Flight's clearance cancelled (illustration)
Photo: Reuters
Report: US foils arms shipment from N. Korea to Iran
Newsweek magazine says several weeks after dropping Pyongyang from blacklist of states that support terrorism, Bush administration thwarted transfer of missile parts to Tehran
Shortly before dropping North Korea from the blacklist of states that support terrorism this summer, the Bush administration managed to thwart the transfer of missile parts from Pyongyang to Iran,
the Newsweek magazine reported Saturday, quoting an Indian media outlet.
According to the report, on August 4 India granted a North Korean state aircraft permission to cross its airspace on a "non-scheduled" trip to Tehran. Three days later, India's prime minister withdrew the flight's clearance.
Two US officials, who wished to remain anonymous, confirmed that the White House was behind the move, as Americans thought the plane was carrying gyroscopes for missile guidance systems.
Last month, Pyongyang agreed to resume the dismantling of its Yongbyon nuclear reactor, built to produce plutonium, and to allow inspectors to enter the site. The consent was given after the US removed North Korea its blacklist of states that support terrorism and lifted some of the sanctions imposed on the country.
