Study of Weapon Lab Security Ordered

WASHINGTON —  President Clinton on Thursday ordered a broad security review of U.S. nuclear weapon labs as he struggled to shake criticism of his handling of China’s alleged theft of American nuclear secrets. Clinton asked former Sen. Warren B. Rudman (R-N.H.), who heads his foreign intelligence advisory board, to lead the review.

The president has been battered by Republican criticism of his administration’s handling of an inquiry into the alleged thefts from the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico in the mid-1980s.

Also on Thursday, a congressional report said China had built up its military capabilities by using U.S. technology. Despite the controversy, the Senate rejected a proposal to make it harder for China to enter the World Trade Organization.