"An atomic war will come upon us if we do not agree on a new system of international controls," said the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

"We work like firemen, but when the fires start multiplying we better start looking at the safety setup around the entire house to make it fireproof," said the Eygptian diplomat.

"I am afraid that nuclear arms are falling into the hands of unscrupulous dictators and terrorists. I am also afraid of the nuclear arsenals in democratic states, because as long as these weapons exist, there is no certainty they won't be stolen, sabotaged or subject to accident," he said.

ElBaradei voiced particular concern on what he said was the expanding traffick in nuclear technology by savvy traders in a well-oiled network.

"An atomic black market has been born, propelled by a very sophisticated intelligence network. One country draws up the plans, another produces the centrifuges that are then transported by boat from a third country -- and the final destination could be anywhere," he said.

Singling out Libya and Iran, the IAEA head warned such trafficking was orchestrated by "nuclear experts who know how to do business, unscrupulous firms, probably state institutions".

"Libya and Iran used this network widely, and Iran was clearly ahead of Libya," he said.

He refused to answer when asked if Pakistan was the starting point for what was referred to as this "nuclear bazaar".

"I will say nothing about any particular state. Apparently some are involved, both in the North and the South. This means we must greatly improve control over exports and that these controls must made in an international context."

ElBaradei also repeated his concern about North Korea, after telling reporters at the World Economic Forum in Davos this week that North Korea's nuclear program was "the most dangerous non-proliferation issue we are facing today."

"I am extremely worried about how things are moving in North Korea. I would in no way be surrised to find out that Pyongyang now has an atomic bomb ready for use.

"In the history of humanity, no civilization has yet managed to voluntarily get rid of its all-powerful weapons -- we shall see if we are the first to do it," he said.

ElBaradei added that he was "not without hope, otherwise I would have given up my job long ago".

Earlier this month, North Korea offered to freeze its program in return for concessions, including an end to US sanctions and a resumption of energy aid.

Pyongyang is due to join a second round of talks this year with China, Japan, Russia, South Korea and the United States.

All rights reserved. Copyright 2003 Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse.

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