DATE=12/19/98
TYPE=ON THE LINE
NUMBER=1-00697
TITLE=THE LOCKERBIE BOMBING: TEN YEARS LATER
EDITOR=OFFICE OF POLICY - 619-0037
CONTENT=
THEME: UP, HOLD UNDER AND FADE
ANNCR: ON THE LINE -- A DISCUSSION OF UNITED STATES
POLICIES AND CONTEMPORARY ISSUES. THIS WEEK,
! "THE LOCKERBIE BOMBING: TEN YEARS LATER." HERE
! IS YOUR HOST, ROBERT REILLY/
HOST: HELLO AND WELCOME UO ON THE LINE. THIS MOOTH
MARKS THE!TENTH AONIVERSARY OF ONE OF THE!MOST
! SAVAGE ACTS OF INTERNATIONAL TERRORISM EVER
COMMITTED. ON DECEMBER 21ST, 1988, A BOMB
EXPLODED ABOARD PAN AMERICAN FLIGHT 103,
THIRTY-ONE THOUSAND FEET ABOVE THE VILLAGE OF
LOCKERBIE, SCOTLAND. TWO-HUNDRED SEVENTY MEN,
WOMEN AND CHILDREN FROM TWENTY-ONE NATIONS LOST
THEIR LIVES, INCLUDING NEARLY TWO HUNDRED
AMERICANS. THE LIBYAN TERRORISTS WHO ARE
SUSPECTED OF BLOWING UP PAN AMERICAN FLIGHT 103
REMAIN AT LARGE. "WE OWE IT TO ALL OF OUR
CITIZENS," SAID PRESIDENT CLINTON, "TO INCREASE
OUR EFFORTS TO DETER TERRORISM, TO MAKE SURE
THAT THOSE RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS KIND OF HIDEOUS
ACT ARE BROUGHT TO JUSTICE."
JOINING ME TODAY TO DISCUSS THE LOCKERBIE
BOMBING AND U.S. POLICY ARE THREE EXPERTS.
YONAH ALEXANDER IS DIRECTOR OF THE TERRORISM
STUDIES PROGRAM AT THE GEORGE WASHINGTON
UNIVERSITY AND FOUNDING EDITOR OF TERRORISM: AN
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL. DAVID SCHENKER IS
RESEARCH FELLOW AND SPECIALIST IN ARAB POLITICS
AT THE WASHINGTON INSTITUTE FOR NEAR EAST
POLICY. AND ANTHONY FAINBERG IS DIRECTOR OF
CIVIL AVIATION SECURITY POLICY AT THE FEDERAL
AVIATION ADMINISTRATION. WELCOME TO THE
PROGRAM.
MR. FAINBERG, LET ME START WITH YOU. I KNOW
THAT IN ANSWERING THIS QUESTION, YOU CAN'T
REVEAL ANY SENSITIVE SECURITY MATERIAL, BUT
BASICALLY, TEN YEARS AGO, WHAT WENT WRONG? HOW
WERE THESE TERRORISTS ABLE TO PENETRATE THE
SECURITY THAT EXISTED AT THAT TIME AND BLOW UP
THIS AIRLINE?
FAINBERG: I THINK IT'S GENERALLY KNOWN AND HAS BEEN IN
FACT DISCUSSED IN SOME COURT MATTERS THAT A BAG
WHICH HAD ARRIVED ON A FEEDER FLIGHT FROM MALTA
TO FRANKFURT WAS PLACED IN THE CARGO HOLD OF PAN
AM 103 WITHOUT AN ACCOMPANYING PASSENGER. THERE
HAD BEEN NO PASSENGER ASSOCIATED WITH THAT BAG,
PRESUMABLY HAVING BEEN PUT ABOARD THE PLANE IN
MALTA WITH FORWARDING INSTRUCTIONS OR TICKETS TO
FRANKFURT AND TO THE UNITED STATES BY SOMEONE
INTENT ON DOING THE PLANE HARM. THE AIR CARRIER
WAS IN FACT SUPPOSED TO ASSURE, UNDER SECURITY
PROGRAMS AND ARRANGEMENTS F-A-A [FEDERAL
AVIATION ADMINISTRATION] HAS WITH AMERICAN
CARRIERS, THAT SUCH DOES NOT HAPPEN, THAT THE
BAG SHOULD NOT GO ON THE PLANE WITHOUT HAVING AN
AIR PASSENGER ON BOARD. THIS WAS A FAILURE OF
THE SYSTEM AND A FAILURE TO FOLLOW F-A-A'S
SECURITY PROGRAMS IN FACT.
