I have blogged many times about nuclear weapons but I have never dealt with nuclear espionage. Nuclear devices and vessels are highly complex and difficult to develop. Being able to obtain details of another country's hard work on nuclear weapons systems gives the other country a head-start in developing their own systems. Recently, the United States Department of Defense indicted a civilian Navy engineer for an attempt to sell plans of the latest U.S. nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to someone he believed was working for Egyptian intelligence.
Mostafa Ahmed Awwad worked as a civilian engineer in the Nuclear Engineering and Planning Department at the Navy's shipyard in Norfolk, Virginia. He worked in that department since February of 2014. Awwad was born in Saudi Arabia and he married his wife in Cairo, Egypt. He was granted a U.S. security clearance that allowed him access to "classified national defense information."
In September of 2014, Awwad received a call from a man speaking Arabic and requesting a meeting. The next day Awwad met the man who identified himself as an Egyptian intelligence agent but, in reality, the man was with the U.S. FBI. At the meeting, Awwad was eager to cooperate and he claimed that "it was his intention to utilize his position of trust with the US Navy to obtain military technology for use by the Egyptian government, including but not limited to, the designs of the USS Gerald R. Ford nuclear aircraft carrier." Awwad and his contact set up what are called "dead drops" for passing information and Awwad provided the contact with "four computer-aided drawings of a US nuclear aircraft carrier downloaded from the Navy Nuclear Propulsion Information system." He also handed over photographs of blueprints for the ship. Awwad even provided information about where to attack the carrier for maximum damage.
The U.S. relationship with Egypt has been turbulent lately. Following the popular uprising in 2011, Egyptian President Mubarak was thrown into prison and a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, Mohammed Morsi, was elected President. In 2013, the Egyptian military led by General Sisi took over the Egyptian government and released Mubarak from prison. The U.S. considered the actions of Morsi to be a military coup and the U.S. froze some of its military assistance to Egypt.
For the U.S. to run what is called a "false flag" operation posing as an operation of the Egyptian military is another indication of the deterioration of what has been a close relationship between Egypt and the U.S. in military and intelligence affairs. Apparently the U.S. is not concerned about Egyptian anger over the affair. It also appears that the U.S. may be concerned with Egyptian intelligence operations in the U.S.
Imaged from a television documentary about the Egyptian intelligence service:
