merciful . He is the 
recourse of the faithful and guides them towards the light from 
darkness . He is witness to the actions of His servants , He 
calls on servants to be faithful and do good deeds, and asks them 
to stay on the path of righteousness and remain steadfast . Calls 
on servants to heed His prophets and He is a witness to their 
deeds. A bad ending belongs only to those who have chosen the 
life of this world and disobey Him and oppress His servants . And 
A good and eternal paradise belong to those servants who fear His 
majesty and do not follow their lascivious selves.
We believe a return to the teachings of the divine prophets is 
the only road leading to salvations. I have been told that Your 
Excellency follows the teachings of Jesus (PBUH), and believes in 
the divine promise of the rule of the righteous on Earth.
We also believe that Jesus Christ (PBUH) was one of the great 
prophets of the Almighty. He has been repeatedly praised in the 
Koran. Jesus (PBUH) has been quoted in Koran as well; [19,36] And 
surely Allah is my Lord and your Lord, therefore serves Him; this 
is the right path, Marium.

Service to and obedience of the Almighty is the credo of all 
divine messengers.

The God of all people in Europe, Asia, Africa, America, the 
Pacific and the rest of the world is one. He is the Almighty who 
wants to guide and give dignity to all His servants. He has given 
greatness to Humans.
We again read in the Holy Book : The Almighty God sent His 
prophets with miracles and clear signs to guide the people and 
show them divine signs and purity them from sins and pollutions. 
And He sent the Book and the balance so that the people display 
justice and avoid the rebellious.
All of the above verses can be seen, one way or the other, in the 
Good Book as well.

Divine prophets have promised : The day will come when all humans 
will congregate before the court of the Almighty, so that their 
deeds are examined. The good will be directed towards Haven and 
evildoers will meet divine retribution. I trust both of us 
believe in such a day, but it will not be easy to calculate the 
actions of rulers, because we must be answerable to our nations 
and all others whose lives have been directly or indirectly 
effected by our actions.
All prophets, speak of peace and tranquillity for man - based on 
monotheism, justice and respect for human dignity.

Do you not think that if all of us come to believe in and abide 
by these principles, that is, monotheism, worship of God, 
justice, respect for the dignity of man, belief in the Last Day, 
we can overcome the present problems of the world - that are the 
result of disobedience to the Almighty and the teachings of 
prophets - and improve our performance?
Do you not think that belief in these principles promotes and 
guarantees peace, friendship and justice?
Do you not think that the aforementioned written or unwritten 
principles are universally respected?
Will you not accept this invitation? That is, a genuine return to 
the teachings of prophets, to monotheism and justice, to preserve 
human dignity and obedience to the Almighty and His prophets?
Mr President, History tells us that repressive and cruel 
governments do not survive. God has entrusted The fate of man to 
them. The Almighty has not left the universe and humanity to 
their own devices. Many things have happened contrary to the 
wishes and plans of governments. These tell us that there is a 
higher power at work and all events are determined by Him.

Can one deny the signs of change in the world today? Is this 
situation of the world today comparable to that of ten years ago? 
Changes happen fast and come at a furious pace.
The people of the world are not happy with the status quo and pay 
little heed to the promises and comments made by a number of 
influential world leaders. Many people around the wolrd feel 
insecure and oppose the spreading of insecurity and war and do 
not approve of and accept dubious policies.
The people are protesting the increasing gap between the haves 
and the have-nots and the rich and poor countries.

The people are disgusted with increasing corruption.
The people of many countries are angry about the attacks on their 
cultural foundations and the disintegration of families. They are 
equally dismayed with the fading of care and compassion. The 
people of the world have no faith in international organisations, 
because their rights are not advocated by these organisations.
Liberalism and Western style democracy have not been able to help 
realize the ideals of humanity. Today these two concepts have 
failed. Those with insight can already hear the sounds of the 
shattering and fall of the ideology and thoughts of the liberal 
democratic systems.
We increasingly see that people around the world are flocking 
towards a main focal point - that is the Almighty God. 
Undoubtedly through faith in God and the teachings of the 
prophets, the people will conquer their problems. My question for 
you is : Do you not want to join them?
Mr President,
Whether we like it or not, the world is gravitating towards faith 
in the Almighty and justice and the will of God will prevail over 
all things.

Vasalam Ala Man Ataba'al hoda
Mahmood Ahmadi-Najad President of the Islamic Republic of Iran

*****************************************************************
 24 IPS-English NORTH KOREA: Focus Shifts From N-Bombs to Human
 
Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 14:58:22 -0700


<x-flowed>
ROMAIPS AP HD IP NU=20
NORTH KOREA: Focus Shifts From N-Bombs to Human Rights
Suvendrini Kakuchi

TOKYO, May 10 (IPS) - For all the enormous attention that is being paid t=
o the abductions of Japanese and South Korean nationals by North Korea, d=
ecades ago, it would seem that the nuclear threat over East Asia has vani=
shed.

At least two dozen Japanese citizens were abducted in the late 1970s and =
1980s, at the height of the cold war, as part of a bizarre plan to train =
them as spies and agents for the =91hermit kingdom'. But in 2002, Pyongya=
ng officially admitted to the abductions and allowed a few of the victims=
  to return home while declaring several others dead. =20

Yet, the abductions are now a leading national issue in Japan where publi=
c sympathy for the families of the abductees is widespread. Tokyo sees th=
e abductions as a serious violation of human rights, to be cited in order=
  to press for change, including regime change, in North Korea.  In this, =
it has the support of the United States and its Western allies, and now t=
he United Nations.=20

South Korea, which has a longer list of abductees, has been pushing for a=
  more  conciliatory =91sunshine' approach.

Much store is being set here by the ongoing discussions at the U.N. to es=
tablish a new human rights treaty that will hold countries responsible fo=
r enforced disappearances of foreign nationals. Those affected and their =
supporters want the proposed treaty to focus on other human rights violat=
ions by the totalitarian regime in Pyongyang, including those against its=
  own people.=20

''The fact that the U.N. has publicly criticised North Korea for kidnappi=
ng Japanese nationals is very important to us. A treaty in the making on =
stopping the kidnappings of foreign nationals must be aimed at stopping t=
he North Korean regime from committing more crimes,'' explained Ryutaro H=
irata, spokesman  for the National Association for the Rescue of Japanese=
  Kidnapped by North Korea.

Last week, Sakie Yokota, mother of Megumi, who was abducted when she was =
12 years old, visited Washington to testify before the House of Represent=
atives on North Korea's human rights and abduction issues and also met wi=
th President George W. Bush -- an event that was splashed across the Japa=
nese media.

=91'The President of the United States has clearly issued a message that =
the human rights issues of North Korea are unforgivable,''  said Yokota, =
speaking to presspersons on May 1. Pyongyang has said that Megumi, who ma=
rried an abducted South Korean national, committed suicide but her parent=
s believe she is alive.

Yokota and other relatives of the abductees are calling for economic sanc=
tions against North Korea. =91'The visit to Washington was aimed at press=
uring the Japanese government to go ahead with economic sanctions against=
  Pyongyang to punish the regime for human rights violations. We really do=
n't know what is stopping the government from doing so,''  Hirata told IP=
S.

However, in the background of Yokota's visit to Washington, which include=
d a 30-minute meeting with  Bush at the White House, is a 30 billion doll=
ar plan to massively beef up U.S. forces in Japan by  2014 -- of which 26=
  billion dollars will be footed by Tokyo.=20

According to Kazuhiro Araki, director of the Research Group for Japanese =
Abductees, a solution is now being sought on two fronts-- bilaterally bet=
ween Tokyo and Pyongyang and internationally as a human rights issue.

''The initial battle (for the abductees) was between Japan and North Kore=
a while the international community focused on North Korea's nuclear weap=
ons programme. But now, as the number of known victims grows in different=
  countries and information on the horrific conditions faced by North Kore=
an nationals themselves becomes available, the human rights front is a ke=
y thrust in our campaign for justice,''  he explained.

Araki says that, in this context, the UN General Assembly resolution in D=
ecember 2005, that expressed  =91serious concern' over the human rights s=
ituation in North Korea, was highly welcome.

''The fact that the U.N. has taken on the abduction issue is a huge step =
in galvanizing the world's attention on atrocities committed by North Kor=
ea, ultimately leading to a regime change which will bring democracy to t=
hat country,''  he said.

Experts contend the human rights violation factor will intensify by the e=
nd of this month when the Japanese Diet (parliament) is expected to pass =
a resolution against North Korea that could pave to pave the way for econ=
omic sanctions against the country.

But such a move would be contrary to an initiative by China, running sinc=
e August 2003,  to broker a solution to Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions, th=
rough the so-called =91six-party talks' because it involves  the key prot=
agonists, the United States, Japan  and North Korea along with neighbours=
  -- South Korea, China, and Russia.=20

Under a historic agreement arrived at in September, last year,  North Kor=
ea agreed to dismantle  =94all nuclear weapons and existing nuclear progr=
ammes=94, return to the nuclear Non-proliferation treaty (NPT) and allow =
international inspections in return for the supply of a light-water react=
or for its energy needs.=20

Although differences arose immediately afterwards over when or whether No=
rth Korea could have a civilian nuclear programme, the Beijing initiative=
  led to Washington shifting the rhetoric for 'regime change' in North Kor=
ea to one of 'regime transformation'. =20

Since then, Japan has been harping on North Korea's human rights record, =
though the kidnappings took place only decades after the end of the World=
  War II during and before which Imperial Japan carried out some of the wo=
rst recorded atrocities ever on its neighbours, including undivided Korea=
. =20

China and South Korea have repeatedly accused Japan of being unrepentant =
about its wartime record.  There have been no summits between Japan and C=
hina for over four years now and Beijing vigorously opposes Japan's entry=
  into the U.N. Security Council as a permanent member.=20

''A U.N. human rights treaty will definitely boost our long struggle to b=
ring home the large number of Japanese kidnapped by North Korea. At the s=
ame time, I think the international treaty will also contribute to improv=
ing Japan's own human rights record in the long run,'' said human rights =
lawyer Hiroshi Kawahito, a member of a group of attorneys supporting the =
families of adducted Japanese.

The Japanese foreign ministry is lending support to the planned conventio=
n. An official in the human rights and humanitarian section, who preferre=
d not to be named, said that the treaty =91'would be a landmark in protec=
ting the human rights of victims of kidnapping in the future''. (END/IPS/=
AP/IP/HD/NU/SK/RDR/06)

=20
=3D 05100903 ORP006
NNNN

</x-flowed>
*****************************************************************
 25 Guardian Unlimited: S. Korean President Says He Will Aid North
 
From the Associated Press        

[UP] 
 	 
Wednesday May 10, 2006 8:31 PM
 	
AP Photo SEL103 
By BO-MI LIM Associated Press Writer 

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - South Korea's president said he plans
to make many concessions to communist North Korea and provide it
with unconditional aid in an effort to build trust, his office
said Wednesday. 

Roh Moo-hyun made the announcement as his predecessor, Kim
Dae-jung, prepared to visit the North to meet with its leader,
Kim Jong Il, in hopes that the trip might lead to a breakthrough
in stalled six-nation talks on Pyongyang's nuclear weapons
program. 

``I'm going to make a lot of concessions (to North Korea),'' Roh
told South Korean residents during a visit to Mongolia on
Tuesday, according to a transcript provided by the presidential
office. 

``I'm going to provide institutional and material aid without
conditions,'' he said. 

Roh said the South, which is wealthier and has a stronger
military, should make concessions to dispel the mistrust that
still exists between the two neighbors more than five decades
after the bloody 1950-53 Korean war. 

Roh's comments were ``an expression of will that the (South
Korean) government should play a more active role in finding a
breakthrough on the current stalled situation,'' Unification
Minister Lee Jong-seok told reporters Wednesday. 

Although the two Koreas technically remain at war, they made
strides toward reconciliation after a 2000 summit between South
Korean President Kim and the North Korean leader. South Korea
has become one of the main aid providers to the impoverished
North and launched several economic development projects. 

However, the two Koreas' relations have been affected by the
international standoff over the North's nuclear program, with
the South joining forces with other nations in pressuring the
communist regime to give up its nuclear weapons ambitions. 

Roh said he has high expectations for Kim's planned June trip to
the North, because it could provide a chance for a ``flexible
dialogue'' with Kim Jong Il. 

Roh also indicated a desire to hold his own meeting with the
North Korean leader. 

``I'm completely open to North Korea,'' he said. ``I've said
dozens of times that let's meet and talk regardless of where,
when and what topic.'' 

How to deal with North Korea is often a source of discord
between Seoul and Washington. 

Recently, the U.S. envoy on North Korean human rights, Jay
Lefkowitz, raised concern that a joint Korean project to build
an industrial park in North Korea may help its hard-line
communist government. 

Seoul, which cherishes the project as a symbol of inter-Korean
detente, has heavily criticized the U.S. official for putting
forward ``distorted views.'' 

On Tuesday, the unification minister said the South will try to
make the project a success ``no matter what difficulties are
ahead.'' 

Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006
*****************************************************************
 26 Guardian Unlimited: Nev. Mushroom Cloud Blast to Be Delayed
 
From the Associated Press        

[UP] 

Wednesday May 10, 2006 1:46 AM
 	
By KEN RITTER Associated Press Writer 

LAS VEGAS (AP) - A non-nuclear explosion expected to generate a
mushroom cloud over the Nevada desert will be postponed while a
federal court reviews plans for the blast, officials said
Tuesday. 

The experiment won't be conducted earlier than June 23, said
Cheri Abdelnour, spokeswoman for the federal Defense Threat
Reduction Agency at Fort Belvoir, Va. The blast was originally
scheduled June 2. 

In April, the Winnemucca Indian Colony and several Nevada and
Utah ``downwinders'' filed a federal lawsuit seeking to block
the blast. The suit accuses the government of skipping public
comment and failing to complete required environmental studies
before picking a date and place. 

In documents filed Monday, Justice Department lawyers sought to
push back until early June a hearing in the case. The judge did
not issue an immediate ruling. 

The lawsuit claims the planned 700-ton ammonium nitrate and fuel
oil bomb will kick up radioactive fallout left from nuclear
weapons tests conducted from 1951 to 1992 at the Nevada Test
Site. 

The suit also claims the blast will irreparably harm land that
members of the Western Shoshone tribe have never acknowledged
turning over to the U.S. 

The blast, some 85 miles northwest of Las Vegas, is expected to
generate a 10,000-foot mushroom cloud and a shock wave that
officials say will probably be felt 35 miles away. 

