Two companies in Singapore with German connections sold many machine tools to the Burmese government, notably the Department of Technical and Vocational Education (DTVE). [....] The German government did not have derogatory information about DTVE when the tools were sold and allowed the sale.The German sellers became suspicious that the "vocational education" tools weren't being used in an educational context; the article says that DTVE is a front for weapons programs. I think this is a lot less relevant than the much more direct evidence that Sai Thein Win brought that Burma is tryig to develop isotope enrichment capability and short-range missile capability.
The companies believed the machines were to be used for educational and vocational training, but the German government, suspicious about the end use, sent a diplomat and an expert to examine the machines that were installed in two special factories in Burma. The expert was suspicious that the machines would be used for uses other than training; there were no students and no universities nearby, and there were no women students. The expert noted that none of the male students wore military uniforms. DVB has examined the photos and some of the "students" who wore civilian clothes during the expert visit wear military uniforms when the Europeans are not there.The end goal of the program is not to defend Burma from other countries but to protect the military elite from the underground democratic opposition.
Sai provided recognizable photos of the equipment installers and the Germans during their site visit. This is one of many indications that he was at the factories and that his story is very credible. It is also fortunate that the German government was diligent and visited these factories to verify the end use. The Burmese were probably not telling the whole truth, but the visits allow serious verification of the facts.
Like their model, North Korea, the junta hopes to remain safe from foreign interference by being too dangerous to invade. Nuclear weapons contribute to that immunity.posted by russilwvong at 9:13 AM on June 4, 2010
From all of the above we conclude that it is likely that Burma is trying to attempt many of the nuclear program steps reported by previous sources. Unrealistic attempts, such as the Molecular Laser Isotope Separation project, unprofessional engineering drawings and the crude appearance of items in photos, suggest that success may be beyond Burma’s reach.What is surprising to me is that there is no alarm expressed about the considerable evidence from Sai that Burma has a missile program for SCUD-type weapons. That is something within its reach and something that could do considerable harm to Karen or other settlements, particularly if the colonels learn from Saddam Hussein and use gas payloads. But I suppose no one cared about that story until they added the word "nuclear".
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posted by delmoi at 11:02 PM on June 3, 2010 [2 favorites]