International
'Osama has no weapons of mass destruction'
By B. Muralidhar Reddy
ISLAMABAD, DEC. 11. The United States-led coalition today maintained that the Al-Qaeda network run by Osama bin Laden has not been able to either acquire or produce nuclear, chemical and biological weapons of mass destruction.
The U.S. Coalition Information Centre spokesman, Ambassador Kenton Keith, told a news conference here that on the basis of the documents recovered during the military campaign in Afghanistan, it had no reason to believe that the Al-Qaeda had acquired or produced weapons of mass destruction.
The statement should end speculations about the possibility of use of weapons of mass destruction by either Osama or his supporters as a last-ditch attempt.
Such a possibility has been a subject of intense debate in Washington as well as the western media. The fears grew after Osama, in his interview to a Pakistani journalist, did not rule out the possibility of use of nuclear or chemical weapons against the U.S.
``If the U.S. intends to use nuclear or chemical weapons against us, we will retaliate accordingly. We do have nuclear deterrent but we will not use it first,'' Osama had said in his interview to Mr. Hamid Mir.
The coalition spokesman said the documents recovered in Afghanistan in recent days did suggest that the Al-Qaeda was making an effort to acquire weapons of mass destruction.
He also confirmed that the coalition was `co- operating' with the Pakistan Government on issues related to limiting the damage from proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
He was answering a question on the investigation being carried out by Pakistan on two of its former nuclear scientists for their alleged links to the Al-Qaeda.
At the Pakistan Foreign Office briefing, the Press Secretary to the Pakistan President, Maj. Gen. Rashid Quereshi, confirmed that the two former nuclear scientists were still under custody and investigations were in progress.
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