The Defense Threat Reduction Agency claims the explosion will
help design a weapon to penetrate hardened and deeply buried
targets. Critics have called it a surrogate for a low-yield
nuclear ``bunker-buster'' bomb. 

      Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006
*****************************************************************
 27 Spectrum: Divine Strake blast postponed

St. George UT.- www.thespectrum.com - 

+ Test won't happen for at least three weeks, agencies
acknowledge

 By BRIAN PASSEY bpassey@thespectrum.com

ST. GEORGE - After conflicting reports over the weekend about 
whether the June 2 Divine Strake test would be postponed, various 
federal agencies have acknowledged the large bomb blast will not 
go forward until June 23 at the earliest. However, late Tuesday 
night a Defense Department spokeswoman said that a study of a 
revised environmental assessment of the blast resulted in a 
finding of "no significant impact" to the human environment.

Darwin Morgan, a public information officer for the Nevada Test
Site, confirmed Tuesday that the 700-ton ammonium nitrate-fuel
oil blast has been postponed for at least three weeks. The
Defense Threat Reduction Agency and the National Nuclear
Security Administration proposed the test 150 miles west of St.
George to gather data about the effects of both large
conventional weapons and low-yield nuclear weapons. 

Rep. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, released a statement Tuesday morning
indicating that he hopes the postponement will help get all the
facts "out for public view." Matheson and Sen. Orrin Hatch,
R-Utah, have both been persistent in questioning federal
officials about the blast.

Cheri Abdelnour, a DTRA spokeswoman, said the Department of
Energy's Nevada Site Office decided to postpone the experiment
"due to scheduled legal proceedings." Downwinders in both Nevada
and Utah, along with members of the Western Shoshone tribe,
filed a lawsuit in April to stop the blast because of the
possibility of disrupting radioactively contaminated soil and
spreading it downwind.

Robert Hager, a Reno, Nev. attorney representing the plaintiffs
in the lawsuit, said the postponement is good news for his
clients and all Downwinders. But he said the agencies conducting
the test need to produce the data that indicates it will be safe.

"Some of the things that the NNSA says are flat out untrue,"
Hager alleged, referring to government assertions there is no
radioactive soil at the blast site. "Until they come forward
with data that will support their opinion that the blast will be
safe we will continue to stop them in court."

An appendix to the government's environmental assessment
indicates the nearest man-made radioactivity is approximately
1.1 miles from the blast site. Despite this factor, the NNSA and
the DTRA still released a finding of no significant impact,
stating, "the proposed action is not a major federal action
significantly affecting the quality of the human environment."

The finding authorizes Divine Strake to be "conducted within the
limitations of applicable permits and regulations," according to
the revised finding document.

Though the announcement of the finding had not been made at the
time of Hager's comments, he expected the outcome. However, the
lawsuit remains and he indicated the government was ordered to
provide to him by Thursday the entire administrative record with
all the data used for the original and revised environmental
assessments.

Utah efforts
Hager said he has been impressed with Utah's delegation to
Congress, especially Hatch and Matheson, in questioning the
federal agencies conducting the test.

"Concerns expressed by Utah elected officials have been very
helpful," Hager said. "My hat is off to them for standing up for
the health concerns of the residents of Utah."

Hager said elected officials in Nevada, with the exception of
Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., have not been as persistent in
questioning the agencies.

In a statement released two weeks ago from the office of Sen.
Bob Bennett, R-Utah, spokeswoman Mary Jane Collipriest said the
senator "believes every precaution is being taken to ensure that
this test is conducted safely." However, he has requested a
briefing in person by NNSA officials to review all aspects of
the proposed test to determine whether the test should proceed.

Hatch's office also released a letter the senator sent Tuesday
to James Tegnelia, DTRA director, indicating the agency still
has not provided all the information Hatch requested regarding
the blast. In the letter Hatch asked Tegnelia specific questions
about possibly contaminated soil near the blast site and the
scientific explanation for why it will not pose a danger to
residents during the proposed test.

Hatch has also requested a public meeting regarding the test in
St. George and has asked representatives from DTRA and NNSA to
attend.

State agencies in both Nevada and Utah also are taking a close
look at the environmental assessments for the blast. Before the
postponement, the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection
indicated it would seek to delay the blast if questions about
air quality still lingered.

Donna Kemp Spangler, public information officer for the Utah
Department of Environmental Quality, said her department also is
studying the environmental assessment. In her limited
evaluation, Spangler said the federal government's environmental
assessment is "really lacking in a lot of data" because it is
not a full-blown environmental impact statement, which requires
more information.

Had the NNSA and DTRA not made a finding of "no significant
impact" Tuesday, a full environmental impact statement likely
would have been required, causing a much longer delay in the
test date.

Vanessa Pierce of the Healthy Environment Alliance of Utah
questioned the credibility of an environmental assessment
completed by the same agencies conducting the test, calling it a
conflict of interest. She encouraged Utah's delegation to
Congress to pursue an outside assessment and review.

"It doesn't make sense that the agency conducting the test is
the one doing the environmental assessment," she said. "It's
like having the fox guarding the hen house."
 
Originally published May 10, 2006

 Copyright ©2006 The Spectrum.
*****************************************************************
 28 Deseret News: Test-blast battle not over yet 

[deseretnews.com] 

Wednesday, May 10, 2006 

Activists are not claiming victory over delay of explosion 

By Joe Bauman and Suzanne Struglinski Deseret Morning News 

Activists opposing the Divine Strake explosion are not claiming 
victory because the federal government has delayed the enormous 
blast, which had been set for June 2 at the Nevada Test Site. 

"They still don't get it," said Robert R. Hager, the Reno 
attorney whose legal filing prompted the government to say it 
was putting off the explosion until at least June 23. In his 
opinion, the National Nuclear Security Administration still 
wants to ignite 700 tons of conventional explosives. 

"This is no time to celebrate victory," said Peter 
Rickards, an Idaho Falls podiatrist who served nine years on an 
advisory panel for the Centers for Disease Control for a 
radiation exposure study. 

On Tuesday, Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, wrote to James T. 
Tegnelia, director of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency, about 
the test. The agency and the National Nuclear Security 
Administration (NNSA) are planning the explosion. 

Hatch said he welcomes the fact that the agency and the 
NNSA accepted his invitation to discuss Divine Strake at a town 
hall meeting in St. George. 

The senator had these questions: Is there a possibility 
that contaminated soil could become airborne during the 
explosion? How close is the U16a tunnel area (where six 
underground nuclear tests were held) to the Divine Strake 
location? Could radioactive material become dislodged from the 
U16a site? 

Hatch wrote that his objective is "to ensure that this 
proposed test will not result in further radiological exposure 
to the citizens of Utah and those of the downwind area." 

Concerned about fallout for years, Rickards said a major 
worry about Divine Strake is that radiation left in the ground 
from nuclear blasts in the 1950s and '60s could become airborne 
in the mushroom cloud that Divine Strake is expected to release. 

"They are only going to detonate this bomb when the wind 
is blowing northward toward Idaho and Utah," he said. 

"If it was as safe as they claim and nothing would leave 
the site, they certainly could detonate it when the wind is 
blowing toward Vegas. But they refuse to." 

Hager represents the Winnemucca Indian Tribe and others 
in a federal lawsuit seeking to halt the blast. One of the 
plaintiffs is Steve Erickson, a Salt Lake City anti-nuclear 
activist. 

On Friday, Hager filed an "emergency motion" in the case, 
which is pending in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas. He sought 
documents that would show the test to be safe. 

The federal government responded on Monday, asking for 
more time. The filing was accompanied by a declaration by Jay H. 
Norman, acting manager of the NNSA's Nevada State office. 

A revised environmental assessment was released on 
Friday, Norman noted. As of Tuesday, the government intended to 
issue a revised decision document on the planned test. Because 
of that, the test has been delayed. 

"The proposed detonation of Divine Strake will take place 
no earlier than June 23, 2006," Norman wrote. 

Erickson said several factors influenced the government 
to delay Divine Strake by three weeks: the lawsuit, opposition 
from the Utah and Nevada congressional delegation and Gov. Jon 
Huntsman Jr., and the fact that Nevada air quality officials 
have not yet approved a permit for the test. 

"I think they still have every intention of conducting 
this test if they can," he said. It's questionable whether the 
government can convince people the explosion would be safe. 

Hager said on the basis of documents so far released, "no 
scientist could claim . . . this blast would be safe." 

Rickards said published research shows plutonium 238 is 
"275 times more radioactive than weapons grade plutonium." 

The isotope is present at the Nevada Test Site, located 
65 miles northwest of Las Vegas, as are other radioactive 
particles left over from nuclear weapons testing. If anyone were 
to inhale a particle of P-238, that would be dangerous, he said. 

The federal government's assertion that Divine Strake 
would re-suspend no radiation and expose no member of the public 
is "provably a lie," he charged. Radioactive particles deposited 
after earlier tests would have worked their way into the soil, 
he said. 

"Obviously the Nevada Test Site has uncountable hidden 
deadly nucleotides buried slightly under the surface," Rickards 
said. Divine Strake would be detonated 30 feet underground "and 
lift all the dirt above it." 

J Truman, a Malad, Idaho, man who grew up in southern 
Utah and directs the fallout victim advocacy group Downwinders, 
said the government is promising to hold town-hall type meetings 
in Nevada and southern Utah to discuss the test. 

"That's a start," Truman added in an e-mail note, "but 
there should be official public hearings and a comment period so 
the public can have its say." 

© 2006 Deseret News Publishing Company 
*****************************************************************
 29 Guardian Unlimited: Putin Zings U.S. Back After Criticism
 
From the Associated Press        

[UP] 

Wednesday May 10, 2006 12:46 PM
 	
AP Photo MOSB115 
By STEVE GUTTERMAN Associated Press Writer 

MOSCOW (AP) - Russian President Vladimir Putin struck back at
recent U.S. criticism of his policies Wednesday, suggesting that
Washington puts its political interest above democratic ideals
and emphasizing that Russia must increase its military and
economic clout to resist foreign pressure. 

In the seventh state of the nation address since his 2000
election, Putin concentrated largely on domestic issues, calling
for measures to reverse a demographic decline that has shrunk
Russia's population by millions since the Soviet collapse. 

But amid increasingly vocal American criticism of his domestic
and foreign policies, Putin also issued a veiled but clear
response to Vice President Dick Cheney's accusations that Moscow
is rolling back on democracy and strong-arming its ex-Soviet
neighbors. 

``Where is all this pathos about protecting human rights and
democracy when it comes to the need to pursue their own
interests?'' said Putin, who also used a fairy-tale reference to
criticize the aggressive U.S. course in global affairs. 

``We are aware what is going on in the world,'' he said.

``Comrade wolf knows whom to eat, it eats without listening and
it's clearly not going to listen to anyone.'' 

Devoting much of the hour-long speech to defense, Putin stressed
that Russia needs a strong military not only to guard against
terrorism and attacks but also to resist political pressure from
abroad. He noted that Russia's military budget was 25 times
lower than that of the United States. 

``Their house is their fortress - good for them,'' he said.

``But that means that we also must make our house strong and
reliable.'' 

``We must always be ready to counter any attempts to pressure
Russia in order to strengthen positions at our expense,'' Putin
said. ``The stronger our military is, the less temptation there
will be to exert such pressure on us.'' 

Putin said the government would work to strengthen the nation's
nuclear deterrent as well as conventional military forces
without repeating the mistakes of the Cold War era, when a
costly arms race against the United States drained Soviet
resources. 

``Our response must be based on intellectual advantage, it must
be asymmetrical and less costly while increasing the reliability
and efficiency of our nuclear triad,'' Putin said, adding that
the nation will strengthen all its components - long-range
aviation, land-based strategic missile forces and nuclear
submarines. 

He said Russia would soon commission two nuclear submarines
equipped with the new Bulava intercontinental ballistic missiles
- the nation's first since Soviet times - while the land-based
strategic missile forces will get their first unit of mobile
Topol-M missiles. 

He said that the new missiles and warheads, which can change
direction in flight, will allow Russia to preserve a strategic
balance without damaging the nation's economic development
goals. 

Putin also said Russia should focus on investment and innovation
to win its deserved place in the world economy. He called on the
government to work more effectively to raise Russians' standard
of living, making a customary - though so far ineffective - dig
at state corruption. A number of officials ``have enriched
themselves at the cost of the majority of citizens,'' he said. 

Putin acknowledged that his goal of doubling the gross domestic
product within a decade now looks unlikely, due to growth
falling slightly short of expectations in the last couple of
years. 

However, he stressed that overall economic developments have
been positive, and took credit in particular for the explosive
growth in the market capitalization of gas monopoly OAO Gazprom
over the last year. 

``This didn't happen by itself ... but as the result of certain
actions by the Russian government,'' Putin said. 

He identified obsolete equipment and poor energy efficiency as
two of the factors holding back the Russian economy's
competitiveness. Much of the equipment produced in Russia is
``decades out of date,'' he said, and ``energy efficiency is
much lower than in competing nations.'' 

In another apparent barb aimed at the United States, he said
countries should not use Russia's World Trade Organization
membership negotiations as a vehicle to make unrelated demands. 

``The negotiations for letting Russia into the WTO should not
become a bargaining chip for questions that have nothing in
common with the activities of this organization,'' Putin said. 

In April, U.S. senators visiting Moscow said Russia's democracy
record and its stance in the Iranian nuclear crisis would
influence Congress as it considers Moscow's bid to join the
global trade body. 

Expressing concern over what he said was an annual decline of
nearly 700,000 people a year, Putin said that childcare benefits
should be increased and other incentives created to raise the
birthrate. 

``We must at least stimulate the birth of a second child,'' said
Putin, lamenting that concerns about housing, health care and
education and income prompt many families to stop at one.	 

      Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006
*****************************************************************
 30 Bellona: Russian society greets spring in the courtrooms 

Analysis 

Many small and large organizations in Russia are fighting in
Russian courtrooms this spring for their survival. This is
because April 17th 2006 marked an important date for the Russian
civil society. It is the date the new and stricter NGO laws were
set into effect. 

  Protestors outside the Russian Parliament during the first
vote on the NGO laws were forcefully dispersed by police.   

  Bellona   

Kristin Vibeke Jørgensen, 2006-05-09 10:35

The goal of these law changes is to limit the independence of
Russian organizations, and their possibilities to receive
economic support from foreign countries. The implementation of
this law coincides with a massive government campaign to limit
the number of independent organizations, and their activities,
in Russia. 

