By Dr. Ludwig De Braeckeleer
Monday, august 28, 2006
On Friday morning, law enforcement officials from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) raided the head office of the Mitutoyo Corporation (http://www.mitutoyo.co.jp/eng/index.html), in Kawazaki Takatsu Ward, west of Tokyo. The world renowned company manufactures precision instruments, such as three-dimensional measuring devices.
according to MPD statements, five executives have been arrested. Three of them have been named: the President of Mitutoyo Corp. Kazusaku Tezuka, 67, the Vice Chairman Norio Takatsuji, 71, and the Managing Director Hideyo Chikugo, 66.
a three-dimensional measuring device is a dual-use item. It can be used for a variety of civil purposes such as accurate measurement of engines and propellers parts. But it can also assist in the manufacture of nuclear weapons.
Exportation of dual-use equipment is strictly regulated by international law. In 2002, reacting to the North Korean nuclear Program, Japan passed a stronger legislation concerning the export of dual-use items. Currently, these activities are regulated by the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Control Law, which the five executives are accused of having violated.
In order to be used in a nuclear weapon, natural uranium must be highly enriched in its 235 isotope. Ultracentrifuges realize the needed enrichment by taking advantage of the slight difference of mass between the isotopes of uranium. The very high rotational speed of the rotor requires a perfectly cylindrical shape. Three-dimensional measuring devices are used to map the shape of the rotor with the needed accuracy.
On Oct. 4, 2003, a German cargo ship en route to Tripoli, Libya, from Dubai was intercepted in the port of Taranto, Italy. On board the "BBC China", the police found five containers filled with enough components to produce 1,000 centrifuges. The containers bore the logo of a Malaysian company: Scomi Precision Engineering (SCOPE).
See related story: Covert Nukes Program a MI6/CIa Sting Op?
Soon after the intercept, Libya admitted its covert nuclear activities, undertook to end its nuclear program, and decided to cooperate fully with the International atomic Energy agency (IaEa.).
From late 2003 to early 2004, the IaEa inspectors conducted their survey of the Libyan nuclear program. among other things, they found several three-dimensional measuring devices manufactured by Mitutoyo Corporation. The instruments were sold to SCOPE by the Mitutoyo subsidiary in Malaysia, and then shipped to Libya via Dubai.
The Mitutoyo Corp. is suspected of having shipped two three-dimensional measuring instruments to a Mitutoyo subsidiary in Malaysia without due authorization. Permission to export dual-use items should have been granted by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. The MPD investigators said that the items were shipped in October and November 2001.
"I believed we have complied with the law, but I am regretful to see what has happened," said Mitutoyo Chairman Toshihide Numata in a News conference.
However, the Mitutoyo Corp. had requested the permission to ship identical devices to Iran in 1993. The Ministry of International Trade and industry had rejected the application. In order to go around the regulations in force in 2001, the application form quoted undervalued numerical data. MPD investigators believe that the mistake was intentional.
according to MPD statements, Mitutoyo illegally "shipped high-precision measuring devices overseas on a systematic basis." The office and plants of Mitutoyo head office had already been searched on February 13th, 2006. at the time, the police suspected that three-dimensional measuring devices had been exported to China and Thailand.
Quoting an unidentified source, the Kyodo news agency has reported that the police also suspect that Mitutoyo has exported similar equipment to Iran through an Iranian trading company having offices in Tokyo. The Iranian trading house was equally searched on Friday. The Sankei newspaper alleges that the company also shipped this type of equipment to North Korea.
"Japanese companies are often uninterested in where their products end up, or what they are used for, and often try to dodge export regulations without realizing the consequences," said Nobumasa akiyama, a specialist at the Centre of the Promotion of Disarmament and Non-Proliferation.
The SCOPE Company has played a key role in the proliferation network of Dr. a. Q. Khan, the father of the Pakistani nuclear bomb. The order for the components came from a Sri Lankan citizen, B. S. a. Tahir, the network's chief moneyman.
SCOPE representatives have been cleared of all wrongdoing by the Malaysian police. The investigation concluded that they were unaware of the true purpose of the equipment and thought it would be used in Dubai oil and gas industries.
SCOPE is a subsidiary of the SCOMI Group BHD, a company controlled by Kamaluddin abdullah, the son of Malaysian Prime Minister abdullah ahmad Badawi.
Gulf Technical Industries, the Dubai based Company used to ship the parts from Malaysia to Libya, was owned by Mr. P. Griffin, a British citizen. according to German and British media, Mr. Griffin is believed to enjoy a pleasant retirement in the South of France. He is not being investigated for his past activities. It has been alleged that Mr. Griffin had good contacts with the British Intelligence Community. His son is rumoured to have taken over the family business.