N Korean ship 'linked to Israel's strike on Syria'

A suspicious North Korean freighter that re-flagged itself as South Korean before off-loading an unknown cargo at the Syrian port of Tartous is at the centre of efforts today to investigate Israel's recent airstrike on Syria.

An Israeli on-line data analyst, Ronen Solomon, found an internet trace for the 1,700-tonne cargo ship, Al Hamed, which showed the vessel started to off-load what Syrian officials categorised as "cement" on Sept 3. This was three days before Israeli jets attacked a site in the north eastern desert of Syria, not far from its border with Iraq.

Since leaving Tartous, one of Syria's main ports on the Mediterranean, the ship's trace has disappeared and it is not known whether western intelligence agencies are tracking the vessel. "I became suspicious after the first reports from Syria about the attack so I traced all traffic into Syrian ports in the days prior to the incident," Mr Solomon said.

"There were five ships but the interesting one was the one with a connection to North Korea - the Al Hamed." He said he cross-referred to other maritime databases to establish the ship was not a regular visitor to the Mediterranean but had come through the Suez Canal in late June. It had registered itself for the Suez transit as a South Korean vessel but Mr Solomon said this was standard procedure for North Korean ships seeking to avoid international constraints on North Korea.

Records showed the vessel docked at Tartous on July 28 before going back to sea and then returning to the port on Sept 3. "Since then there is no trace so I have no idea if she has gone up into the Black Sea or is still in the Mediterranean or whatever," Mr Solomon said.

Last week, US officials suggested that North Korea had sought to export some of its nuclear technology and equipment to Syria but the Israelis had been tipped off, so they arranged a pre-emptive strike on a sensitive shipment.

Mr Solomon said the Al Hamed was owned by a North Korean business until a few months ago when ownership changed hands to an as yet unidentified new owner.

Sarkozy sounds out basis for Mediterranean Union

French President Nicolas Sarkozy has stepped up efforts to gain support for his idea of a 'Mediterranean Union' in a visit to Algeria and Tunisia last week. However, there are many obstacles on the way to its realisation, scheduled to take place in 2008.
On his visit to Algeria and Tunisia last week, Sarkozy began to test the water for closer co-operation between southern European and North African states. Talking to Tunisian newspaper Assbah, he said that his plans for a Mediterranean Union had received "a warm welcome by our Mediterranean partners within the EU and by countries of the Southern Mediterranean".
The French president had floated the idea of a Mediterranean Union during his election campaign, before coming to office in May this year. However, it remains unclear exactly what shape it will take and how the already existing Euro-Mediterranean relationship can be "beefed up".
According to Sarkozy, five North African countries (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Mauritania and Libya) and five member states (France, Spain, Italy, Portugal and Malta) are intended to be at the core of the initiative, which should be governed by a permanent council, similar to the Council of Europe. Its focus would be on organised crime and terrorism, sustainable development, illegal immigration and energy security.
The issue of energy supply will also feature high on the agenda of the upcoming French-Algerian meeting in November. France is offering a transfer of nuclear-energy technology for civil use, while Algeria, in return, would grant access to its gas supplies. In an interview with Algerian daily El Watan, Sarkozy said that he supported a rapprochement between the French-owned energy companies GDF, Suez and Total and the Algerian Sonatrach.
However, the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership and the so-called Barcelona Process, in place since 1995, have already failed due to low ambitions from the EU's side and a lack of willingness from the EU's southern neighbours to co-operate with each other.
Meanwhile, French Prime Minister Fillon also promoted the idea of a Mediterranean Union on his visit to Italy on 13 July. He said that France, Italy and Spain intended to work on the initiative together. Fillon stated: "There is an urgent need for a large cooperation project for more security and more prosperity."
Sarkozy will first have to convince France's European partners, such as Italy and Spain, to join the initiative. The Commission in particular, which has been eager to underline the equal footing of the EU's partners to the East and South in its re-vamped Neighbourhood Strategy , is unlikely to endorse the plans.

Criticism was also raised by Turkey, which views this initiative as a means to stop the country from realising its EU-membership bid. The US may also fear losing its predominant influence in the region.
Euractive