The new law allows for organizations to be shut down if they
commit “administrative violations,” meaning that reasonably
small violations may have fatal consequences for independent
Russian organizations. At the beginning of this year the number
of Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) in Russia was estimated
to be somewhere in the vicinity of 500,000, but the Russian
human rights organization Agora reports that this number will
drop below 50,000 in the course of the next year. Agora also
states that the Russian government is using these new laws to
rid itself of bothersome organisations that clash with the
centralising politics of the Kremlin.
 
  NGO bill becomes law   
  
  Russian president Vladimir Putin approved quietly the
controversial NGO bill on January 10th. The bill was published
in the official Russian newspaper Rossiyskaya Gazeta on January
17th, thus becoming a law.

The importance of civil society 

It is a fact that civil society plays a major role in any well
functioning democracy. It is also a fact that the Russian civil
society is very fragile. This is partially a result of the
authoritarian and centralised Soviet Union and the Tsarist
periods, and partially a result of the general sense of apathy,
cynicism and lack of power felt by the Russian people who are
ruled by a large and corrupt bureaucracy. Ever since Vladimir
Putin was elected in 2001, Russia has been moving toward new
authoritarian heights. 

The media and the court system are under the government’s heel,
meaning that the government is closing in on a monopoly on
truth. The backbone of Putin’s Russia is a strong and
centralized state, and this leaves no room for a society where
freedom of speech is mandatory. A Russian politician sees any
criticism from his own people as a personal insult. Furthermore
the situation in Russia today makes it easier to close in on the
people criticising than to improve the situation causing the
criticism. 

Russian government on the offensive 

Recently there has been a series of government attacks on
Russian civil society organizations and NGOs. An example worth
mentioning here is the Soldiers’ Mothers’ Committee, an
independent organization which has caused inconvenience for the
ruling regime by fighting for the rights of Russia’s conscripted
youth. This is an interest organization founded by mothers of
soldiers that were the victims of violence within the Russian
armed forces. Devodshina, or a brutal form of hazing, has become
a serious problem within the military. Devodshina leads to great
personal tragedies, and in some cases mutilation and death. 

According to the Helsinki committee a total of 1,064 deaths were
registered in “peaceful” military installations during the year
2005. Of these 246 were suicides. The Soldiers’ Mothers’
Committee is made up of fearless mothers that speak out against
the all-pervasive armed forces, demanding thorough reforms
within the army, and an improvement of the living conditions of
those serving as conscripts.
 
The irony in the indictment against the organization stating
that it “neglected to inform the government of their existence”
is obvious, as few organizations have been a larger nuisance to
the powers that be. 

Another example shows that the struggle against NGOs is linked
to the struggle against western influence in Russia. The
revolutions in Georgia and the Ukraine, which were enjoying
heavy western support have frightened the Russian regime. This
was probably part of the reason behind the harshness of the
resolution passed on April 19th this year by the city parliament
of Moscow, tuning to the government to quash support for AIDS
and HIV organisations. 

AIDs organisation promote ‘pedophila’ 

The April 19th resolution places restrictions on foreign
independent organisations working with HIV- and AIDS problems in
Russia, which have become pandemic in recent years. The
reasoning behind the resolution, driven by President Vladimir
Putin's United Russia Party, is that these organizations promote
paedophilia, prostitution and drug abuse among teenagers. 

A party representative, Lyudmila Stebenkova, told the Moscow
Times on April 20th that: “Foreign independent organisations
working within the HIV and AIDS sector lead to an increase in
the number of infected.” Foreign organizations operating within
Russian borders believe this to be another step in the campaign
against their presence. 

The root of the conflict 

Sergei Mitrokhin, a liberal former Parliamentarian in Russia,
gives the following cultural explanation on the conflict between
the NGOs and the city parliament: “What works in the West is
often seen as strange in Russia.” To Western eyes it seems
strange that Putin is trying to build a democratic state whilst
crushing the civil society. There can be no doubt that the
democratic process in Russia is heading in the wrong direction.

Putin’s argumentation about the need for a more “unified
political system” will in reality strengthen his power at the
cost of others. Critics have been accusing Putin of conducting a
slow authoritarian coup, but this criticism has little
significance as Putin controls those who make the laws. 

Putin came to power on a kind of political contract with the
Russian people. The contract stated that they would have to give
away some of their freedom in exchange for more stability. Putin
has to a certain extent managed to deliver what he promised: the
unruly regions are back under Russian control, (Chechnya is
still a problem, but far less visible than earlier as no
journalists are allowed within its borders), the conflict
between the President and the Parliament which was so visible
during Boris Yeltsin’s reign is gone, Putin has gotten rid of
the oligarchs who became billionaires and powerful political
advisors under Yeltsin, and Putin has re-nationalized the
petroleum industry and is rebuilding Russia as the world’s
leading energy superpower. 

The irony 

In addition the whole world is now aware that Russian foreign
policy will not be dictated by the European Union or the United
States. But the price for greater stability is in reality that
all critics are gagged or forced out of the spotlight, often
with the help of bureaucratic means, as we are now able to
observe. 

While all of this occurs, Russian authorities are trying to
build a government-run Russian NGO in the United States, the
U.S-Russian Business Cooperation. The goal of this organization
is to strengthen Russia’s image overseas. Odd, isn’t it?   

  Publisher: , President: 
Information: , Technical contact: 
Telephone: +47 23 23 46 00 Telefax: +47 22 38 38 62  * P.O.Box
2141 Grunerlokka, 0505 Oslo, Norway
*****************************************************************
 31 BBC: Putin address to nation: Excerpts
 
Last Updated: Wednesday, 10 May 2006
 
[President Vladimir Putin]                              
Putin stressed the problem of Russia's declining population                                                                

Russian President Vladimir Putin delivered his seventh state of 
the nation address to parliament from the Kremlin on Wednesday. 

Here are excerpts from his speech, which was broadcast live on 
national television. 

DEMOGRAPHIC 'CRISIS' 

No amount of migration will solve our demographi problems unless 
we create the appropriate conditions and incentives to increase 
the birth rate here, at home, in our own country; unless we adopt 
efficient programmes to support mothers, children and families... 

Having started the implementation of the biggest social projects
of recent years, we have laid a good foundation for resolving
demographic problems, among other things. 

Yet this too is inadmissibly little. And you know why: the
situation in this area is critical. 	

	WTO TALKS 

Modern Russia needs unhindered access to th international market 
for all its products. 

For us this is a question of more rational participation in the 
international division of labour. It is a question of obtaining 
the full benefits from integration into the world economy... 

Talks on Russia's admission to the WTO must not become a 
bargaining tool on issues that have nothing to do with that 
organisation's activities.      

SOVIET ERA 

We should not repeat the mistakes made by the Sovie Union, the 
mistakes of the Cold War era - either in politics or in the 
defence strategy. 

We should not tackle the tasks of military build-up at the
expense of the tasks of economic development and welfare. This
is a blind alley leading to a depletion of the country's
resources. It is a dead end. 	

TERRORISM AND ARMS RACE 

These threats are less predictable than before, an the full 
extent of the threat they pose has yet to be fully understood... 

Against the background of the acute threat posed by international 
terrorism, the key issues of disarmament have virtually fallen 
off the global agenda. 

It is premature to speak of the end of the arms race. 	

THE SUPER-RICH 

The great hopes of millions of people were bound u in the reforms 
of the early 1990s. But neither the authorities nor business 
justified those hopes. 

More than that, some members of those two spheres, disregarding
the law and common decency, embarked on a personal enrichment
that was unprecedented in the history of our country - at the
expense of the majority of citizens. 

As we work on the great national programme, which is designed to
ensure the primary benefits for the masses, we have trodden on
some toes. And we will continue to tread on them. 	

THE ROUBLE 

In my state of the nation address in 2003 I set th task of 
ensuring the convertibility of the rouble. Certain plans were 
drawn up. I must say that they are being fulfilled. 

I now propose to speed up the repeal of the remaining 
restrictions and to have this work completed by 1 July this year.   

UN 

Let me stress that in the conditions o globalisation, in a 
situation in which a new international architecture is taking 
shape, the role played by the UN is growing fundamentally. 

It is the most representative and universal world forum, and
continues to be a structure that underpins the world order as it
is today. 

It is clear that the foundations of this worldwide organisation
were laid in an altogether different era. There is no doubt that
it needs reforming. 	

MILITARY 

Along with the air defence penetration systems tha we already 
have, new types of weaponry will allow us to maintain what is 
undoubtedly one of the most significant guarantees of world 
stability, namely, the preservation of the strategic balance of 
forces.      

MILITARISATION OF SPACE 

There is still no guarantee that weapons, includin nuclear ones, 
will not be deployed in space. There is the potential threat of 
the creation and proliferation of low-yield nuclear charges. 

And apart from that, the media and expert circles are already
discussing the possibility of using intercontinental ballistic
missiles with non-nuclear warheads. 

The launch of such a missile could provoke the wrong reaction by
a nuclear power - and that could include a full-scale
retaliatory strike with strategic nuclear forces. 	

ENERGY 

In conditions of harsh international competition, th country's 
economic development must be determined mainly through its 
scientific and technological advantages. 

But unfortunately the greater part of technological equipment 
used right now in Russian industry lags behind advanced levels by 
not just a year but decades, while the efficiency of energy use, 
even with reference to climate conditions, is many times lower in 
our country than in those of Russia's direct competitors on world 
markets.   


selects and translates news from radio, television, press, news 
agencies and the internet from 150 countries in more than 70 
languages. It is based in Caversham, UK, and has several bureaux 
abroad.                                                          



*****************************************************************
 32 Columbian: Toppling Trojan's Tower

Columbian.com - Serving Clark County, Washington
 	 	 
Wednesday, May 10, 2006

  Workers in a basket suspended from a crane unroll chain-like 
fencing to cover dynamite-stuffed holes on the side of the Trojan 
Nuclear Plant cooling tower in preparation for the May 21 
demolition. (JANET L. MATHEWS/The Columbian)   

Wednesday, May 10, 2006

By THOMAS RYLL, Columbian staff writer                          

KALAMA -- You can stand on the shore of the Columbia River at the 
Kalama Sportsmen Club, extended your arm toward the Trojan 
Nuclear Plant, close one eye and pretend you are holding the 
cooling tower as if it were a beer can. 

It's that big, the 499-foot-tall choked-neck cylinder; so massive 
that it looms as by far the largest man-made thing in the 
neighborhood. 

But come the weekend of May 20-21, it's a safe bet that if you're 
on the club's grounds you won't have to pretend that you're 
holding a beer can and looking at the tower at the same time. 

By not much more than inches, the club falls outside the
half-mile-radius "exclusion zone" that officials have penned
around the cooling tower. As the tower is demolished the morning
of May 21 by sticks of dynamite in 3,300 strategically placed
bored holes, the exclusion zone is to be empty of all but a
handful of people. Even the command post for the event will be
near the edge of the zone. 

Coincidence finds the club, a collection of cabins and
recreational-vehicle-parking spots, as the closest spot with the
least-obstructed view. Not to mention the most ambitious party
schedule and what might be the best-stocked coolers in Kalama. 

And if you haven't been invited by now, you don't stand a chance
of getting past the guest list and guards. 

As the final countdown approaches, club members "are finding we
have friends we didn't know about," said Vern Eaton, club
president. 

"I've had people I haven't seen in years say, 'Hey, does your
dad still have that place by the river?' " said another member.
"I say, 'Yeah, but good luck getting in.' " 

Tuesday morning, life at the club was proceeding at its usual
part-throttle pace: One resident waited for the grass to dry so
he could mow the patches scattered around the site. 

Through binoculars, workers could be seen loading dynamite into
the perforated wall of the cooling tower. Up top, others fought
gusty winds to unroll orange plastic construction fence around
the tower's lip. If it works as intended, the fence will prevent
peregrine falcons from alighting at an inconvenient time,
thereby delaying the demolition. 

A half-mile downriver from the club, reporters and TV crews
stood on a Port of Kalama dock to catch every word from Doug
Loizeaux of Controlled Demolition Inc., the Maryland-based
company hired by Portland General Electric to destroy the
cooling tower. "People realize that explosives demolition has
become a spectator sport," said Loizeaux, whose brother presided
over the flattening of the Boardwalk Hotel in Las Vegas on
Tuesday morning. At 2 a.m., 10,000 people left the slot machines
and roulette wheels to watch. 

Controlled Demolition has knocked over cooling towers before,
but the Trojan landmark is the largest yet, and the first to
employ double-mat construction an additional layer of
reinforcing steel on account of the Pacific Northwest's
earthquake risks. Initially, the plan was to drill the tower
with 2,500 holes; a second look prompted the addition of 800
holes. Each will be stuffed with up to three half-pound sticks
of dynamite. Even so, said Loizeaux, 82 million pounds of
building will be taken to the ground with a load of dynamite
weighing as much as a Honda Civic. 

Quirky exclusivity 

PGE is encouraging the public to view the wreckage on the live
TV broadcasts from the Kalama dock, a half-mile from the tower.
Roads on both sides of the Columbia will be closed, some as
early as 9 p.m. Saturday; the Coast Guard will clear the
Columbia of boaters for at least a mile up- and downriver; and
airspace near the tower also will be restricted. 

That leaves the Kalama Sportsmen Club, with all its quirky
exclusivity, as the hottest May 21 ticket. 

The club Sportsmen, Sportsmens or Sportsman, depending on which
sign you are looking at was founded in 1949 on 18 L-shaped
acres, some of them flanked on one side by the Columbia and the
other by the Kalama River. The 275 members pay the outrageous
sum of $15 in annual dues. Since there are only 45 spots for RVs
and cabins, membership doesn't necessarily mean ownership,
merely a chance at it. "If you live to be 128, you might get a
cabin or RV spot," said Eaton. 

Those who get invites for the entire weekend shebang will be
able to take part in a Saturday breakfast, a work party (one of
the few obligations of membership) and a Saturday dinner. There
will be a Sunday breakfast "after it hits the ground," said
retiree Ed Hislop, who with his wife, Patsy, scored a waterfront
trailer site courtesy of an out-of-town friend. 

Others will have to make do with something less. 

On Tuesday afternoon, state Department of Fish and Wildlife
technician Steve Campbell walked along the Columbia near the
club to get a better look at seven sea lions basking and barking
on a concrete dock. "They're gonna blow this thing on my
birthday," said Campbell, 60, a Clark County resident. "I have
to find a place to watch." 

