On Friday 2 May 2008, Mark Fitzpatrick (IISS Senior Fellow for Nonproliferation) will lead a discussion meeting on "Syria's Secret Reactor and the North Korea Connection" from 12 noon - 1 pm.
Synposis
On 6 September 2007, Israel bombed a facility near the town of al-Kibar on the Euphrates River in northeastern Syria. Israel clamped a complete news black-out on the operation and for seven and a half months the US refrained from any official comment. Syria, for its part, has been nearly as silent. On 24 April 2008, the Bush administration released information demonstrating that the bombed facility was a small research reactor, apparently intended for plutonium production, built with the assistance of North Korea. Our discussion meeting will review that evidence and what it means for the global non-proliferation regime, the future of the Six Party Talks in North East Asia, and peace prospects between Israel and Syria.
Mark Fitzpatrick is the editor of the IISS strategic dossiers Nuclear Black Markets: Pakistan, A.Q. Khan and the Rise of Proliferation Networks (May 2007) and Nuclear Programmes in the Middle East: In the shadow of Iran (to be published 20 May 2008). He previously served for 26 in the US State Department, where he spent the last ten years of his career focused on nonproliferation issues, including as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Non-Proliferation (acting). His previous postings included four years liaising with the IAEA in Vienna; head of the State Department South Asia Regional Affairs Office; and North Korea desk officer in Washington. He also served in Japan, South Korea and New Zealand. He is a frequent commentator on BBC, CNN and other global news outlets, and has published articles on the Iran and North Korea nuclear challenges in the Financial Times, International Herald Tribune, Survival, The Nonproliferation Review and elsewhere.
The meeting will be chaired by Dr Dana Allin (IISS Senior Fellow for Transatlantic Affairs and Editor of Survival) and take place on the Fourth Floor, Arundel House, 13-15 Arundel Street, Temple Place, London WC2R 3DX
If you would like to attend, please RSVP Kathleen James on james@iiss.org or tel. 020 7395 9109