HOST: COULD IT HAPPEN AGAIN?
FAINBERG: I'D HESITATE TO SAY IT COULD ABSOLUTELY NOT
HAPPEN AGAIN, BUT SINCE THEN, MANY, MANY THINGS
HAVE CHANGED, INCLUDING THE LEVEL OF OUR
OVERSIGHT OF CARRIERS' SECURITY POLICIES AND, IN
FACT, SECURITY POLICIES HAVE CHANGED AND HAVE
BECOME A LOT MORE STRONGER AND STRINGENT, NOT
ONLY IN THE AREA OF UNACCOMPANIED BAGS, BUT IN
MANY, MANY OTHER AREAS AS WELL. AS YOU KNOW,
THERE ARE MANY WAYS OF PUTTING AN EXPLOSIVE
ABOARD AN AIRCRAFT. AN UNACCOMPANIED BAG IS ONE
WAY. ANOTHER WAY IS FOR PASSENGERS TO LEAVE
SOMETHING IN THE CABIN AND GET OFF ON AN
INTERMEDIATE FLIGHT. THERE ARE MANY OTHER WAYS
AS WELL, AND WE'VE TRIED TO PLUG THE HOLES AS
BEST WE CAN. THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF PROGRESS
MADE IN TERMS OF PROCEDURES AND TECHNOLOGIES IN
THE LAST TEN YEARS.
HOST: YONAH ALEXANDER, TURNING TO THE TERRORIST ASPECT
OF THIS ACT, TERRORIST ACTS HAVE A POLITICAL
PURPOSE. WHAT WAS THE PURPOSE OF BLOWING UP ALL
THESE MEN, WOMEN AND CHILDREN OVER SCOTLAND?
ALEXANDER: OBVIOUSLY, THE ISSUE HERE IS WHO PERPETRATED
THESE ACTS? SO YOU HAVE TO LOOK AT THE INTENT
AND MOTIVATION. NOW, I THINK IT'S ESTABLISHED
THAT THE TWO LIBYANS, INTELLIGENCE OPERATIVES,
WERE INVOLVED. THERE IS A GREAT DEAL OF
SPECULATION BECAUSE GADHAFI ACTUALLY
ORCHESTRATED THIS EVENT AND THERE IS
SPECULATION, BECAUSE [LIBYAN DICTATOR MOAMMAR]
GADHAFI WOULDN'T ADMIT THAT HE'S ACTUALLY
RESPONSIBLE, THE BUCK STOPS THERE. BUT IT COULD
BE REVENGE AGAINST THE UNITED STATES.
HOST: FOR WHAT?
ALEXANDER: FOR THE U.S. POLICIES AND ACTIONS RELATED TO THE
MIDDLE EAST. AS YOU KNOW, LIBYA CANNOT FACE THE
UNITED STATES EYEBALL TO EYEBALL ON THE BATTLE
FIELD. AND WHAT BETTER WAY DO YOU HAVE THAN TO
RESORT TO TERRORISM, WHICH IS ACTUALLY VERY
INEXPENSIVE TO ACTIVATE AND VERY DIFFICULT TO
COUNTER?
HOST: DAVID SCHENKER, WHAT IS YOUR APPRAISAL OF THAT?
SCHENKER: I THINK THAT'S ACCURATE. A LOT OF PEOPLE WOULD
SAY THAT THE BOMBING OF THE PAN AM LOCKERBIE
FLIGHT WAS IN RESPONSE TO THE '86 RESPONSE BY
THE UNITED STATES WHEN IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT
LIBYA HAD BOMBED THE LA BELLE DISCO, KILLING TWO
AMERICAN [SOLDIERS]. FOLLOWING THAT, THE UNITED
STATES INTERCEPTED A COMMUNIQUE AND BOMBED THE
HOME OF GADHAFI AND APPARENTLY KILLED HIS
DAUGHTER. AND ABOUT A YEAR AND A HALF LATER
LOCKERBIE EXPLODED.
HOST: YET SOME MADE THE STATEMENT THAT THE U.S.
RETALIATION FOR THE BOMBING OF THE LA BELLE
DISCO IN BERLIN ACTUALLY QUIETED GADHAFI DOWN
FOR A CONSIDERABLE PERIOD OF TIME. BUT YOU'RE
SAYING ACTUALLY NOT, HE RETALIATED THROUGH THIS
ACTION.