Not everyone is trying to score a viewing spot for the Trojan
commotion. "For me, I'm not getting up at 6 in the morning and
watching dust," said Lynne Fry, a waitress at the nearby
Fireside Cafe in Camp Kalama. 

But plenty are. If the interest in the Kalama Sportsmen Club
continues unabated, "maybe we should increase our dues to $17 a
year," quipped Eaton. 		

  Â©2006 Columbian.com. All Rights Reserved - Use of this site
*****************************************************************
 33 Albuquerque Tribune: Commentary: A tour of Chernobyl, 20 years after

Commentaries
 		 		
By Trish Williams-Mello

May 10, 2006

Climbing into an ancient relic of a bus in front of the hotel in 
Kiev, Ukraine, I somewhat hesitantly began my trip to the 30 
kilometer exclusion zone surrounding the ruins of the Chernobyl 
nuclear power plant. 

  TODAY'S BYLINE 
Williams-Mello is operations director for the Los Alamos Study
Group, a nuclear weapons watchdog group located in Albuquerque. 

Along with many of my colleagues, there last month for the
anniversary of the world's worst nuclear power plant accident, I
felt as if we were traveling through a time warp back to the
early 1980s, back to the Cold War, prior to glasnost and
perestroika and everything since. 

Two hours north of Kiev we arrived at the security gate on the
border of the exclusion zone. We began our tour with a briefing
at the Chernobylinterinform, a public relations office, after
which we continued on into the exclusion zone. 

We were able to leave the bus and walk around in only a few
areas within the zone, after being strictly warned not to walk
on or touch any of the vegetation. 

Walking around Pripyat, once an elegant and rather elaborate
city built to house Chernobyl's workers and now a ruin, the only
sound that broke the silence was the interminable clicking of my
colleagues' radiation monitors. 

It was as though a death-shroud was still spread over the entire
region - suffocating what sparse life was left. Where were the
wild horses and other wildlife I was told to expect? I could
count on one hand the living beings that I saw there - a bird, a
bug and one very strange looking dog. 

Today there are only 338 of the original 200,000 residents
living within the exclusion zone, these few having returned
illegally in spite of the contamination. They do not want to
leave their homeland despite the unseen dangers of the
radiation. 

The accident, caused by human errors and poor design, climaxed
when an explosion ripped through the Number 4 reactor at
Chernobyl at 1:23 a.m. on April 26, 1986. It left its mark on
the entire world, most severely on Ukraine and its neighbors
Belarus and Russia but also on other European countries, which
received more than half of the contaminants released. 

Radioactive gases, fuel and debris from the reactor were also
hurled into the atmosphere. Over 1,800 tons of carbon within the
reactor ignited and burned for nearly 10 days. It has been
difficult to determine the actual amounts of contaminants
released and number of persons affected because of the secrecy,
falsified medical data and inaccurate records. 

As I traveled through the region, I became aware that the veil
of secrecy surrounding the accident and its aftermath has only
partially been lifted, even after twenty years. During the
three-day conference that I attended in Kiev later that week
there were many discussions about the struggle for truth
concerning the Chernobyl disaster. The full human cost is just
beginning to be understood. 

There have been numerous reports released about Chernobyl with
greatly differing predictions of morbidity and mortality. Two
recent studies, one commissioned by the European Parliament and
one by Greenpeace International, estimate excess cancer deaths
as 30,000 to 60,000 and somewhat greater than 90,000,
respectively. In contrast, the International Atomic Energy

Agency, known to be a supporter of nuclear energy, reports only
4,000. 

It is honestly very hard for anyone to put this much devastation
and contamination into context unless you have seen it. Standing
outside the fence in front of the sarcophagus over the damaged
reactor, one imagines a tornado or hurricane having struck this
facility, carrying its deadly nuclear guts up into the
atmosphere to ride the clouds as an angel of death, spreading
deadly hands of disease and deformity over a vast area. 

It reminded me of a biblical plague, one that will continue to
kill, deform, devastate and contaminate for many generations to
come - the people first, but also their homeland. 

People making decisions about nuclear power must think how their
decisions today could affect the world many generations into the
future - as did the American Indians. One mistake, one human
error, and all future generations will suffer. Think about it. 
  
2006 © The Albuquerque Tribune | | 
*****************************************************************
 34 toledoblade.com: Leak in old fuel rod caused present contamination

Article published Wednesday, May 10, 2006
 
ASSOCIATED PRESS
 
SANDUSKY, Ohio — Low levels of radioactive soil discovered near
a closed nuclear test facility were caused in part by a pinhole
leak originally found on a fuel rod in October 1968, officials
said.

NASA officials cleaning up the space agency’s former Plum Brook
reactor asked the facility’s retired employees to help find
where the contamination of cobalt-60 and cesium-137 originated.

After a two-day search through old records, information about
the leaking fuel rod was found in handwritten log books and
identified as the source of the cesium-137, said Keith Peecook,
acting program manager for the cleanup at the site about four
miles south of this northern Ohio city.

The cobalt-60 could have come from the leak or from flakes of
iron carried away by water passing through the reactor’s core,
Peecook said.

The radioactive materials were detected last year in a drainage
ditch off Plum Brook, a tributary of Lake Erie’s Sandusky Bay.
Health experts have said the material does not pose a health
risk.

NASA operated the reactor between 1961 and 1973.

Read more in later editions of The Blade and toledoblade.com.
 
 The Toledo Blade Company, 541 N. Superior St., Toledo, OH 43660
, (419) 724-6000 
*****************************************************************
 35 WWF: WWF Report: No need for nuclear power in the UK
     
 WWF-Canon / Chris Martin
	   	 	 		 		
From coal to clean. Wind and solar power
generation provides a clean energy alternative for future
generations.

© WWF-Canon / Adam Oswell                                                                                        

09 May 2006

London, UK  The United Kingdom can meet its future energy needs 
and reduce climate polluting emissions without resorting to new 
nuclear power, according to a new report commissioned by WWF.
 
The report, The Balance of Power, by independent consultants ILEX 
shows that by increasing renewable energy and cutting energy 
waste the British power sector could actually reduce emissions by 
55 per cent by 2025.
 
"The much talked about energy gap is simply a myth which has been 
perpetuated to justify the resurgence of nuclear power," said 
Keith Allott, head of WWF-UK's climate change programme.
 
"This report shows that a renewed focus on reducing demand for 
electricity and increasing the use of renewable energy and 
microgeneration would make new nuclear redundant. We can not only 
meet energy demand without resorting to new nuclear power, but 
with the right measures we can reduce emissions from electricity 
generation too."
 
The report analyzed future energy generation and carbon dioxide 
emissions under the assumption that no nuclear power stations 
were built in the UK. It looked at three different scenarios 
ranging from business as usual to a greener scenario.
 
Fairly modest measures to reduce the growth in electricity
demand and increase renewable energy to 25 per cent by 2025
could help the British power sector to reduce emissions by 55
per cent from 1990 levels, according to the report. In contrast,
under current 'business as usual' policies, the power sector's
emissions would be reduced by just 18 per cent by 2025. Both
these scenarios require a high dependence on imported gas, but
the 'business as usual' scenario would require considerably more
gas because the total demand for electricity would be higher.
 
WWF-UK, which has submitted the report to the UK government's
Energy Review, is calling on the government to introduce a
"carbon budget" that would set year-on-year emissions reduction
targets for the UK. WWF also wants the government to set tough
limits on pollution from the power sector through the second
phase of the European Emissions Trading Scheme.
 
"The solutions to both tackling climate change and meeting our
future energy needs are on the table for the government to
consider," added Allott.
 
"The only barrier to putting the UK on a low carbon future is
political will. We have seen the environment rocket up the
political agenda in the last month with opposition parties
putting real pressure on the government. Tony Blair's
environmental credentials rest on whether he is prepared to make
the tough decisions required to really make a difference." 		  
	 	
Page last updated: May 9, 2006. © All photos/graphics
remain the copyright of WWF 	   		 		
*****************************************************************
 36 ITAR-TASS: Agency to submit nuclear industry development program in May

10.05.2006, 15.14

MOSCOW, May 10 (Itar-Tass) - Russia's Rosatom Federal Agency for
Atomic Energy will submit to the government a development and
restructuring program for the country's nuclear industry later
this month, Rosatom chief Sergei Kiriyenko told reporters. 

"The development of the program is being completed," Kiriyenko
said. 

He acknowledged that "he was hoping the president will devote
such a significant part of his address to the Federal Assembly
to the development of the nuclear industry." 

"These are understandable tasks for us; the president spoke
about the strategic nuclear forces and the development of
nuclear power generation," Kiriyenko noted. 

He promised that Rosatom would develop the domestic nuclear
power engineering, while paying attention to new technologies,
and also try to become "a window of competitiveness to the
world." 

To implement a long-term program to develop nuclear power
engineering in Russia it is necessary to commission two nuclear
reactors a year, starting from 2017, deputy director general of
the Rosenergoatom concern Viktor Cherkasov said. 

The implementation the program will boost electricity production
by nuclear power plants from the current 16 percent to 25
percent by 2030. 

It means the construction of new nuclear power plants in the Far
East, and unfreezing of the construction of power plants in
central Russia. 

"It's a rather difficult and ambitious task, although in certain
periods, the former USSR used to commission two reactors at a
time," Cherkasov said. 

"The accumulated experience in the domestic nuclear power
engineering gives confidence that it will be fulfilled," he
added. 

At present, Russia operates 31 reactors at ten nuclear power
plants. 

© ITAR-TASS. All rights reserved. You undertake not to copy,
*****************************************************************
 37 globeandmail.com: A nuclear thought
 
By CHRIS McDONELL
 
Wednesday, May 10, 2006, Page A14
 
London, Ont. -- I laughed when I saw the response from Atomic
Energy of Canada (In The Nuclear Interest -- letter, May 9) to
Eric Reguly's column Ontario's Nuclear Strategy Is A Lesson In
Senility (Report on Business, May 6). Even this corporate spin
doctor felt the need to use quotes when he wrote about our
nuclear industry's "on time, on budget" track record. Mr. Reguly
gave several good examples of how nuclear power has always been
the opposite of "on time" and "on budget."
 
The full text of this article has 134 words.
 		 
globeandmail.com?
 		
  +  	 	
 © Copyright 2006 Bell Globemedia Publishing Inc. All Rights
Reserved.
 	 	
globeandmail.com and The Globe and Mail are divisions of Bell
Globemedia Publishing Inc., 444 Front St. W., Toronto, Canada
M5V 2S9 
Phillip Crawley, Publisher
*****************************************************************
 38 KATU 2: Crews are preparing for the Trojan implosion 

Portland, Oregon
 
  May 9, 2006 


By Dan Tilkin and KATU.com Web Staff 

RAINIER, Ore. - In less than two weeks, history will be made
when the cooling tower at the old Trojan power plant along the
Columbia River is brought down. 

Demolition crews are busy getting ready for the big day and are
now halfway through the process of loading up the tower with
explosives. 

More than 3,300 holes have been drilled into the concrete, holes
that have been, or will be, filled with a nitroglycerin-based
dynamite. 

Doug Loizeaux with Controlled Demolition, Inc., is the man in
charge of the project. 

"Cooling towers have been taken down all over the world," he
says. "But this is the largest one that's ever been taken down
and it's the only one that has a double reinforcing mat." 

The walls were built extra thick so they could withstand an
earthquake and it will take 2,500 pounds of explosives to bring
them down. 

The dynamite is being placed in two horizontal layers, one at
100 feet up and the other at 250 feet up. They are connected by
several vertical lines of explosives and when they go off, the
tower will be knocked off balance by a few degrees. 

The tower will come almost straight down, 150 feet off center,
and far away from the radioactive spent fuel rods that are still
stored at the site. 

The entire demolition is expected to take just 14 seconds. 

Interstate 5 and Highway 30 will be shut down immediately before
and after the demolition. 

If you want to see the demolition, the best way to do that is
from your own livingroom because there will be no public viewing
spot. 

KATU News will be airing live coverage of the event on Sunday,
May 21 starting at 6 a.m. The demolition is scheduled to take
place at 7 a.m.   

  KATU TV 2153 N.E. Sandy Blvd, Portland, OR 97232 Main Phone 
503-231-4222 News Desk 503-231-4264
*****************************************************************
 39 UPI: Bulgarian nuclear accident questioned
     
  United Press International - Security &Terrorism - 

5/10/2006 11:45:00 AM -0400                             
										Newstrack:						The pope's representative has said the
SOFIA, Bulgaria, May 10 (UPI) -- At a time of record high global
oil prices, many countries are reconsidering nuclear energy. 

Bulgaria recently experienced a problem, described by Bulgarian
nuclear physicist Georgi Kaschiev as "a serious security system
failure," at its Kozloduy nuclear power plant, its sole nuclear
installation. 

Sofia news agency reported on May 8 that Bulgaria's Nuclear
Regulatory Agency announced that the March accident at
Bulgaria's Kozloduy Nuclear Power Plant was officially rated
Level Two according to the International Nuclear Events Scale
after initially grading it Level Zero. Level Seven is the most
serious. 

NRA head Sergey Tsochev said that the event's rating was
increased after taking into account various additional factors,
including equipment failure. 

In December 2002 Bulgaria began decommissioning some of
Kozloduy's six reactors after the European Union pressured
Bulgaria to close four of the site's reactors for safety
reasons. Kozloduy is on the Danube, 125 miles north of the
capital Sofia. 

Democrats for Strong Bulgaria (DSB) called Tuesday for the
resignation of Economy and Energy Minister Rumen Ovcharov over
the incident.

 														
© Copyright 2006 United Press International, Inc. All Rights
*****************************************************************
 40 IRNA: D-8 to discuss draft resolution on peaceful N-energy use

Kuala Lumpur, May 10, IRNA                                                                                                               

Iran-D 8-Nuclear 

The D-8 (Group of 8 developing Muslim countries) will discuss a
draft resolution prepared by Indonesia enjoing the peaceful use
of nuclear energy.

 The D-8 is holding its fifth summit in the Indonesian island of
Bali on Friday.

 An official at Indonesia's Foreign Ministry said participants
in the summit are expected to discuss a range of issues
including various ways to confront the international crisis
caused by record- high energy prices and the need to exploit
alternative and renewable sources of energy such as nuclear
energy.

