In the aftermath of the Dubai ports dispute, the Bush administration is
hiring a Hong Kong conglomerate to help detect nuclear materials inside cargo
passing through the Bahamas to the United States and elsewhere.
This undated photograph provided by the U.S.
National Nuclear Security Administration shows a specialized radiation
detector, known as a 'modified straddle carrier,' scanning cargo
containers for evidence of radioactive materials at a seaport in the
Bahamas. [AP] |
The administration acknowledges
the no-bid contract with Hutchison Whampoa Ltd. represents the first time a
foreign company will be involved in running a sophisticated U.S. radiation
detector at an overseas port without American customs agents present.
Freeport in the Bahamas is 65 miles from the U.S. coast, where cargo would be
likely to be inspected again. The contract is currently being finalized.
The administration is negotiating a second no-bid contract for a Philippine
company to install radiation detectors in its home country, according to
documents obtained by The Associated Press. At dozens of other overseas ports,
foreign governments are primarily responsible for scanning cargo.
While President Bush recently reassured Congress that foreigners would not
manage security at U.S. ports, the Hutchison deal in the Bahamas illustrates how
the administration is relying on foreign companies at overseas ports to
safeguard cargo headed to the United States.
Hutchison Whampoa is the world's largest ports operator and among the
industry's most-respected companies. It was an early adopter of U.S. anti-terror
measures. But its billionaire chairman, Li Ka-Shing, also has substantial
business ties to the Chinese mainland that have raised U.S. concerns.
"Li Ka-Shing is pretty close to a lot of senior leaders of the Chinese
government and the Chinese Communist Party," said Larry M. Wortzel, head of a
U.S. government commission that studies China security and economic issues. But
Wortzel said Hutchison operates independently from Beijing, and he described Li
as "a very legitimate international businessman."
"One can conceive legitimate security concerns and would hope either the
Homeland Security Department or the intelligence services of the United States
work very hard to satisfy those concerns," Wortzel said.
The CIA currently has no security concerns about Hutchison's port operations,
and the administration believes the pending deal with the foreign company would
be safe, officials said.
Supervised by Bahamian customs officials, Hutchison employees will drive the
towering, truck-like radiation scanner that moves slowly over large cargo
containers and scans them for radiation that might be emitted by plutonium or a
radiological weapon.
Any positive reading would set off alarms monitored simultaneously by
Bahamian customs inspectors at Freeport and by U.S. Customs and Border
Protection officials working at an anti-terrorism center 800 miles away in
northern Virginia. Any alarm would prompt a closer inspection of the cargo, and
there are multiple layers of security to prevent tampering, officials said.