Pakistan’s Nuclear-Bomb Maker Says North Korea Paid Bribes for Know-How

Pakistan was a source of nuclear secrets released to North Korea, Iran and Libya during the 1990s, but the Pakistani government long denied official knowledge of nuclear smuggling operations. A statement and documents released by Abdul Qadeer Khan, founder of Pakistan’s nuclear program, suggest that senior military officers were involved, reports R. Jeffrey Smith for the Washington Post. Pakistan contends that Khan tries to shift blame, but US and other analysts suggest that the tale of intrigue aligns with known key events. Pakistan refuses to let the US interview Khan, who lives in comfortable detention. “U.S. officials have worried for decades about the potential involvement of elements of Pakistan’s military in illicit nuclear proliferation, partly because terrorist groups in the region and governments of other countries are eager to acquire an atomic bomb or the capacity to build one,” Smith notes. Widespread release of nuclear technology have compounded global threats and raised the costs of global security. – YaleGlobal