 According to Antara (Indonesian news agency), the official,
Mohammad Hedayat, said that Indonesia has prepared a draft of a
statement that will be discussed at the D-8 summit and issued at
its final declaration.

 He stressed the importance of exploiting alternative sources of
energy, particularly renewable energy such nuclear energy, to
settle the international energy crisis.

 "Iran can make use of the D-8 declaration on nuclear energy to
draw member states to support its own nuclear programs," he said.

 D-8 groups the Islamic Republic of Iran, Indonesia, Bangladesh,
Egypt, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan and Turkey.

 It was founded in Istanbul, Turkey on June 15, 1997 with the
aim of expanding cooperation among large Islamic states in the
economic and commercial fields, promote collective cooperation in
 international decision-making and provide more welfare
facilities for member countries.

 Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Prime Ministers Tayyip
Recep Erdogan, Shaukat Aziz and Abdullah Ahmad Badawi of Turkey,
Pakistan and Malaysia, respectively, as well as Nigerian
President Olusegun Obasanjo are attending the summit.

 The foreign ministers of Egypt and Bangladesh will also be
attending the summit as heads of their countries' delegations.

 President Ahmadinejad arrived in Jakarta, Indonesia early
Wednesday to attend the summit as well as meet with senior
Indonesian officials.

 Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki, Minister of Communications
and Information Technology Mohammad Soleymani and head of the
World Assembly for Proximity of Islamic Schools of Thoughts
 (WAPIST)Ayatollah Mohammad-Ali Taskhiri are in the president's
entourage.

 D-8 was founded in Istanbul, Turkey on June 15, 1997 with the
aim of expanding cooperation among large Islamic states in the
economic and commercial fields, promote collective cooperation in
 international decision-making and provide more welfare
facilities for member countries.		 				 		 			

*****************************************************************
 41 [NukeNet] Depleted Uranium 3 Hour Update on The 'X' Zone Radio
 
Date: Wed, 10 May 2006 17:57:41 -0700


<x-flowed>
NukeNet Anti-Nuclear Network (nukenet@energyjustice.net)

"urn:schemas-microsoft-com:vml" xmlns:o = 
"urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" xmlns:w = 
"urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:word" xmlns:st1 = 
"urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags">
Depleted Uranium 3 Hour Update on The ‘X’ Zone Radio Show, Wednesday, May 
10, 2006 11 pm - 2 am Eastern.



NOTE: If your local radio station does not carry the ‘X’ Zone Radio Show 
yet, you can go to our website at 
<http://www.xzone-radio,com>www.xzone-radio,com and click on the flashing 
Red “ON AIR” sign and listen to our online feed.)



Rob McConnell, host and executive producer of The ‘X’ Zone Radio Show wants 
the world to know about the horrors of Depleted Uranium - and he’s one 
broadcast journalist who wants to make a difference.



In this yet, another Depleted Uranium Special, Rob once again brings on  DU 
experts and activists, who want you, the word, to know the truth of what DU 
has done, is doing and will do.



BRITISH and American coalition forces are using depleted uranium (DU) 
shells in the war against Iraq and deliberately flouting a United Nations 
resolution which classifies the munitions as illegal weapons of mass 
destruction.



DU contaminates land, causes ill-health and cancers among the soldiers 
using the weapons, the armies they target and civilians, leading to birth 
defects in children.

According to a August 2002 report by the UN subcommission, laws which are 
breached by the use of DU shells include: the Universal Declaration of 
Human Rights; the Charter of the United Nations; the Genocide Convention; 
the Convention Against Torture; the four Geneva Conventions of 1949; the 
Conventional Weapons Convention of 1980; and the Hague Conventions of 1899 
and 1907, which expressly forbid employing 'poison or poisoned weapons' and 
'arms, projectiles or materials calculated to cause unnecessary suffering'. 
All of these laws are designed to spare civilians from unwarranted 
suffering in armed conflicts.



DU has been blamed for the effects of Gulf war syndrome -- typified by 
chronic muscle and joint pain, fatigue and memory loss -- among 200,000 US 
soldiers after the 1991 conflict.



It is also cited as the most likely cause of the 'increased number of birth 
deformities and cancer in Iraq' following the first Gulf war.



'Cancer appears to have increased between seven and 10 times and 
deformities between four and six times,' according to the UN subcommission.



The Pentagon has admitted that 320 metric tons of DU were left on the 
battlefield after the first Gulf war, although Russian military experts say 
1000 metric tons is a more accurate figure.



In 1991, the Allies fired 944,000 DU rounds or some 2700 tons of DU tipped 
bombs. A UK Atomic Energy Authority report said that some 500,000 people 
would die before the end of this century, due to radioactive debris left in 
the desert.



Tonight’s broadcast schedule is as follows:



10:00 pm  - 11:00 pm             BRIAN KENEIPP - Why UFOs Don't Land



DEPLETED URANIUM 3 HOUR SPECIAL;



<http://www.xzone-radio.com/petition.htm>image00112.jpg

www.xzone-radio.com/petition.htm



11:00 pm - 11:30 pm               DOUG ROKKEE - Doug Rokke has a PhD in 
health physics and was originally trained as a forensic scientist.  When 
the Gulf War started, he was assigned to prepare soldiers to respond to 
nuclear, biological, and chemical warfare, and sent to the Gulf.  What he 
experienced has made him a passionate voice for peace, travelling the 
country to speak out. Professor Doug Rokke, ex-director of the Pentagon's 
depleted uranium project -- a former professor of environmental science at 
Jacksonville University and onetime US army colonel who was tasked by the 
US department of defence with the post-first Gulf war depleted uranium 
desert clean-up -- said use of DU was a 'war crime'. Rokke said: 'There is 
a moral point to be made here. This war was about Iraq possessing illegal 
weapons of mass destruction -- yet we are using weapons of mass destruction 
ourselves.' He added: 'Such double-standards are repellent.'

11:30 pm - 12:00 am               LEUREN MORET - Leuren is an independent 
international radiation specialist and works around the world on radiation 
issues related to atmospheric testing, nuclear power plants, and depleted 
uranium.  She has a background in the geosciences, specifically atmospheric 
dust, and is an Environmental Commissioner in the City of Berkeley. She 
writes and travels widely.  Recently she has appeared in three documentary 
films about depleted uranium - BEYOND TREASON, BAGDAD RAP, and BLOWIN' IN 
THE WIND.



12:00 am - 12:30 am               TOM TREFTS – Bio will be added to our 
complete broadcast schedule at 
<http://www.xzone-radio.com/schedule>www.xzone-radio.com/schedule as soon 
as possible.

12:30 am - 01:00 am               HERBERT REED (VET) - Herbert R. Reed, 52 
years Old, Retired SSG U.S. Army Received Medical  Retirement after injured 
in Iraq in 2003, (Neck, Titanium Plate and four screws in C spine., Nerve 
damage in Left leg, left arm, lower back Herniated Disc, Rotator Cuff 
injury,  PTSD,  Because I only had nineteen years nine months twenty day 
and not the full twenty years I don't receive any monetary retirement from 
the Army, just a medical release. All that time and no pension, like it was 
my fault. Served in Iraq 2003 with the 442 Military Police Company, out of 
Orangeburg New York National Guard. Upon first notifying Military of our DU 
exposure we were told that it was all in our head and was sent to see a 
doctor.  Contaminated by DU while serving in Iraq in 2003, Tested Positive 
for exposure. Doctor Assaf  Durakovic collected specimens to be  Analyzed 
in Germany by Doctor Axel Gerdes, in Frankfurt. ( NY Daily News paid for 
testing because the Military would not test us at the time. ) Upon 
receiving our written results from Germany the Military then tested us but 
said we were not contaminated. We later found out that there testing method 
was not able to pick up small particles in our system like the test 
conducted in Germany. We were then told that the testing conducted in 
Germany was not conducted in a clean environment so the results were no 
good.   Prior to serving in Iraq, I was an Assistant Deputy Warden for the 
New York City Correction Department, working on Rikers Island. (upon 
returning I could not return to work because of my injuries.) February 28th 
206, had surgery to remove tumor from around thyroid, awaiting test 
results. I presently on numerous narcotics twenty four hours a day seven 
days a week.( Methadone, Morphine, Tizanidine, Citalopram, 
Bisacodyl,  Docusate, Sildenafil, Diazepam.)

01:00 am - 01:30 am               JOAN WALKER - Joan Walker, a recently 
retired Kindergarten teacher from the most famous small town in the world, 
Woodstock, is the "point person" for passage of the New York National Guard 
Testing/Registry/Task Force Bill.  She is with New Yorkers in Support of 
the NY National Guard Testing/Task Force Bill, a coalition of veterans, 
families of veterans and activists in depleted uranium education.  The NY 
Bill, similar to the Connecticut Bill passed last June, was introduced in 
the NY Assembly by Assemblyman Jeffry Dinowitz, Democrat, and in the NY 
Senate by Senator Thomas Morahan, a Republican.   The bill is now being 
analyzed by the Veterans' Committees in both houses.  Joan Walker quote, 
"There is a lot of support and commitment in this Legislature to our 
soldiers, newly returned from Iraq and Afghanistan with troubling 
illnesses.  The analogy of Agent Orange is not lost on these middle aged 
law makers."



01:30 am - 02:00 am               BOB NICHOLS -  Bob Nichols is a Project 
Censored Award Winner. He is a correspondent for the San Francisco Bay View 
newspaper and a frequent contributor to various on line publications. 
Nichols is completing a book based on 15 years of nuclear war in Central 
Asia. Nichols is a former employee of the McAlester Army Ammunition Plant. 
Nichols can be reached by email. You are encouraged to write at 
<mailto:DUweapons@gmail.com>DUweapons@gmail.com



Visit our website and sign the online Petition - make a difference in the 
world that you live in.



Visit 
<http://www.xzone-radio.com/petition.htm>www.xzone-radio.com/petition.htm 
and be part of the solution.





Rob McConnell,

Executive Producer,

The 'X' Zone Radio Show,

A Division of REL-MAR McConnell Media Company,

Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

Satellite Teleport - White Springs, Florida.

Contact Information:

Office Tel: (905) 575-5916

Studio Tel: 1-877-528-8255

E-mail: xzone@xzone-radio.com

Website: www.xzone-radio.com

Video-Casting on Yahoo IM - xzonestudio

MSN Messenger: talkstarradio@hotmail.com

AOL IM: xzonestudio

Yahoo IM: xzonestudio

ICQ: 6272860



Monday – Friday, Broadcast LIVE 10 PM – 2 AM Eastern, Network Re-feed 2 AM 
– 6 AM Eastern.



The ‘X’ Zone Radio Show is heard throughout North America, Central America. 
The Caribbean, South America and the Pacific Rim on Galaxy 4R (C-Band 
Satellite) and Intelsat Americas 7 (KU Band Satellite) and the rest of the 
world on www.xzone-radio.com streaming audio.



"Working together as one, we can solve the mysteries of life." Rob 
McConnell, 2005


_______________________________________________________________________
Subscribe/Unsubscribe Here: http://www.energyjustice.net/nukenet/
Change your settings or access the archives at:
http://energyjustice.net/mailman/listinfo/nukenet_energyjustice.net


</x-flowed>


Attachment Converted: image001124.jpg: 00000001,412d03c7,00000000,00000000
*****************************************************************
 42 BBC: Radioactive

Last Updated: Wednesday, 10 May 2006
 
[Beach testing]                                 

Aberdeen beach has recorded traces of radiation                                                             

A company which operates near Aberdeen Beach is being asked not 
to discharge radioactive waste into the sea. 

A stretch of the beach was closed last August when traces of 
radiation were found in the sand. 

Environment protection agency Sepa identified the recycling 
company Scotoil as the most likely source. 

Sepa has proposed that Scotoil finds alternative means of 
disposing of its waste. Scotoil said it had complete confidence 
in its procedures. 


Last August, Sepa said it had found "slightly raised" levels of 
radioactivity in a very small area of sand on the high tide line 
at the southern end of the beach near the harbour wall. 

Scotoil's waste is in the form of naturally occurring radioactive 
material produced during oil production. 

This is removed from oilfield equipment at Scotoil's premises in 
Aberdeen and the waste is disposed by discharge to the sea. 

Authorisation to do this was granted by Sepa's predecessor body, 
Her Majesty's Industrial Pollution Inspectorate, in 1995. 

Sepa is now consulting on proposals to change this authorisation. 

	
The current Scotoil authoris discharge limit is not being 
exceeded David Orr Sepa    

Proposals include reduced discharge limits and a requirement for 
Scotoil to implement a new discharge route. 

David Orr, from Sepa's radioactive substances team, said: "Sepa 
grants authorisations that allow the safe disposal of radioactive 
waste while providing protection for people and the environment. 

"The current Scotoil authorised discharge limit is not being 
exceeded but it is a condition of authorisation that waste 
disposers use best practicable means to minimise the volume and 
activity in waste discharged and the chosen waste disposal route 
must represent the best practical environmental option. 

"We would encourage comments on this consultation, which closes 
on 30 June." 

Recent monitoring of Aberdeen beach indicates that levels of 
radioactivity did not present a significant hazard to beach 
users. 

Sepa said no link has been established between this and Scotoil's 
discharges.                                                    



*****************************************************************
 43 Salt Lake Tribune: Hatch wants pledge blast will be safe

Article Last Updated: 05/10/2006 04:20:50 PM MDT  

  By Robert Gehrke The Salt Lake Tribune  

WASHINGTON - Sen. Orrin Hatch is pressing the Pentagon harder to
back up its claims that a massive detonation at the Nevada Test
Site, known as Divine Strake, will not spread contamination from
Cold War nuclear tests. 

   The Utah senator was dissatisfied with assurances he received
as a result of his earlier inquiry. He said the Defense Threat
Reduction Agency's response failed to explain why the agency
concluded the test would not throw contaminated material into
the air, and didn't say how far tunnels used for past nuclear
tests are from the Divine Strake test site. 

   "My skepticism on this matter is well-placed," Hatch wrote in
a letter Tuesday to DTRA Director James Tegnelia, referring to
Utahns' exposure to nuclear fallout from past nuclear tests. "My
objective in this matter is clear: to ensure that this proposed
test will not result in further radiological exposure to the
citizens of Utah and those of the downwind area." 

   Divine Strake entails detonating 700 tons of explosives above
a tunnel in the Nevada Test Site. Sensors will measure the
concussion and damage in order to provide information for
computer models. 

   The test originally was scheduled for June 2, but has since
been postponed until at least June 23 as a result of a lawsuit
filed by the Winnemucca Indian Colony. 

