Monday, February 7 2005 15:10 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New York: The US officials are trying to ascertain as to whether Pakistan's nuclear scientist A Q Khan's network sold nuclear technology to Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries, a media report said yesterday (Feb 06, 2005).

The report also said that investigations have revealed that Khan's network played a bigger role in helping Tehran and Pyongyang in their efforts to obtain nuclear technology than had been previously disclosed.

The list of Khan's suspected nuclear clients was dizzying, said the report published in the latest issue of 'Time', quoting an unidentified source in Pakistan's Defence Ministry.

Investigators believe that as head of Pakistan's nuclear research laboratory, Khan traveled the world for more than a decade, visiting countries in Africa, Central Asia and the Middle East.

The investigators of the United States and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) believe that Khan also traveled to Saudi Arabia and Egypt and to such African countries as Sudan, Ivory Coast and Niger, the news magazine says.

The purpose of those trips, Time says, remains unclear, but intelligence officials have hunches: Saudi Arabia and Egypt are believed to be in the market for nuclear technology, and many African countries are rich in raw uranium ore.

Despite the United States' obvious interest in uncovering the scope of the "nuclear bazaar," Time notes that neither the Americans nor IAEA has been allowed to interrogate Khan directly.

Time quotes "knowledgeable sources" as saying that at a meeting at the White House in December, President George W Bush told Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf that he believed Khan had not confessed to all his nefarious transactions. Musharraf agreed but refused to allow non-Pakistanis to quiz Khan, the report says.

The US has also submitted questions to Khan, asking whether North Korea and Iran sold such equipment to third parties. The ultimate fear is that one of Khan's clients may pass along nuclear technology and expertise to terrorist groups.

While the US does not have concrete evidence that Khan did business with al-Qaeda, there is reason to suspect that such a link exists, says the magazine.

Members of Pakistan's military and intelligence establishment, which worked closely with Khan in his role as the Government's top nuclear scientist, are known to sympathize with Osama bin Laden, it notes.

The more investigators have learned about the reach of Khan's network, the more alarmed they become. A US official involved in analyzing Iran's nuclear program told the magazine, "You're dealing with a supplier who didn't appear to have any qualms."