I've been waiting for any ufonut to describe a factual error or
checkable counter-example to stuff I've been publishing since
about,oh,1974 or so on UFOs, and so far no luck, nothing has shown up
here on the net at least. Have I missed something, or are THEY missing
something -- between the ears, I mean.

				James Oberg


In James Oberg's Sept 1993 Omni article, Oberg hinted that Kosmos-96 may
have been the cause of the Dec.9,1965 crash at Kecksburg Penn. and UFO
buffs may have been " unwitting pawns in the deception."

As to why the US government would cover up the recovery of Kosmos-96 ,Mr.
Oberg wrote " In the 60s, US military intelligence agencies interested
in enemy technology were eagerly collecting all the Soviet Missile and
Space debris they could find. International law required that debris be
returned to the country of origin. But hardware from Kosmos-96, with its
special missile-warhead shielding, would have been too valuable to give
back."

On Oct.18,1996, Mr. Oberg responded to an interview that I posted with
Dr. Eric Walker, former Chairman of the Institute for Defense Analysis,
and at the time President of Penn State University, Dr. Walker had in
earlier interviews confirmed the existence of a special group known as
MJ-12, to oversee all UFO activities, and had further confirmed
attending a set of briefing held at WPAFB dealing with a crashed flying
saucer, and its occupants. In the interview related to Kecksburg, Dr.
Walker admitted that he and two military people had been at the
Kecksburg crash site.

In James Oberg's response to the Walker/Kecksburg interview, Oberg
continued his assertion concerning Kosmos-96, and the reason for the
cover-up. " Just what you'd expect," wrote Oberg," if they'd picked up
the Kosmos-96 capsule and didn't want the Russians to know, even now,
that we violated a treaty to keep it squirreled away..."

Sounds good, until one realizes the fact that there was no treaty. Even
worse we one considers that James Oberg KNEW THIS when he wrote both
statements. Why then did he take time from his valuable schedule to
write it?

The treaty that James Oberg is referring to is the Outer Space Treaty,
passed unanimously by the United Nations in Dec.66, and after passage by
the US Congress came into force Oct.10,1967, almost two full years after
the crash at Kecksburg. The applicable part of the treaty is contained in
article VIII which reads in part;

"ownership of objects launched into outer space, including objects
landed or constructed on a celestial body, and of their component parts,
is not affected by their presence in outer space or on a celestial body
or by their return to Earth. Such objects or component parts found
beyond the limits of the State Party to the Treaty on whose registry
they are carried shall be returned to that State, which shall, upon
request, furnish identifying data prior to their return."

The details were further expanded the next year in the passage of the
"Agreement on the Rescue of Astronauts, the return of Astronauts, and
the return of Objects launched into Outer Space " which was signed in
Washington, London, and Moscow April 22,1968, and entered into force
following congressional approval on Dec.3,1968, almost three years
following the Kecksburg crash.

Now, how do we know that James Oberg knew this fact before he made his
statements in 1993, and 1996 about an international Treaty being the
reason for the cover-up of the Kosmos-96 recovery? We go back to his
statements to reporter David Templeton at the Pittsburgh Press in 1991.

" Oberg added," wrote Templeton in his Kecksburg investigative article
entitled "The Uninvited," that because the United States and the Soviets
had an oral agreement to return the other side's spacecraft debris when
it landed in their territory, secrecy was paramount if one power opted
to keep the other's recovered debris. Oberg says the US conducted secret
recovery missions throughout the world to collect Soviet Space debris
until 1967 when a treaty to return such debris became effective."

Therefore there was no reason to cover up a recovery of Kosmos-96 in
1965 beyond some "nudge,nudge,wink,wink" agreement as claimed by Oberg.
There never was any international law, or Treaty, as claimed by Oberg in
93,and 96. 

As to whether there was ever an oral agreement made at the high of the
cold war with the missile crisis ongoing is doubtful, especially with
the word of it coming from Oberg. Oberg seems to have trouble telling
the truth on this particular issue such as his statement that the US
conducted secret recoveries until 1967 when the treaty came into effect.
The US conducted secret recoveries after the treaty , and James Oberg
KNOWS THAT TOO. That I will discuss at a later time.

Why would Oberg lie claiming twice there was a treaty when he knew there
wasn't?? Only James Oberg can answer that question.