   Pentagon budget documents originally said the test was
designed to help war planners choose the smallest possible
nuclear weapon to destroy a hardened target, but the department
has since said inclusion of the word "nuclear" was a mistake. 

   "It is not tied to the development of a new nuclear weapon. 
Divine Strake is in no way a precursor to resuming nuclear weapon 
testing," Tegnelia said in a May 6 letter to Hatch. 

   Rep. Jim Matheson said last week, however, that planners
acknowledged the data from the test could be used in nuclear or
conventional weapons development. 

   The agency and the National Nuclear Security Administration,
which runs the test site, have said there was no testing done
where the test tunnel is located, although there is
contamination on a section 1.1 miles away. 

    The NNSA and DTRA issued a document Tuesday that said, based
on additional studies since the test was first approved, the
agencies remain convinced that there will be no significant
environmental impact from the Divine Strake test. 

   The blast will use explosives nearly identical to the mixture
used in the 1995 Oklahoma City Bombing, only 280 times more of
it. 

   Hatch said it is essential that the agency provide the Utah
congressional delegation with a detailed map of the contaminated
areas and the geological structures so the delegation can assess
the test. 

   Nevada environment officials have also made repeated requests
for air modeling data to ensure that it complies with the
state's air quality standards and have said the test cannot
proceed without state approval. 
    
Â© Copyright 2006, The Salt Lake Tribune. 
*****************************************************************
 44 NJMRC: Diseases - Chronic Beryllium Disease

National Jewish Medical and Research Center
                                           
1-800-222-LUNG or e-mail us. [Become a Patient]    

About Chronic Beryllium Disease
 
Beryllium disease is a condition that can occur from exposure to
beryllium dust or fumes.  Learn more about beryllium disease
including what causes it; how it happens; its symptoms; and how
the beryllium lymphocyte proliferation test (BeLPT) is used to
help diagnose it. 

Treatment of Beryllium Disease
 
Learn about when, and how chronic beryllium disease is treated. 
Included is information on beryllium sensitization; the chances
of developing the disease; when and how often one should see
their doctor; types of medicine used; and, prospects for a
cure.  

Living with Beryllium Disease

Learn about living and working with chronic beryllium disease
including information on returning to work; worker's
compensation; EEOICPA; exercise; smoking; having fun; donating
blood; support groups; and more. 

Role of National Jewish
 
How can National Jewish help you?  If you are a person seeking a
diagnosis or treatment, please call our lung line
(1-800-222-LUNG [5864]).  If you are a company or corporation,
the Industrial Outreach Program offers a comprehensive array of
services that can be tailored to meet your individual needs.  	 	

© Copyright 2006 National Jewish Medical and Research Center
HIPAA Policy | Disclaimer | Privacy [National Jewish Medical and
Research Center] 

*****************************************************************
 45 [CMEP] Yucca Mtn: Public Citizen Condemns Bush Attempts to
 
Date: Thu, 11 May 2006 00:35:35 -0500 (CDT)

PRESS RELEASE

For Immediate Release:	    Contact: Robert Yule (202) 588-7703
April 13, 2006		                 Michele Boyd (202) 454-5134

Public Citizen Condemns Bush Administration Attempts to Weaken Public Health
and Safety Laws for Yucca Mountain

Secretary Bodman Will Visit Site Today to Tout Legislation That Would Speed
Construction of the Controversial Nuclear Dump

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Samuel Bodman will
visit Yucca Mountain in Nevada today to support new legislation from the Bush
administration that would undermine public health and safety to accelerate the
licensing and operation of a nuclear waste dump there.

The Nuclear Fuel Management and Disposal Act (S. 2589) was introduced in the
Senate last week by Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chairman Pete
Domenici (R-N.M.) and Environment and Public Works Committee Chairman James
Inhofe (R-Okla.) and would eliminate health and safety laws and regulations
for licensing and operating the site. It would also give the DOE unfettered
access to utilities ratepayer fees while removing limits on the amount of
nuclear waste to be buried at the dump.

The bills most egregious provisions would:

  Abolish state, local and tribal government transportation authority over
the shipment of nuclear waste by rail, highway and barge from around the
country to the dump site, and give all authority to the DOE, in contradiction
to a recent National Academy of Sciences report that advocated a central role
for state and tribal governments;

  Exempt the Yucca site, as well as potentially all DOE sites, from the
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, thereby allowing hundreds of millions
of pounds of hazardous heavy metals from waste containers to contaminate
groundwater used for drinking and irrigation;

  Waive state and local air quality laws for the site;

  Remove limits on the amount of nuclear waste that can legally be stored at
the Yucca dump, which is currently set at 70,000 metric tons;

  Reclassify the Nuclear Waste Fund, which is collected from electricity
ratepayers for nuclear waste disposal, to ensure a dedicated source of funding
for the project despite a long history of waste, fraud and mismanagement by
the DOE and its contractors;

  Codify the Nuclear Regulatory Commissions (NRC) waste confidence rule
into law, stating that there will be a dump for spent fuel in a timely
manner, thereby politicizing what should be a scientific and technical
determination and enabling the building of new plants; and,

  Allow the DOE to change the site design even after the NRC issues a
construction license according to a specific design.

While the DOE seeks to use this legislation to speed construction and double
the capacity of the dump, Yucca Mountain is mired in scientific fraud and
mismanagement. In March 2005, U.S. Geologic Survey (USGS) scientists were
accused of falsifying data on the rate of water infiltration and the climate
at the Yucca site. Faster water movement would cause radioactive waste to
enter the groundwater, which is used for drinking and irrigation. The
inspectors general of both the DOE and USGS are currently investigating, while
the Federal Bureau of Investigation has initiated a criminal inquiry.

In January 2006, the NRC issued a scathing report of an audit by Yuccas main
contractor, Bechtel SAIC LLC. The NRC found that researchers overestimated the
ability of metals to isolate nuclear waste in engineered containers, which
prompted the DOE to issue a stop work order on all container research. Despite
other serious problems with quality assurance and design control practices,
the DOE extended Bechtels contract for another year, with an option for a
second year.

The bill introduced in the Senate is yet another example of the DOE trying to
force a square peg into a round hole. The DOEs incompetence and mismanagement
should not be rewarded by a loosening of public health and safety laws and
regulations or by ensuring a steady stream of money for the project from the
Nuclear Waste Fund, said Michele Boyd, legislative director of Public
Citizens energy program. Instead, Congress should stop the Yucca Mountain
project. It should also convene an independent investigation of scientific
fraud in research at the site and the waste of taxpayers money that has
plagued this project for 20 years.

###

Public Citizen is a national, nonprofit consumer advocacy organization based
in Washington, D.C.
For more information on Public Citizens energy program, please visit
http://www.citizen.org/cmep/.

If you have questions, comments, or would like to get more involved, please
contact Melissa Kemp at mkemp@citizen.org.

[This email is better viewed in HTML. Please choose HTML under your programs
options for view]

/*Your email ID. <diaEmailID='108094616' thread=1286/>--*/
*****************************************************************
 46 ICT: Censored film wins Trustee Award at festival

[2006/05/10]  

by: Brenda Norrell / Indian Country Today                                                                                             
									 								 								 								 								 								 								
Brenda Norrell Indian Country -- At the Arizona International 
Film Festival, ''Trespassing'' filmmaker Carlos DeMenezes 
received praise from Michelle Thomas, Miss University of Arizona 
and a Navajo from Indian Wells, Ariz. Thomas described 
''Trespassing'' as a powerful film and thanked DeMenezes for 
telling the often-censored truth about the nuclear industry's 
impact on American Indians.                                                                                          
												 										
TUCSON, Ariz. - ''Trespassing,'' censored in more film festivals 
worldwide than it has been shown, reveals how the Colorado River 
Indian Tribes, Fort Mojave, Western Shoshone, Pueblo and Navajo 
were targeted by the nuclear industry.

	Stewart Udall, former Interior Department secretary under
presidents John Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson, appears in the film
and calls for honesty from the United States regarding the
mistakes of the Cold War and Atomic Age. Udall points out that
Americans were told to trust those in power concerning radiation
and uranium.

	''Well, it turns out - and we're learning more and more about
it - that they made mistakes. And they lied. And now we have to
confront this with the legacy of the Atomic Age. And that
includes radiation, the waste, the dumps, the people that were
harmed; and I think we have to demand the truth.''

	Truth and censorship have become the key words in the making
and distribution of ''Trespassing.''

	''Trespassing'' documents the Colorado River Indian Tribes and
Fort Mojave's successful fight against the proposed Ward Valley
nuclear dump and the ongoing Western Shoshone protest of nuclear
testing at the Nevada Test Site and proposed nuclear dump at
Yucca Mountain.

	The film exposes the Cold War machinations of the nuclear
industry, resulting in widespread cancer and respiratory
diseases for Pueblos and Navajos working without protective
clothing in Cold War uranium mines.

	''Trespassing,'' by Red Umbrella Productions, captured the
Trustee Award at the 15th Arizona International Film Festival
April 28, an award based on merit, which is not given out
annually.

	In the United States and worldwide, however, the film has been
rejected by more film festivals than it has been accepted.

	DeMenezes, in an interview with Indian Country Today, discussed
the rejections.

	''There are two kinds of film festivals: true independent film
festivals and those who sell their souls to the studios and
corporations,'' DeMenezes said after the well-received screening
at the Arizona International Film Festival.

	''Trespassing'' was rejected at every film festival in Canada,
France, Germany, Denmark, Portugal, Australia, Brazil and
Argentina.

	''Sundance Film Festival rejected it twice,'' DeMenezes said.
The film was rejected at some of the leading festivals: Los
Angeles International Film Festival, Tribeca Film Festival, Hot
Docs International Film Festival, Margaret Mead Film and Video
Festival and the York Film Festival. Comments from these
festivals' organizers were not received by press time.

	The Barcelona Human Rights Film Festival in Spain was the only
festival in Europe to accept the film. It received a standing
ovation.

	Although he is Brazilian, DeMenezes prefers to be known as a
world citizen. He grew up in Brazil and lived with an aunt after
his mother died, where his world opened up with experimental
theater.

	With both indigenous Tapuia and Jewish ancestry, he said he can
identify with victims of massacres and holocausts.

	''If it happened to them yesterday, it could happen to me
tomorrow, we all have that responsibility toward one another.
Injustice doesn't discriminate and nuclear poisons don't
discriminate.''

	Besides the obvious political reasons for the festivals'
rejections, DeMenezes said there are reasons other than politics.

	''Restitution is an issue,'' he said of the possibility for
financial compensation for victims, including American Indians.

	Guilt is an issue as well; and, he added, the censorship of
critical thinking. ''They don't want people to think. They do
not want critical thinking.''

	''Trespassing'' was nearly nine years in the making. DeMenezes
waited 1-1/2 years to film the craters left by atomic bomb
testing at the Nevada Test Site.

	Finally, flanked by special forces, he filmed aerial footage of
pockmarked earth, with its mammoth recessions resulting from
atom bombs.

	The media has also been critical of the film, DeMenezes said.
''Variety trashed the film.'' But, he said, the response from
American Indians has been very good.

	Michelle Thomas, Navajo from Indian Wells and Miss University
of Arizona, lauded the film for its honesty and strength.

	''It is a powerful film,'' Thomas said, as she thanked the
filmmaker for revealing the often-censored truth about American
Indians and the nuclear industry.

	At a private screening in Los Angeles, Mojave tribal members
praised the film. Western Shoshone spiritual leader Corbin
Harney also praised the film at the Pan-African Film Festival in
Los Angeles.

	The film is dedicated to Dorothy Purley, of Laguna Pueblo,
N.M., and activist Stormy William. Both died while the film was
being made. The film reveals the passionate struggle for the
land, air and water.

	While the struggle is for all living things, the film points
out that it is especially for the children and those yet to come.

	DeMenezes said ''Trespassing'' won acclaim from one important
reviewer.

	The grandson of activist Steve Lopez, Mojave, said, ''Thank you
for making a movie about my papa.'' 									   													
								 		 								 						 	 		 						 
© 1998 - 2006 Indian Country Today. All Rights Reserved 
*****************************************************************
 47 Waste News: Lawmakers urge EPA chief to establish perchlorate standard

Waste Management/Recycling/Landfill Headlines

[Wastenews.com 

 Two Long Island congressmen have written a letter urging
Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Stephen Johnson to
immediately establish a safe drinking water standard for
perchlorate.

 Reps. Tim Bishop, D-N.Y., and Steve Israel, D-N.Y., told
Johnson they were concerned because of an increasing rate of
contamination in the Long Island area and the absence of any
federal or state regulation, standard or guideline to mitigate
perchlorate´s harmful effects.

 "The agency has not yet promulgated a federal regulation
establishing a contamination standard or otherwise identified
the extent to which this harmful substance represents a health
risk, particularly as it concerns the most vulnerable
populations such as pregnant women and children," the
congressmen wrote Johnson. "Therefore, we believe that it is
imperative for your agency to establish maximum contamination
standards as soon as possible and to subsequently enforce
compliance with the new rules."

 Perchlorate is a chemical most commonly used in rocket fuel,
fireworks, explosives, and automobile air bags. Exposure in
sufficient quantities can interfere with thyroid function and
has been linked to developmental problems in children.

 The EPA has established a reference dose for perchlorate, an
estimate of a safe daily exposure level for the general public.
However, perchlorate can be found in other sources, including
foods and milk, and the EPA has not established a safe level for
drinking water. In addition, some environmentalists and health
care advocates have questioned whether the reference dose
sufficiently protects children and other high-risk individuals.

 Several types of treatment systems are available and under
development for removal of perchlorate from water supplies,
according to the EPA.

  Entire contents copyright 2006 by Crain Communications Inc.All 
rights reserved.   
*****************************************************************
 48 News &Star: Big new contract for troubled Mox
 						
Published on 10/05/2006

By Andrea Thompson
 
SELLAFIELDâ€™S controversial Mox plant has won a new contract to 
supply fuel to Germany.
 
British Nuclear Group, which operates the Â£470 million facility, 
announced yesterday that it has signed a contract with the German 
utility EnBW Kernkraft GmbH (EnKK) to supply Mox fuel and 
transport it to EnKKâ€™s Neckarwestheim 2 reactor site.
 
