France Warned CIA About Niger Claims

The LA Times has the story. It details repeated warnings from France that the yellowcake allegations were false. $Q: Then twice in 2002, Chouet said, the CIA contacted the French again for similar help. By mid-2002, Chouet recalled, the request was more urgent and more specific. The CIA was asking questions about a particular agreement purportedly signed by Nigerian officials to sell 500 metric tons of uranium to Iraq. Chouet dispatched a five- or six-man team to Niger to double-check any reports of a sale or an attempt to purchase uranium. The team found none. It's now clear the claims were discredited by the CIA's own investigation (Joe Wilson) and a requested foreign mission. How did the false charges find their way into the State of the Union? It's questions like these the Vice President finds reprehensible. If Phase II of the senate investigation ever gets moving they just might discover why Cheney has such a visceral reaction to allegations his administration misrepresented the case on Iraq.