J-Firm is Equal-Opportunity WMD Equipment Supplier

[Mulboyne]

[floatr][/floatr]CNN: Japan raid of nuke machinery firm
Japanese police on Monday raided a precision instrument maker, a company official said, amid media reports it allegedly exported machinery to China and Thailand that could be used in uranium enrichment...Mitutoyo Corp. is suspected of exporting two three-dimensional measurement machines that can be used for uranium enrichment -- a technology that can produce nuclear fuel or bombs...The International Atomic Energy Agency also discovered Mitutoyo machinery at nuclear-related sites in Libya during inspections in December 2003 and January 2004...Police suspect machinery exported by Mitutoyo may have also reached North Korea via the international black market in nuclear-related technology...more...

[homesweethome]

[url=http://www.thome-praezision.de/eng/index.html[url]German made[/url]

This was very interesting because it's the same thing Kobe Steel was doing with Dell computers in 1985-6, selling advanced tech to the USSR, but nobody slapped their wrists.

Now this company is trading German machines for the do-it-yourself nuke bomb maker.

Why not just sell them through Wall Mart?

http://www.thome-praezision.de/eng/index.html

[Blah Pete]

Any decent size machine shop anywhere in the world has one of these. You can't machine anything to modern tolerances without it.
The only issue here is whether Mitutoyo knew that the Malaysian rep would sell it to a Malay co., onto a UAE co., and then to Lybia.

[Ol Dirty Gaijin]

They would not have gone to Mitutoyo on price especially if it's on models they rebadge from other makers anyway.

Was it a Thome-Praezision CMM they were busted for or one of their own?

[homesweethome]

Japan Made Maybe

Mitutoyo's factory in Utsunomiya manufactured three-dimensional instruments that were exported to China and Thailand as well as the part found in Libya, officers said.

Looks like a Japanese improvement on German made tech that the specs were understated for. Sound familiar?

[Ol Dirty Gaijin]

It could possibly be one of their own. They do make their own machines as well as resell other makers. The stuff they resell is generally off the shelf, nothing fancy or too big.

[Taro Toporific]

I just looove Japanese news reports that fail to say the "Who" and "Where" to a story.


Police raid Tokyo offices on weapons suspicions
Firms allegedly exported biological equipment to North Korea
MSNBC.com, 9:34 p.m. ET Feb. 16, 2006
TOKYO --- Tokyo police raided two trading companies on Friday suspected of illegally exporting equipment to North Korea that could be used to create biological weapons, a news report said.
The companies allegedly exported freeze dryers that could be used to cultivate germs or other pathogens for possible weapons...more...

[Taro Toporific]

I just looove Japanese news reports that fail to say the "Who" and "Where" to a story.

Police raid Tokyo offices on weapons suspicions
Firms allegedly exported biological equipment to North Korea
MSNBC.com, 9:34 p.m. ET Feb. 16, 2006
more...

The J-police were after "stolen bicycles" for gaijin and ended up with WMD!
[INDENT]

Japanese police raid Tokyo trading company
Associated Press, Fri, Feb. 17, 2006
TOKYO ---Japanese police on Friday raided a trading company in Tokyo suspected of illegally exporting equipment to North Korea that could be used to create biological weapons, police and news reports said.
The company, Seishin Shoji, allegedly exported a freeze dryer that could be used to cultivate germs or other pathogens for possible weapons, Kyodo News reported, citing police.
Seishin Shoji is suspected of shipping the equipment to North Korea through Taiwan in September 2002, without obtaining the government permission required under the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Control Law, Kyodo said.
Investigators from the Yamaguchi and Shimane police departments in western Japan raided about 10 locations, including the office of Seishin Shoji in Tokyo and related offices in the two prefectures (state), Kyodo said.
They discovered the alleged illegal export during investigations into a separate case involving exports of stolen bicycles handled by the same company in Shimane....more...[/INDENT]

[Ol Dirty Gaijin]

Going down boyz...