Jeremy Rycroft, BNGâ€™s director of Spent Fuel Services said: 
â€œThis new contract is very important to British Nuclear Group 
and confirms that our customers want Mox fuel from Sellafield Mox 
Plant (SMP). I am delighted that we have signed this new fuel 
business with EnKK and look forward to delivering a high quality 
Mox product in line with their requirements.â€ 

The new contract is a boost for the tax-payer-supported plant, 
which last year faced doubts over its future when it was feared 
it could close without completing a contract.
 
The first Mox fuel made at SMP was delivered to BNGâ€™s Swiss 
customer, NOK in June 2005 and the four fuel assemblies are now 
performing satisfactorily at NOKâ€™s Beznau reactor. 

A further four fuel assemblies were delivered there last month 
and eight more are being manufactured to complete the Swiss 
order.
 
BNG says the Mox market remains robust in Japan, Germany and
Switzerland and Sweden, where it has customer commitments to
supply Mox fuel from SMP.
 
The most recent Mox fuel supply contracts signed include OKG in
Sweden in 2001 and EON, Germany in 2002. 

BNG says it is in active discussions with several customers on
potential further Mox contracts.
 
A key element of the new contract with Germany is EnKKâ€™s
commitment to convert all of the separated plutonium arising
from its reprocessing contract at Sellafield, into the fuel,
which is made from the mixed oxides of plutonium and uranium.
 
BNG says the most effective means of returning plutonium from
the reprocessing of its overseas customersâ€™ spent fuel is in
the form of Mox fuel, which allows it to be recycled and used in
nuclear reactors.
 
SMP was given the license to start operating on December 20,
2001, despite fierce opposition from anti-nuclear protestors and
legal challenges. 

*****************************************************************
 49 KnoxNews: TVA deal means USEC layoffs

Power provider's largest industrial user will be charged 50 
percent more 

By REBECCA FERRAR, ferrarr@knews.com 

May 10, 2006 

TVA's largest industrial user of electricity will be charged 50 
percent more for power than in previous contracts under a 
"take-or-pay" one-year agreement that has led to some 250 
layoffs. The contract with USEC Inc. is effective June 1. 
			 			
USEC, based in Bethesda, Md., operates a Paducah, Ky.,
plant that is the only supplier to TVA of uranium enrichment
services. 

The company has laid off some employees at its facilities in
Paducah, Piketon, Ohio, and Bethesda, in part because of the
higher energy costs. 

"It was not our choice," said Elizabeth Stuckle, USEC
spokeswoman. "We negotiated with TVA for a lower price and this
is where we ended up. Our previous contracts have been multiyear
contracts, but given the price, we negotiated for a one-year
contract." 

Both USEC and TVA declined to release the financial terms of the
contract, saying that would be revealing proprietary
information. 

Stuckle said USEC would begin negotiating again "soon" for a
contract to continue the TVA relationship once the current
contract expires. 

"We have done a number of things to try to offset costs,"
Stuckle said. "We're getting greater efficiency in our
operation. We're downsizing employees in anticipation of this.

We will look at additional revenue streams as we try to work off
(these costs). We have actually laid people off." 

The Paducah plant now has 1,200 employees after 200 workers were
laid off. The remaining 50 workers were laid off from the other
two facilities. 

At Piketon, USEC is building the American Centrifuge Uranium
Enrichment Plant under an agreement with the U.S. Department of
Energy. USEC has a contract with Boeing-Oak Ridge under which
Boeing will make precision centrifuge components for the Piketon
facility. 

USEC is the world's leading supplier of uranium fuel for
commercial nuclear power plants. At one time, its Paducah plant
was a DOE facility. 

Ken Breeden, TVA vice president of customer service and
marketing, said TVA previously had a multi-year contract with
USEC which did not allow for market changes. He declined to
detail the duration of that contract. 

"Even though 50 percent is a big percent, they're able to work
with us on when the (electricity) load is on," Breeden said.
"They still wind up with a very attractive cost of power. The
fact is they entered this contract with us and looked at the
market and determined this was the best they could do." 

Breeden said the Paducah plant has had other power suppliers in
the past. But Stuckle said the plant is not able to buy power
from any supplier outside of TVA's region. 

She said the plant did use an additional energy supplier, along
with TVA, when it was able to secure electricity from Electric
Energy Inc. of Joppa, Ill., through a DOE contract. But the DOE
contract ended Dec. 31. 

In Kentucky, the plant is not in the service region of Kentucky
Utilities. In addition, the plant operates on a 24-hour basis
and "uses more power on an annual basis than the state of
Maine," Stuckle said. 

That means TVA is the only supplier with the generation and
transmission capabilities to supply the Paducah plant. That
gives TVA leverage in negotiating any contract. 

"After months of tough negotiations, we signed a one-year
pricing agreement with our primary power supplier that will
raise our base electricity by about 50 percent " John K. Welch,
president and CEO of USEC, said in the company's first-quarter
earnings statement. "These higher prices go into effect June 1
and will have a substantial impact on our production costs later
this year and into 2007." 

Under the "take-or-pay" contract, USEC is required to pay for
the electricity whether the Paducah plant uses the power or not.

If the two parties agree, TVA may pay back the power. 

Also under the contract, USEC will purchase 600 megawatts of
power from TVA during the three summer months, when electricity
is most in demand and is most expensive. The company will buy
1,600 megawatts of electricity during the non-summer months when
power is cheaper. 

And under the agreement, TVA can adjust the cost of electricity
based on increases and decreases in the cost of fuel, the cost
of purchased power and "related costs." 

The company negotiated for only a one-year contract this time,
rather than multiyear contracts as in the past, because of the
price increase. 

"As a result of these substantially higher power prices, USEC
evaluated the negative economic implications of this agreement
and determined there is no impairment to the carrying value of
our long-term assets related to the Paducah plant," according to
a statement in USEC's earnings report. "We will continue to
monitor and evaluate the situation." 

Business writer Rebecca Ferrar may be reached at 865-342-6357.
 					
© 2006 - Knoxville News Sentinel
*****************************************************************
 50 Contra Costa Times: Livermore lab seeks manager

Wednesday, May 10, 2006 

 
LIVERMORE: DOE solicits proposals for contract starting in 2007;
UC has led facility since its inception in 1952

 By Betsy Mason CONTRA COSTA TIMES 

The contract to run Lawrence Livermore Laboratory officially
went up for bid Tuesday when the Department of Energy issued its
draft request for management proposals. 

The contract is currently held by the University of California,
which has run the lab without competition since its inception in
1952. The contract was extended for two years and will expire
Sept. 30, 2007. 

UC announced in March that it will partner with Bechtel National
Inc. for a joint bid for the lab if UC regents vote to enter the
competition. In December the pair won a new seven-year contract
for management of Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico,
beating out a bid from Lockheed Martin and the University of
Texas. 

"Should the board decide to compete, I believe we will be in
excellent position to submit a strong and winning proposal,"
Robert Foley, UC vice president for laboratory management, said
in a statement Tuesday. 

The proposed new contract will be for an initial term of seven
years with the potential to extend it 13 additional years for
superior performance. Financial details have not yet been
released. 

The contract also contains a requirement to keep the current
work force, except for the director and other top managers, and
to provide comparable pay and benefits. A similar stipulation
for the Los Alamos lab contract has come under fire from
employees there who feel their retirement benefits will suffer
under the new benefits plan. 

A labor union that represents employees at both labs filed a
lawsuit in April aimed at blocking Los Alamos' new managers from
forcing workers to switch into the new benefits plan or risk
ending up with lower benefits. Their deadline is Monday. 

The new contract also aims to push the lab toward using
industrial standards and best practices, and to increase
contractor accountability and efficiency. 

"We are very pleased that the Department of Energy recognizes
the value and expertise of the LLNL employees and the importance
of retaining these world-class scientists and other laboratory
workers," Foley said. 

The draft contract will be open for comments by potential
bidders until June 5, and the official request for bids will be
released after comments are considered. At that point, bidders
will have 60 days to submit proposals. Prospective bidders will
be allowed to take a bus tour of the lab for 45 minutes on May
31. 

The DOE plans to choose a new manager in early 2007. That
manager will take over the lab Oct. 1, 2007. 

The DOE decided to put the contracts for the two weapons labs as
well as Lawrence Berkeley lab up for bid for the first time in
2003, following a string of security and accounting blunders at
the UC-run labs. UC won a new five-year contract for Berkeley
lab without any partners in April 2005. 

Betsy Mason covers science and the national laboratories. Reach
her at 925-847-2158 or bmason@cctimes.com. 

*****************************************************************
 51 Tri-City Herald: Handful attend Hanford meeting 

Voice of the Mid-Columbia Kennewick, Pasco and Richland, 
Washington
                 
Published Wednesday, May 10th, 2006
 
By Chris Mulick, Herald staff writer 

SEATTLE -- There were lots of good 101-level questions tossed
out by the audience at a public hearing Tuesday night designed
to capture sentiment on the Hanford cleanup budget. 

Just how big are those underground tanks? How long were they
designed to last? And where the heck is everybody? 

That proved to be the most compelling question of all. Just 16
people plus one reporter showed up. And that tally includes some
of the usual suspect-types whose opinions are well known. 

"I should be saying this to a congressional committee," Jim
Trombold from Physicians for Social Responsibility said after
complaining about federal spending priorities. "Somehow we've
got to get the public will for our environmental priorities up
higher."
 
The U.S. Department of Energy was the most targeted no-show of
all. 

"They're asking for you to support their budget and their
cleanup priorities and yet they're not willing to discuss them
with you," said Gerald Pollet, director of Hanford environmental
watchdog Heart of America Northwest. 

The state holds such hearings each year to give the public a
chance to shape its spending priorities for Hanford that it will
press upon DOE and Congress. But it was the state Department of
Ecology that found itself on the defensive. 

After outlining a series of concerns about the federal
government underfunding cleanup, some audience members
questioned whether the state has been an effective advocate for
Washington citizens. 

Some questioned whether it can effectively take on the federal
government when the agency relies upon it for funding. 

On the other hand, Bob Cooper, a lobbyist for Heart of America,
said the agency doesn't demand enough money from the federal
government to adequately do its job. And he said the state
should be suing the DOE over its plans to set back construction
timelines for Hanford's plant to turn its most hazardous tanks
wastes into glass. 

"You should haul their butts into court," Cooper said. 

Some were concerned about the state allowing the federal
government to begin construction on a plant that wasn't fully
designed. 

"I understand the state wants to stay the course," said Mercer
Island's Callie Ridolfi. "Maybe we're staying a course that is a
course to failure." 

And others said the agency didn't do enough to publicize the
meeting to engage the public on all these matters. Low
attendance has been a common problem. 

"We're amazed that people in Richland that live there don't go
to meetings," said Jane Hedges, who manages the state's Nuclear
Waste Program. 

Trombold said Ecology should try reaching out to the public by
using various forms of media. Meetings no longer are an
effective outlet, he said. 

"Having people come out to meetings is a really old-fashioned,
stagnant thing," he said.
 
© 2006 Tri-City Herald, Associated Press &Other Wire Services
*****************************************************************
 52 DOE: Secretary of Energy Advisory Board
 
                         FR Doc E6-7132 
[Federal Register: May 10, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 90)] [Notices] 
[Page 27238-27239] From the Federal Register Online via GPO 
Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr10my06-46]                         
 
AGENCY: Department of Energy.
 
ACTION: Notice of open teleconference meeting.
 
SUMMARY: This notice announces an open teleconference meeting of 
the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board. The Federal Advisory 
Committee Act (Pub. L. 92-463, 86 Stat. 770), requires that 
agencies publish these notices in the Federal Register to allow 
for public participation.
 
 
DATES: Friday, May 19, 2006, 1:30 p.m.-2:30 p.m., eastern 
daylight standard time.
 
 
ADDRESSES: Participants may call the Office of the Secretary of 
Energy Advisory Board at (202) 586-7092 to reserve a 
teleconference line and receive a call-in number, or to 
pre-register for public comment.
 
Public participation is welcome. The number of teleconference 
lines is limited and will be available on a first come basis.
 
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Michael Richard, Executive 
Director, Secretary of Energy Advisory Board (AB-1), U.S. 
Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, 
DC 20585, (202) 586- 8877 or (202) 586-6279 (fax).
 
Note: Copies of the draft final report of the Science and 
Mathematics Education Task Force may be obtained from the 
following Internet address http://www.seab.energy.gov/news.htm or 
by contacting the Office of the Secretary of Energy Advisory 
Board at (202) 586-7092.
 
 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Purpose of the board: The purpose of 
the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board is to provide the 
Secretary of Energy with essential independent advice and 
recommendations on issues of national importance. The Board and 
its subcommittees provide timely, balanced, and authoritative 
advice to the Secretary of Energy on the Department's management 
reforms, research, development, and technology activities, energy 
and national security responsibilities, environmental cleanup 
activities, and economic issues relating to energy. During the 
open
 
[[Page 27239]] teleconference meeting the Board will discuss the 
draft findings and recommendations of the Science and Mathematics 
Education (SME) Task Force. The Task Force is a subcommittee of 
the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board. It was formed to provide 
the Board and the Secretary of Energy with advice on how the DOE 
could most effectively utilize its scientific and technical 
resources, including its national laboratories, to inspire, 
educate, and encourage a new generation of career scientists and 
engineers to meet the challenges of the future and to enhance the 
scientific literacy of the nation. The Task Force was also asked 
to recommend short-term and long-term initiatives that the 
Department and its national laboratories should pursue to 
leverage their resources to address the need for skilled 
scientists, engineers and technicians, and to achieve the 
scientific and technical advances essential to our future and the 
security of the nation. The Task Force's recommendations were 
requested to complement the major efforts of the National Science 
Foundation, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, 
Department of Education, and other federal agencies.
 
On May 19th, the Board will conduct a teleconference to discuss 
the findings and recommendations contained in the draft final 
report of the Science and Mathematics Education Task Force.
 
Tentative Agenda Friday, May 19, 2006 1:30 p.m.-1:40 p.m. Welcome 
& Opening Remarks--Mr. M. Peter McPherson, Chairman of the 
Secretary of Energy Advisory Board 1:40 p.m.-1:55 p.m. Overview 
of the Science and Mathematics Education Task Force's draft 
Findings and Recommendations--Dr. Louis Proenza, Task Force 
Chairman 1:55 p.m.-2:15 p.m. Public Comment Period 2:15 p.m.-2:30 
p.m. Board Review & Comment and Action--Mr. M. Peter McPherson, 
Chairman of the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board 2:30 p.m. 
Adjourn This agenda is tentative and subject to change.
 
