US foes seek edge in the dark

E-mails, found on computer equipment seized from an accused terrorist supporter, detail items the Taliban wanted to use against US troops in Afghanistan, says USA Today.

The e-mail exchange, which includes other references to smuggling night-vision goggles via Pakistan, occurred at the end of 2001, soon after US troops invaded Afghanistan. Since then, US adversaries have been trying to get the equipment, which could erase a major tactical edge for US troops in Afghanistan and Iraq.

"It's considered an extremely sensitive technology because the highest generations of night vision are thought to give our troops a considerable advantage, to the point where we fight a significant portion of our battles at night," says Clif Burns, a Washington lawyer who specialises in export control issues. That, Burns says, makes the technology valuable to current and potential enemies.

The Korean military has reportedly succeeded in developing the core technology for stealth fighter planes, reports Chosun.com.

Stealth technology is used to disguise aircraft or vessels from detection by radar, infrared or sound detectors. Stealth is considered a key field in future warfare, and world military powers such as the US, China, Japan and Russia have been focusing efforts on developing it.

A Korean military source on Monday said that the Agency for Defense Development and other local defence research institutes began developing stealth fighter technology and application systems in 1999. They developed radar absorbent material by the end of 2002, and are now aiming to finish developing all core technologies for functional stealth by mid-2010.

Estonia and six NATO allies sign a deal this week to provide staff and funds for a new research centre designed to boost the alliance's defences against cyber terrorism, reports IHT.com.

The agreement to be signed in Brussels on Wednesday comes a year after the small Baltic nation was exposed to an unprecedented wave of cyber attacks that crippled government and corporate computer networks.

The attacks lasted three weeks and followed deadly riots sparked by the relocation of a Soviet war memorial. Many Estonians suspect the Kremlin was behind the virtual strikes but Moscow has denied involvement.