SCHENKER: IT MAY BE PERCEIVED AS BEING RETALIATION. I DO
BELIEVE THERE IS A LENGTHY PERIOD OF QUIET AND
THAT IT DID SERVE AS A DETERRENT. WE HAVEN'T
REALLY HEARD MUCH FROM GADHAFI SINCE, MINUS THE
[FRENCH] U-T-A [AIRLINE] BOMBING.
HOST: AS A MATTER OF FACT, THE UNITED STATES DIDN'T
JUMP TO ANY CONCLUSIONS AS TO WHO WAS
RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS BOMBING. IT TOOK A PERIOD
OF TIME TO ESTABLISH WHO THE CULPRITS WERE. MR.
FAINBERG, COULD YOU TELL US ABOUT THAT?
FAINBERG: YES. THE U.S. GOVERNMENT HAS AN IDEA WHO THE
CULPRITS ARE AND THAT'S WHY WE ARE PRESSING AN
INTERNATIONAL FORUM FOR A TRIAL OF THESE TWO
INDIVIDUALS. I, COMING FROM THE F-A-A, AM NOT
FROM THE STATE DEPARTMENT OR FROM THE JUSTICE
DEPARTMENT, SO I DON'T THINK I WANT TO COMMENT
ANY FURTHER ON THAT. BUT THERE WAS A CERTAIN
PERIOD OF TIME WHEN A LOT OF FORENSIC WORK WAS
DONE IN LOCKERBIE. THE FIRST FORENSIC WORK THAT
WAS DONE WAS TO UNDERSTAND IF IT WAS A BOMB THAT
CAUSED THE AIRCRAFT TO CRASH. IN FACT, IT WAS.
AND YOU FIND THAT OUT BY LOOKING FOR RESIDUE OF
EXPLOSIVES. AND YOU LOOK AT THE WAY METAL IS
BENT IN THE AREA AROUND WHERE THE BOMB WENT OFF,
AND FOR MATERIAL PROJECTED INTO THE METAL BY
HIGH VELOCITY OF THE SHOCK WAVE. ALL THAT WAS
THERE. AND THEN, I THINK SOME WEEKS LATER, IN
THE VERY METICULOUS SEARCHING THAT THE BRITISH
AUTHORITIES DID, A SMALL PIECE OF A PRINTED
CIRCUIT BOARD WAS DISCOVERED SOME DISTANCE AWAY,
ACTUALLY, FROM WHERE THE MAIN BODY OF THE PLANE
CRASHED. AND I BELIEVE -- IF I REMEMBER
CORRECTLY -- THAT THAT PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARD WAS
CORRELATED AND LOOKED VERY SIMILAR TO A TIMING
DEVICE ON ANOTHER BOMB THAT HAD BEEN DISCOVERED
IN EUROPE WHICH HAD NOT EXPLODED. AND THAT WAS
PROBABLY THE PATHWAY BY WHICH WE HAVE GONE BACK
AND FOUND PEOPLE THAT WE SUSPECT MAY HAVE BEEN
THE PERPETRATORS.
HOST: AND IN FACT THEIR NAMES ARE ABD AL-BASIT
AL-MAGRAHI AND LAMIN FHIMAH. ONE OF THEM WAS A
KNOWN LIBYAN INTELLIGENCE OPERATIVE AND THE
OTHER WORKED IN THE LIBYAN AIRLINE OFFICE IN
MALTA. NOW, SUPPOSEDLY, THEY ARE BOTH BACK IN
LIBYA UNDER GADHAFI'S PROTECTION. IS THAT
CORRECT?
ALEXANDER: ABSOLUTELY. HE REALLY CALLS THE SHOTS. HE CAN
DETERMINE TODAY, TOMORROW THAT THESE PEOPLE
SHOULD STAND TRIAL AS REQUESTED BY THE UNITED
STATES AND THE U-K AND THE INTERNATIONAL
COMMUNITY. IN FACT, IT SEEMS TO ME THIS IS A
PERVERSION OF THE RULE OF LAW IF WE ALLOW THIS
KIND OF CRIMINAL ACTIVITY TO CONTINUE WITHOUT
SOME SORT OF ACCOUNTABILITY.
HOST: ACTUALLY, DAVID SCHENKER, YOU MENTIONED BRIEFLY
THE BOMBING THAT FOLLOWED PAN AM 103, AND THAT
WAS UTA FLIGHT 772, IN WHICH ANOTHER HUNDRED AND
SEVENTY PEOPLE WERE KILLED. CAN YOU TALK ABOUT
THE COMPLICITY OF LIBYA IN THAT TERRORIST ACT?
