Nations unite to halt illegal weapons trade

Nations unite to halt illegal weapons trade    The United States and more than a dozen allies are planning several exercises next year designed to practice joint interdiction of illegal air, maritime and ground shipments suspected of carrying weapons of mass destruction (WMD) or missiles, according to the U.S. State Department.
   Last summer, U.S. officials quickly organized 11 nations to combat proliferation of weapons of mass destruction by increasing trade inspection, sharing intelligence and intercepting and searching vessels, aircraft and commercial vehicles suspected of carrying WMD-related cargoes. Participants in Proliferation Security Initiative recently met in Washington to review the operational lessons from the first two exercises held this year and the legal basis for undertaking such action and to plan future exercises. The number of member-nations has grown to 16, including France, Japan, Britain, Poland, Italy, Germany, Portugal, Spain, Singapore and Australia.
   The United States is working to gain agreements with nations where many ships are registered on a clear protocol for boarding, inspecting and seizing weapons shipments, the Associated Press reported.
   In December 2002, the Bush administration was embarrassed when it asked Spanish authorities to stop a ship carrying missiles from North Korea and subsequently learned that had the missiles had been legitimately ordered by Yemen.
   Two naval exercises have been conducted so far, and another one is scheduled Jan. 11-12, according to AP. Other exercises planned for 2004 include a simulated “table top” air interdiction exercise hosted by Italy Feb. 18-19; a customs seizure simulation in Germany in late March; a maritime exercise hosted by Italy in the Mediterranean April 13-22; and a simulated surface transportation interdiction in Poland in late April, AP said.