§ Baroness Coxasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they are aware of the recent article in the New York Times (23 March) referring to reports of the transfer of Scud weapons by Iraq to Sudan to avoid detection by United Nations inspectors and current proposals for the building of a ballistic missile plant near Khartoum by North Korea, with financial support of 475 million dollars from Iraq; and, if so, what is their response to these reports. [HL1786]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Baroness Scotland of Asthal)Allegations that Iraq has hidden Scud missiles in Sudan have been circulating for at least two years. While it was able to operate in Iraq, the United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM) reported no evidence of any missile transfers by Iraq to any other country since the Gulf conflict and the imposition of sanctions in 1991. Likewise, we have no evidence to suggest that such transfers have occurred. Nevertheless, we remain concerned about substantial gaps in Iraq's disclosures to UNSCOM. For this reason, and because UN inspectors have been unable to operate in Iraq since December 1998, we cannot be sure that some transfers have not occurred.
We are concerned about the allegation that Iraq is financing the building of a ballistic missile plant by North Korea in Sudan and are monitoring the situation.