SCHENKER: SURE. THE BROTHER-IN-LAW OF GADHAFI, WHO IS
HEAD OF THE LARGEST INTELLIGENCE OPERATION IN
THE COUNTRY, WAS ACTUALLY IMPLICATED AND
INDICTED BY THE FRENCH FOR THE RESPONSIBILITY IN
THIS OPERATION. AND A NUMBER OF FACTORS HAVE
CONTRIBUTED LATELY TO PERHAPS A CHANGE IN HEART
OF GADHAFI. IT WAS EARLIER SAID THAT THERE
WOULD BE NO WAY THAT GADHAFI WOULD TURN OVER THE
TWO SUSPECTS FROM PAN AM 103, BECAUSE THEY WOULD
IMPLICATE THE GOVERNMENT. NOW, THERE MAY BE
SIGNS THAT GADHAFI WILL GIVE OVER, OR AT LEAST
TRY SOME OF THESE INTELLIGENCE OFFICIALS. THERE
WAS A REPORT RECENTLY THAT THE THREE TOP
INTELLIGENCE OFFICIALS, INCLUDING ABDULLAH
AL-SANUSI, THE BROTHER-IN-LAW OF GADHAFI, WERE
ARRESTED FOR QUOTE, UNQUOTE, DERELICTION OF
DUTY. THIS SEEMS TO BE POINTING TO, PERHAPS,
THAT GADHAFI IS SAYING THAT THESE PEOPLE ARE
OPERATING AS A ROGUE OPERATION, THAT THE REGIME
HAD NO KNOWLEDGE OF WHAT HAD OCCURRED, WHICH IS
VERY INTERESTING. AND THIS IS, PERHAPS, BECAUSE
OF SOME DOMESTIC SITUATION IN LIBYA THAT, IN THE
EIGHTIES, THERE WAS TWENTY-FIVE BILLION IN OIL
REVENUES. BECAUSE OIL PRICES HAVE DROPPED, IT'S
ONLY FOUR POINT FIVE BILLION IN OIL REVENUES A
YEAR. ALSO, THERE WAS AN ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT
ON GADHAFI IN JUNE 1998. SO HE MAY BE FEELING
SOME PRESSURE.
HOST: THE EVIDENCE THAT MR. FAINBERG ALLUDED TO WAS
CERTAINLY CONVINCING ENOUGH TO THE INTERNATIONAL
COMMUNITY THAT THE UNITED NATIONS HAS REPEATEDLY
PASSED RESOLUTIONS CONDEMNING LIBYA AND
REQUIRING THEM TO TURN OVER THE SUSPECTS, PAY
DAMAGES TO THE VICTIMS' FAMILIES AND TO CEASE
AND DESIST FROM TERRORIST ACTIVITIES. WHAT HAS
THAT RESULTED IN?
ALEXANDER: I MEAN, CLEARLY,!THE MORAL WEIGHT OF THE
INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY IS VERY IMPORTANT. BUT
WE HAVE TO REALIZE WHAT THE UNITED NATIONS CAN
AND CANNOT DO. THEY CAN PASS RESOLUTIONS, WHICH
IS USEFUL. BUT AT THE SAME TIME, IN A PRACTICAL
WAY YOU DON'T HAVE ANY CONCRETE RESULTS. IT
TOOK TEN YEARS EVEN FOR GADHAFI TO SAY YES,
WE'RE WILLING TO COOPERATE. AND NOTHING REALLY
HAPPENED. I BELIEVE THAT UNLESS THE
INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY WOULD UNDERTAKE SOME
STRONGER MEASURES TO ISOLATE LIBYA COMPLETELY AS
A PARIAH NATION AND PERHAPS TO USE AS A LAST
RESORT EVEN FORCE, I DON'T THINK THAT GADHAFI
WOULD BE WILLING TO COOPERATE FULLY WITH THE
INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY. SO IT'S A SIMILAR
CASE, ALTHOUGH THERE ARE DIFFERENCES, WITH IRAQ,
WITH SADDAM. YOU MUST CARRY A BIG STICK AND
SOMETIMES USE IT IF THERE ARE NO OTHER
ALTERNATIVES.