Public Participation: In keeping with procedures, members of the 
public are welcome to observe the business of the Secretary of 
Energy Advisory Board and submit advance written comments or 
comment during the scheduled public comment period. The Chairman 
of the Board is empowered to conduct the meeting in a fashion 
that will, in the Chairman's judgment, facilitate the orderly 
conduct of business.
 
During its open teleconference meeting, the Board welcomes public 
comment. Members of the public will be heard in the order in 
which they have registered for public comment at the beginning of 
the meeting.
 
The Board will make every effort to hear the views of all 
interested parties. You may also submit written comments in 
advance of the meeting to Michael Richard, Executive Director, 
Secretary of Energy Advisory Board, AB-1, U.S. Department of 
Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20585. The 
Board should receive advance written comments no later than 1 
p.m., May 16, 2006. This notice is being published less than 15 
days before the date of the meeting due to the late resolution of 
scheduling issues.
 
Minutes: A copy of the minutes and a transcript of the open 
teleconference meeting will be made available for public review 
and copying approximately 30 days following the meeting at the 
Freedom of Information Public Reading Room, 1E-190 Forrestal 
Building, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC, between 
9 a.m.. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday except Federal 
holidays. Further information on the Secretary of Energy Advisory 
Board and its subcommittees may be found at the Board's Web site, 
located at http://www.seab.energy.gov/. Issued at Washington, DC, 
on May 4, 2006.
 
Carol Matthews, Acting Advisory Committee Management Officer.
 
[FR Doc. E6-7132 Filed 5-9-06; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6450-01-P

 
*****************************************************************
 53 NewsBlaze: Remarks Prepared for Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman

Thank you. It's a pleasure for me to be here with you this 
morning to discuss a technology will make an enormous 
contribution to meeting our growing energy needs in an 
environmentally responsible way.

Now, I know you are going to spend several days here discussing
the latest developments in carbon sequestration, and what our
Administration and our Department are doing to accelerate this
technology. And I know that you will be hearing from Jeff
Jarrett, our Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy, Dr. Orbach
from our Office of Science, and Steve Eule, who runs our Climate
Change Technology Program, among others. 

All of them can speak to the technical details of sequestration
better than I can. So I thought I would take this opportunity to
frame these discussions in the larger context of what President
Bush has asked our Department to do to ensure clean and reliable
supplies of energy for the future and how coal, and specifically
carbon sequestration, fit within that larger picture.

The President laid out his challenge to us in his most recent
State of the Union Address, where he announced the American
Competitiveness Initiative and the Advanced Energy Initiative.
These new programs are designed to help the United States
maintain its economic and scientific leadership in the world and
support the development of transformational technologies that
could change the way the world produces and uses energy. 



The American Competitiveness Initiative is a commitment to basic
physical science research and math and science education that
will help guarantee that America has the human capital necessary
to remain the world's science leader for many years to come. 



The President's budget for the next fiscal year calls for a 14
percent increase in funding for the Department of Energy's
Office of Science, which is, we hope, the first step in a
doubling of the Office of Science budget by 2016. 



The initiative also calls for new programs in science and math
education and for making the federal research and development
tax credit permanent. 



To complement this effort, President Bush also announced the new
Advanced Energy Initiative, to increase spending on clean-energy
sources that will transform our transportation sector, indeed
the whole economy, and reduce our dependence on imported fossil
fuels. 



Part of this initiative includes the Global Nuclear Energy
Partnership. This is a groundbreaking new international effort
to help meet the world's rapidly growing electricity needs with
safe, emissions-free nuclear power, while enhancing our ability
to keep nuclear technology and material out of the hands of
those who seek to use it for non peaceful purposes. 



In addition to safe nuclear power, the Advanced Energy
Initiative also seeks to strengthen our energy diversity with
new investments in clean energy sources such as developing
better batteries for hybrid electric cars, and enhancing wind
power.
 


In addition, we are aggressively pursuing the technology to
develop commercially viable biofuels from a variety of plant
sources, including agricultural waste products. We are investing
$148 million in our Solar American program. And we are
committing $289 million to continue the President's Hydrogen
Fuel Initiative. 



As you can see, we are pursuing a multi-faceted approach, which
seeks to encourage a whole range of promising energy sources to
help us maintain a diverse energy portfolio and promote energy
security. 



One of the most important of these energy sources, which I have
not yet mentioned, also happens to be our most affordable and
our most abundant. Of course, I am speaking about coal.
 


In fact, the document explaining the Advanced Energy Initiative
notes that "coal is the workhorse of the Nation's electric power
industry." And in order to make sure that coal continues to play
that critical role, we are working to develop the technologies
that, day by day, month by month, are helping to make coal a
cleaner, more environmentally friendly energy source. That is
why the President's 2007 budget calls for a substantial
investment of $281 million in clean coal programs.
 


Now, the coal industry has made enormous strides over the last
few decades in reducing sulfur and nitrogen emissions.
Coal-fired power plants being built today are over 90% cleaner
in emissions of particulate matter compared to their
counterparts in 1970, when the Clean Air Act was passed. They
also must meet stringent limits for mercury emissions, a
pollutant for which there was no national limitation for power
plants until last spring. That is great; but there is more to be
done to make coal plants even cleaner. 



In addition, we face the challenge of greenhouse gas emissions
into the atmosphere. And the most promising technology for doing
that is precisely the subject of this very impressive conference.
 


We know, through our participation in successful projects like
the Weyburn site, and others, that geologic storage of carbon is
technologically possible. What we need to do now is make
sequestration commercially viable.
 


As I said earlier, I want to leave the technical issues and the
details to the experts in our Department who will be speaking
later. So let me just mention a few points and share with you
one exciting development.
 


First, I want to congratulate and thank all of those involved in
the Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships Initiative. This
is the infrastructure of organizations and industry that has the
practical understanding to develop the carbon sequestration
technologies we will need to build throughout North America. I
know that the members of the Partnerships will begin validating
the most promising storage opportunities in their regions as
they conduct 35 field tests in geologic and terrestrial sinks.
 


That is the domestic side. On the international side, I want to
reiterate our Administration's commitment to working with our
friends abroad through the Carbon Sequestration Leadership
Forum. The addition of Saudi Arabia to the Forum now brings the
membership to 21 nations plus the EU, and I look forward to more
nations joining this effort.
 


In addition to its own important work, I hope that the CSLF can
become a pathway to joining our historic FutureGen project. In
March, India became the first foreign government to join the
FutureGen governmental steering committee. They also agreed to
contribute $10 million to the project. 



We are very happy to welcome India in to our effort to build the
first zero-emissions coal power plant, and we also hope that
other nations participating in the Carbon Sequestration
Leadership Forum will follow India's lead, and accept our
invitation to join FutureGen.
 


That brings me to the announcement I wish to make. As you know,
on Friday the FutureGen Alliance formally received the proposals
from those states interested in hosting the project. I want to
emphasize that it is the Alliance-not DOE-that has received, and
will evaluate, the proposals. But Mike Mudd, the Alliance CEO,
was kind enough to let me reveal the list in my remarks this
morning. 



I am pleased to say that twelve sites in seven states are in the
running to host the world's first near-zero emission coal-fueled
power plant that will generate electricity and hydrogen while
capturing and permanently storing carbon dioxide deep
underground.
 


In response to a public Request for Proposals issued by the
FutureGen Alliance,
 
formal proposals were received to locate the project in or near
Effingham, IL; Marshall, IL; Mattoon, IL; Tuscola, IL; Henderson
County, KY; Bowman County, ND; Meigs County, OH; Tuscarawas
County, OH; Odessa,TX; Jewett, TX; Point Pleasant, WV; and
Gillette, WY.
 


Let me be the first to thank everyone who submitted a proposal,
and offer my best wishes to all those who are participating. Let
me also offer my thanks and encouragement to the FutureGen
Alliance, which will now undertake the challenging work of
evaluating these proposals and, subject to all required
environmental reviews, make the final selection of where they
will build it.
 


We are all excited about taking this major step toward our final
goal. When completed, FutureGen will bring us much closer to a
future in which coal-fueled power will not only will produce
hydrogen and electricity with near-zero emissions, but will
operate with some of the most advanced, cutting-edge technology.
 


With that, let me thank all of you for your invitation to be
here with you this morning. I hope you have a productive and
successful conference.
 


Thank you.
 
Source: U.S. Department of Energy
 
judythpiazza@gmail.com
 Copyright © 2006, NewsBlaze, Daily News
   
  
               Copyright © 2004-2006 NewsBlaze LLC
*****************************************************************
 54 Knox News: ORNL chief: 'Producing science' is on agenda

By FRANK MUNGER, munger@knews.com 

May 10, 2006

OAK RIDGE - Oak Ridge National Laboratory is ready to turn 
construction into production. 

That's the message from ORNL Director Jeff Wadsworth. 

For the past several years, the laboratory has
undergone a physical transformation, spending hundreds of
millions of dollars to refurbish aging facilities and build
shiny new ones for research activities. 

The lab is in good shape and looking to great things in the
future, Wadsworth said Tuesday afternoon - hours before he was
scheduled to deliver his annual "State of the Laboratory"
address at the American Museum of Science and Energy. 

"We don't have any crushing issues," the ORNL chief said. "We
have some challenges, and one of those is converting the
facilities into producing science." 

The $1.4 billion Spallation Neutron Source produced its first
neutrons on April 28, signaling the end of a seven-year
construction effort to build one of the world's top places to do
experiments with materials. 

Wadsworth said the SNS, combined with the upgrades at the High
Flux Isotope Reactor, puts the Oak Ridge site in a unique
position. 

"We're on track to be the place where you want to be if you want
to use neutrons," he said in a telephone interview. 

The lab's collaboration with Cray on next-generation
supercomputers should produce new milestones, reaching a top
speed of 50 teraflops - 50 trillion calculations per second - in
2007, Wadsworth said. 

Plans are under way already to develop computers capable of one
or two petaflops in the new few years, he said, and those
advances will require infrastructure improvements to meet the
power demands and other needs, such as massive quantities of
chilled water to cool the machines. 

The ORNL chief cited the importance of the lab's relationship
with the University of Tennessee and noted the progress on the
Joint Institute for Biological Sciences on the west campus. 

Funding issues over the need to complete the biology center
caused a temporary setback on the next institute, the Joint
Institute for Neutron Sciences, to be built near the SNS,
according to Billy Stair, the lab's communications director. But
the JINS should be ready by the time the Spallation Neutron
Source reaches its full research capabilities in a couple of
years, Stair said. 

Senior writer Frank Munger may be reached at 865-342-6329.
 					
© 2006 - Knoxville News Sentinel
*****************************************************************
 55 KnoxNews: Bell's call for fairness for Oak Ridge workers has a familiar ring 

By FRANK MUNGER, munger@knews.com May 10, 2006 

Glenn Bell has never been reluctant to speak his mind, and he's 
not about to change now. The longtime worker at the Y-12 nuclear 
weapons plant is pushing Congress to do more to help those made 
sick by exposures during the Cold War operations at the 
government's nuclear facilities in Oak Ridge and elsewhere. 
			 			
In a letter to U.S. Rep. Mark Udall, D-Colo., Bell
praised the congressman for his work on behalf of sick nuclear
workers in his state (at the former Rocky Flats warhead parts
plant). He also gave Udall more ammo on the inherent unfairness
of the program. 

Udall was among those testifying last week at a House
subcommittee hearing. He said he was concerned that the Bush
administration plans to reduce the compensation payments next
year by hundreds of millions of dollars. 

Bell, who was diagnosed with chronic beryllium disease in 1993,
was among the first to collect from the sick worker program, but
he said others are still waiting because of inadequate records
of their exposure to radiation and other hazards. 

Of the three major plants in Oak Ridge, only one - K-25 - has
been given "special cohort" status, allowing workers with cancer
to collect from the compensation fund without jumping through
too many hoops. Early workers at Y-12 also have been given that
status more recently. 

Others, however, have to go through what Bell calls the
"bureaucratic purgatory" of dose reconstruction to prove their
illness was linked to their workplace. 

"We absolutely do not know what materials we worked with, so
dose reconstruction cannot be an accurate assessment, even when
slanted in favor of the claimant," he wrote to Udall. "We are
still finding documentation of high-level exposures, which we
had years ago." 

Bell also cited continuing problems with beryllium exposures,
despite the known risks - particularly to those workers already
sensitized to the toxic metal or those, such as himself, with
the incurable respiratory illness. 

According to Bell, more than 300 Oak Ridge workers have filed
claims for chronic beryllium disease and a similar number for
beryllium sensitivity. He got his numbers from the U.S.
Department of Labor, which is handling the compensation program. 

A recent report from the U.S. Department of Energy's Inspector
General said it was virtually impossible to determine the total
number of beryllium cases because of disjointed recordkeeping at
the DOE registry. 

"We have had at least a dozen new cases of beryllium sensitivity
reported since December, and not all are from long-time
employees," Bell said in an e-mail message this week. "One was a
janitor who had worked at Y-12 less than two years, another a
lady who has been on the payroll four and half years." 

He added: "Just today we confirmed a report of two buildings
with beryllium contamination above the limits. One building has
two workers with CBD. There have been several incidents in my
own area where detectable beryllium has been brought in on
contaminated equipment." 

Similar problems are occurring at DOE facilities in Kentucky,
Texas, Ohio and South Carolina, he said. 

"I think we have a real problem," Bell said. 

By numerous reports, the atmosphere at Y-12 has improved
significantly in the post-Ruddy era. Former general manager
Dennis Ruddy was relieved of his duties last fall. This seems to
have had a particularly positive effect in the management ranks.
Whether that translates into greater productivity at Y-12 and
gains for the government missions remain to be seen. 

Plant officials announced internally this week that the switch
to a four-day work week will be permanent for those already
shifted to the schedule, which includes 10-hour days and Fridays
off. 

That program won't be a success, however, until the plant adopts
that schedule as a whole, and union workers are still on a
five-day workweek. 

Kenny Cook, president of the Atomic Trades and Labor Council,
confirmed this week that talks on the 4/10 issue are continuing. 


Senior writer Frank Munger covers the Department of Energy for
the News Sentinel. He may be reached at 865-342-6329 or at .
This column is also available in the opinion section of

knoxnews.com.
 					

© 2006 - Knoxville News Sentinel
    
*****************************************************************

NOTE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107 this 
material is distributed without profit or payment to those who 
have expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for 
non-profit research and educational purposes only. For more 
information go to: 
<http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml> 
    
*****************************************************************