Dissident group produces evidence that Southeast Asian hermit state wants the Bomb
Burma? Myanmar? Benighted hell-hole ruled by military junta? Whatever you call it, it is trying to join Iran and North Korea in the club of nuclear rogue states. An opposition group called the Democratic Voice of Burma has produced an analysis showing that the country’s military has been acquiring components to make weapons-grade uranium. The evidence is compelling enough that a former UN nuclear inspector, Robert Kelley, says: “This technology is only for nuclear weapons and not for civilian use or nuclear power.” Kelley co-wrote the report using photos and documents smuggled out of the country by a Burmese major, who we assume won’t be returning to his homeland any time soon. If there’s good news, it’s that the military is having trouble understanding the technology—though the idea of amateurs trying to make an atomic bomb isn’t exactly reassuring, either.