Mitutoyo president, execs arrested over exports of nuclear-related equipment
August 25, 2006 MDN

The president of major Japanese precision instrument manufacturer Mitutoyo Corp. was arrested Friday along with four other workers on suspicion of illegally exporting equipment that can be used to develop nuclear weapons, law enforcers said.

Mitutoyo concealed performance of equipment linked to nuclear development
August 25, 2006 MDN

Japanese precision instrument manufacturer Mitutoyo Corp., under fire for illegally exporting measuring equipment that can be used in nuclear development, included software with the equipment that made it appear as if it was not subject to export restrictions, it has been learned.

[Iraira]

Who needs friends?

TOKYO, Japan (AP) -- Police are investigating the possibility that a Japanese manufacturer exported equipment to Iran that can be used to make nuclear weapons, an official said Tuesday.

The president and four other executives and employees of Mitutoyo Corp. were arrested Friday on suspicion they violated trade control laws.

Police have also searched the offices of an Iranian trading company based in Tokyo called Seian, trade ministry official Hiroyuki Murakami said Tuesday.

Murakami said earlier that Mitutoyo, based just west of Tokyo, is suspected of illegally exporting high-tech measuring devices to its subsidiary in Malaysia in 2001. The equipment can be used to make nuclear weapons.

According to Japanese news reports, Mitutoyo is also suspected of having exported similar equipment by way of Seian to a company connected with Iran's nuclear program.

Seian is believed to have exported various sensitive equipment to Iran's military and defense ministry between 1984 and 1992, according to Kyodo News agency.

http://edition.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/asiapcf/08/29/japan.nuclear.ap/index.html

[AssKissinger]

Quote from Vladimir Ilyich Lenin


"The Capitalists will sell us the rope with which we will hang them."

[Buraku]

Who needs friends?

TOKYO, Japan (AP) -- Police are investigating the possibility that a Japanese manufacturer exported equipment to Iran that can be used to make nuclear weapons, an official said Tuesday.

The president and four other executives and employees of Mitutoyo Corp. were arrested Friday on suspicion they violated trade control laws.

Police have also searched the offices of an Iranian trading company based in Tokyo called Seian, trade ministry official Hiroyuki Murakami said Tuesday.

Murakami said earlier that Mitutoyo, based just west of Tokyo, is suspected of illegally exporting high-tech measuring devices to its subsidiary in Malaysia in 2001. The equipment can be used to make nuclear weapons.

According to Japanese news reports, Mitutoyo is also suspected of having exported similar equipment by way of Seian to a company connected with Iran's nuclear program.

Seian is believed to have exported various sensitive equipment to Iran's military and defense ministry between 1984 and 1992, according to Kyodo News agency.

http://edition.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/asiapcf/08/29/japan.nuclear.ap/index.html

messed up

[Greji]

Who needs friends?

TOKYO, Japan (AP) -- Police are investigating the possibility that a Japanese manufacturer exported equipment to Iran that can be used to make nuclear weapons, an official said Tuesday.
-snip-
According to Japanese news reports, Mitutoyo is also suspected of having exported similar equipment by way of Seian to a company connected with Iran's nuclear program.

Seian is believed to have exported various sensitive equipment to Iran's military and defense ministry between 1984 and 1992, according to Kyodo News agency.

Picky, picky, picky. Now that the Soviet Union is dead (except for Soviet Supreme), how can Japan inc., keep it hand in for backdoor dealing, if they don't have someone they can slicky it to under the table, or out behind the barn. It's just good business. If they get away with it, they can crow that they are real "egyou man"!

[dimwit]

Actually, I doubt the Japanese government gives much of a shit about Iran and given that Iran is an oil producter they are more then likely to look the other way at nuke obsession, however since there are a large number of weapon ties between Iran and Beloved Leaderland they are being forced to act.