Thais probe destination for seized NKorean weapons

BANGKOK — Thai authorities on Monday sought to unravel the mystery of the ultimate destination of a plane that landed in Bangkok with a huge cache of weapons from North Korea, exported in defiance of a U.N. embargo on arms from the communist state.Military analysts said the arms were likely destined for African rebel groups or a rogue regime like Myanmar.Thai officials impounded the Ilyushin Il-76 transport plane Saturday and discovered what they said was 35 tons of explosives, rocket-propelled grenades, components for surface-to-air missiles and other armaments.The plane's manifest had described the cargo as oil-drilling equipment, and the crew said the plane was supposed to deliver its cargo to Sri Lanka.The United States, which is particularly concerned about North Korea selling weapons and nuclear technology in the Middle East, reportedly tipped off Thai authorities to the illicit cargo, according to Thai media reports that the government and U.S. Embassy declined to comment on.Army Gen. Walter "Skip" Sharp, the top U.S. military commander in Korea, said in Washington that he was "not going to give away any of the intelligence as far as how we're watching to see what North Korea is doing up there."Impoverished North Korea is believed to earn hundreds of millions of dollars every year by selling missiles, missile parts and other weapons to countries such as Iran, Syria and Myanmar.U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton praised the seizure, saying it "shows that sanctions can prevent the proliferation of weapons and it shows that the international community when it stands together can make a very strong statement."Experts in the illicit arms trade said circumstantial evidence suggested the weapons were meant for Africa, which is a ready market rife with conflict.The flight plan turned over to Thai police said the plane was registered to Air West, a cargo transport company in the former Soviet republic of Georgia, said Somsak Saithong, a lawyer for the arrested crew members.He said the men, four

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