HOST: OF COURSE THERE ARE SANCTIONS ON LIBYA NOW. AND
THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS PASSED AND THE
PRESIDENT SIGNED OVER A YEAR AGO THE IRAN-LIBYA
OIL SANCTIONS ACT. DOES MORE NEED TO BE DONE
THERE, MR. SCHENKER? YOU MENTIONED THE DECLINE
IN OIL PRICES, WHICH MAKES THE LIBYAN REGIME
PERHAPS MORE VULNERABLE. CAN MORE BE DONE WITH
THOSE SANCTIONS?
SCHENKER: LIBYA STILL HAS BEEN ABLE TO SELL OIL. IT'S
PRIMARILY THE DECLINING PRICES PER BARREL THAT
HAVE REALLY HURT THEM. RECENTLY A REPORT CAME
OUT THAT THEY'RE NOT ABLE TO PAY THEIR
GOVERNMENT WAGES. THIS IS TRULY GOING TO HURT
THE REGIME. THE BORDERS ARE, FOR THE MOST PART,
NOT SANCTIONED LIKE IRAQ. IN OTHER WORDS, IT'S
POROUS. THERE IS OPEN TRADE OF GOODS AND
SERVICES GOING BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN TUNISIA
AND LIBYA.
HOST: LET ME TURN TO THE OTHER SUBJECT THAT IS IN THE
NEWS NOW AND THAT IS THE POTENTIAL TRIAL OF THE
SUSPECTS. THE UNITED STATES FOR A LONG TIME
INSISTED THAT A TRIAL BE HELD EITHER IN THE
UNITED STATES OR GREAT BRITAIN. ONLY RECENTLY
DID THE UNITED STATES CHANGE ITS POSITION TO SAY
THAT A TRIAL IN THE HAGUE WITH SCOTTISH JUDGES
MIGHT BE ACCEPTABLE. WHY DID THE UNITED STATES
CHANGE THAT POSITION, AND WAS IT THE RIGHT THING
TO DO, YONAH ALEXANDER?
ALEXANDER: IN A PRACTICAL WAY, WE ARE REALLY MARKING THE
TENTH ANNIVERSARY OF THIS TERRIBLE INCIDENT AND
IT TOOK THAT LONG EVEN TO FIND SOME OTHER
ALTERNATIVE. WE CANNOT WAIT TO EXECUTE JUSTICE
INDEFINITELY. SO THE POINT IS, THE UNITED
STATES AND THE BRITISH GOVERNMENTS DECIDED THAT
PERHAPS THIS IS ANOTHER ALTERNATIVE.
UNFORTUNATELY, WE SEE THAT LIBYA SAYS WELL YES,
WE'RE GOING TO DO IT. AND THEN IT'S NOT BEING
DONE. SO, I THINK AGAIN THE INTERNATIONAL
COMMUNITY HAS TO MAKE IT VERY CLEAR TO GADHAFI
THAT THE UNITED NATIONS CANNOT ACCEPT THAT KIND
OF BEHAVIOR AND TRY TO FIND SOME SORT OF
SOLUTION AND NOT HAVE TO WAIT ANOTHER TEN YEARS
IN ORDER TO BRING THESE PEOPLE TO TRIAL.
SCHENKER: IT APPEARS THAT IT'S ACCEPTABLE FOR THE UNITED
STATES TO HAVE THESE PEOPLE TRIED IN THIS TYPE
OF SITUATION. THE BOTTOM LINE IS THEY HAVE TO
BE PUNISHED ACCORDING TO WESTERN STANDARDS. THE
LIBYANS HAVE AGREED TO HAVE THE TRIAL, BUT THEY
DON'T WANT THESE TERRORISTS INCARCERATED IN
EUROPE FOR FEAR THAT THEY WILL EVENTUALLY
IMPLICATE THE LIBYAN GOVERNMENT AT A HIGH LEVEL
IN THIS TERRORIST ATTACK. SO, AS LONG AS
GADHAFI REFUSES TO LET THESE PEOPLE BE TRIED AND
PUNISHED, IF NEED BE, IN EUROPE THERE WILL BE NO
DEAL.
HOST: SO HIS SEEMING AGREEMENT HERE COULD BE A PLOY TO
JUST STRING THIS THING OUT AND LET THE FORCES
UNDERMINING THE SANCTIONS THAT ARE IN PLACE
WEAKEN THEM?
SCHENKER: I THINK THAT'S A GOOD ASSESSMENT. AT THE SAME
TIME, WHAT HE WILL DO IS TRY AND PROVE
DOMESTICALLY THAT THIS WAS A ROGUE OPERATION AND
TRY AND UNDERCUT ANY POTENTIAL TIES TO THE
REGIME.
HOST: OKAY. MR. FAINBERG, FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF TEN
YEARS, AND WITHOUT REVEALING SECURITY
INFORMATION, ARE YOU MORE CONFIDENT TODAY THAT
THE AWARENESS OF POTENTIAL TERRORIST ACTS HAS
REACHED THE LEVEL THAT THIS KIND OF THING -- AS
YOU SAY, IT'S NOT POSSIBLE TO MAKE IT IMPOSSIBLE
-- BUT TO MAKE IT EXTREMELY DIFFICULT IS
POSSIBLE.
FAINBERG: I THINK IT'S A LOT MORE DIFFICULT TODAY THAN IT
WAS TEN YEARS AGO TO DO SOMETHING OF THIS SORT
AGAINST U.S. OR WORLD CIVIL AVIATION. IN THE
NEXT FEW MONTHS AND YEARS, IT WILL GROW
PROGRESSIVELY MORE DIFFICULT.
HOST: WHY?
FAINBERG: FIRST OF ALL, SINCE 1989-1990, WE HAVE INSTALLED
A VERY LARGE NUMBER OF SECURITY MEASURES AND
SECURITY PROCEDURES. WE HAVE IMPROVED THE
INTELLIGENCE FLOW, FOR EXAMPLE, BETWEEN F-A-A
AND THE GOVERNMENT, WHICH WAS A PROBLEM BEFORE.
SO WE HAVE VERY GOOD COMMUNICATIONS NOW AND WE
KNOW FULL WELL IN REAL TIME WHAT OTHER PEOPLE
KNOW IN THE GOVERNMENT. WE'VE PUT FEDERAL
SECURITY MANAGERS AT MANY OG OUR MOST IMPORTANT
! AIRPORTS AT HOME, AND CIVIL AVIATION SECURITY
LIAISON OFFICIALS OVERSEAS AT SOME TWENTY
LOCATIONS. PERHAPS MOST INTERESTING AND MOST
VISIBLE IS THAT WE HAVE BEGUN IN THE LAST TWO OR
THREE YEARS DEPLOYING A LARGE NUMBER OF PIECES
OF EQUIPMENT, OF TECHNOLOGIES, WHICH CAN DETECT
BOMBS IN VARIOUS WAYS. AT DOMESTIC AIRPORTS, WE
HAVE DEPLOYED OVER THREE HUNDRED OF THEM IN THIS
PAST YEAR AND WILL DEPLOY MANY MORE IN THE TIME
TO COME. OVERSEAS, OTHER COUNTRIES HAVE ALSO
DEPLOYED THE SAME THING. WHAT I'M REFERRING TO
-- THESE THREE HUNDRED ODD DEVICES -- ARE
CHEMICAL SNIFFERS, AND PEOPLE AT U.S. AIRPORTS
HAVE SEEN THEM FROM TIME TO TIME GOING THROUGH
GATES AT CHECK-IN. CHECKED BAGGAGE IS BEGINNING
TO BE SCREENED BY OUR EXPLOSIVE DETECTION
EQUIPMENT, WHICH WAS ONLY CERTIFIED SOME FOUR
YEARS AGO AND WHICH IS NOW BEING DEPLOYED ALL
OVER THE COUNTRY. AND OTHER COUNTRIES HAVE
BOUGHT THE SAME EQUIPMENT AND DEPLOYED THEM
OVERSEAS. CLEARLY, I'M NOT GOING TO SAY WHERE
THEY ARE, BUT I CAN SAY THAT RIGHT NOW THERE ARE
WELL IN EXCESS OF SIXTY OF THEM AND WE'RE
HEADING TOWARDS OVER A HUNDRED IN THE NEAR
FUTURE DOMESTICALLY.
HOST: SO, THERE'S A THOROUGH APPROACH. I'M AFRAID
THAT'S ALL THE TIME WE HAVE THIS WEEK. I'D LIKE
TO THANK OUR GUESTS -- YONAH ALEXANDER FROM
GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY; DAVID SCHENKER
FROM THE WASHINGTON INSTITUTE FOR NEAR EAST
POLICY; AND ANTHONY FAINBERG FROM THE FEDERAL
AVIATION ADMINISTRATION -- FOR JOINING ME TO
DISCUSS THE LOCKERBIE BOMBING AND U.S. POLICY.
THIS IS ROBERT REILLY FOR ON THE LINE.
18-Dec-98 1:31 PM EST (1831 UTC)
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Source: Voice of America
.
