IAEA Believes Iran Is Building A Nuclear Warhead

IAEA Believes Iran Is Building A Nuclear Warhead

Iran Enriches Nuclear Fuel, Says IAEA -- Wall Street Journal

The United Nations' nuclear watchdog said it has information suggesting Iran may be working to build a nuclear warhead, an assessment that could escalate the U.S. and other Western governments' confrontation with Iran over its nuclear activities.

The International Atomic Energy Agency, a Vienna-based U.N. body, said in a confidential report Thursday that Iran has impeded agency efforts to establish the true purpose of Tehran's nuclear program.

Read more ....
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704269004575073853888645236.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_MIDDLENexttoWhatsNewsThird


More News On Iran's Nuclear Program

Watchdog: Iran may be working on nuclear warhead -- CNN
http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/meast/02/18/iran.nuclear/index.html?hpt=T2

IAEA fears Iran working now on nuclear warhead -- Reuters
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE61H4EH20100218

I.A.E.A. Suspects Iranian Nuclear Weapons Activity -- New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/19/world/middleeast/19iran.html

IAEA says secret Iranian research could be aimed at nuclear weapons -- Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/18/AR2010021803378.html

Iran could be making nuclear warhead, says director of UN watchdog -- The Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/feb/18/iran-could-make-nuclear-warhead

UN accuses Iran of working to build nuclear bomb -- The Telegraph
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iran/7266349/UN-accuses-Iran-of-working-to-build-nuclear-bomb.html

US voices concern after Iran 'warhead' report -- Voice of America
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gxhCheTeCNbRycA3oZyvXYnliMqw

U.S. says concerned over Iran after IAEA report -- Reuters
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE61H5B720100218?type=politicsNews

WH on Iran nuclear report: Iran behavior "very disturbing" -- Politico
http://www.politico.com/

Obama Administration: Report Shows Iran More Determined Than Ever to Build Nuclear Weapon -- ABC News
http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2010/02/obama-administration-report-shows-iran-more-determined-than-ever-to-build-nuclear-weapon.html

U.S. says Iran facing many nuclear technical problems -- Reuters
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE61H71G20100218?type=politicsNews


IAEA Believes Iran Is Building A Nuclear Warhead A map showing Qom and Natanz reported uranium enrichment facilities.
Photo AFP

Iran Enriches Nuclear Fuel, Says IAEA -- Wall Street Journal

The United Nations' nuclear watchdog said it has information suggesting Iran may be working to build a nuclear warhead, an assessment that could escalate the U.S. and other Western governments' confrontation with Iran over its nuclear activities.

The International Atomic Energy Agency, a Vienna-based U.N. body, said in a confidential report Thursday that Iran has impeded agency efforts to establish the true purpose of Tehran's nuclear program.

Read more ....

More News On Iran's Nuclear Program

Watchdog: Iran may be working on nuclear warhead -- CNN
IAEA fears Iran working now on nuclear warhead -- Reuters
I.A.E.A. Suspects Iranian Nuclear Weapons Activity -- New York Times
IAEA says secret Iranian research could be aimed at nuclear weapons -- Washington Post
Iran could be making nuclear warhead, says director of UN watchdog -- The Guardian
UN accuses Iran of working to build nuclear bomb -- The Telegraph
US voices concern after Iran 'warhead' report -- Voice of America
U.S. says concerned over Iran after IAEA report -- Reuters
WH on Iran nuclear report: Iran behavior "very disturbing" -- Politico
Obama Administration: Report Shows Iran More Determined Than Ever to Build Nuclear Weapon -- ABC News
U.S. says Iran facing many nuclear technical problems -- Reuters


More News On Iran's Nuclear Program

Watchdog: Iran may be working on nuclear warhead -- CNN
IAEA fears Iran working now on nuclear warhead -- Reuters
I.A.E.A. Suspects Iranian Nuclear Weapons Activity -- New York Times
IAEA says secret Iranian research could be aimed at nuclear weapons -- Washington Post
Iran could be making nuclear warhead, says director of UN watchdog -- The Guardian
UN accuses Iran of working to build nuclear bomb -- The Telegraph
US voices concern after Iran 'warhead' report -- Voice of America
U.S. says concerned over Iran after IAEA report -- Reuters
WH on Iran nuclear report: Iran behavior "very disturbing" -- Politico
Obama Administration: Report Shows Iran More Determined Than Ever to Build Nuclear Weapon -- ABC News
U.S. says Iran facing many nuclear technical problems -- Reuters

U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy And Strategy

U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy And Strategy

'US Will Maintain Minimum Nuclear Deterrence' -- Press Trust India

Washington, Feb 18 (PTI) The US would maintain a minimum nuclear deterrent while working towards the goal of achieving a nuke-free world, a top Obama Administration official on nuclear disarmament has said.

"This Administration will work toward a world without nuclear weapons and we will continue to maintain a safe, secure, and effective deterrent as we proceed toward that goal," Ellen Tauscher, Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security, said.

Read more ....
http://www.ptinews.com/news/523374_-US-will-maintain-minimum-nuclear-deterrence-


More News On U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy And Strategy

U.S. to pump money into nuke stockpile, increase security -- RIA Novosti
http://en.rian.ru/world/20100218/157925732.html

Administration Slated to Finalize Major Nuclear Weapons Policy Review -- Union Of Concerned Sceintists
http://www.ucsusa.org/news/press_release/administration-slated-to-finalize-nuclear-weapons-policy-review-0353.html

Experts Voice Concern Over U.S. Nuclear Policy Review -- Global Security Newswire
http://www.globalsecuritynewswire.org/gsn/nw_20100217_3287.php

US, Russia near 'finish line' on nuclear disarm deal -- AFP
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jQGK3Boj1Gspa5SVDipZnWC-GLLw

Missile defense not a threat to U.S.-Russia "reset" -- Reuters
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE61G5UH20100217

Russia-US START talks enter home stretch -- Tauscher -- ITAR-TASS
http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2.html?NewsID=14836075&PageNum=0

The Second Annual Nuclear Deterrence Summit -- US Department of State
http://www.state.gov/t/us/136797.htm

Tauscher to talk arms trade -- Politico
http://www.politico.com/blogs/laurarozen/0210/Tauscher_to_talk_arms_trade.html

Biden nuke speech preview -- Foreign Policy
http://thecable.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2010/02/17/biden_nuke_speech_preview

Biden To Press For Ratifying Test Ban Treaty -- The Atlantic
http://politics.theatlantic.com/2010/02/thurs_biden_will_defend_not.php

Biden to Push Test-Ban Treaty -- Wall Street Journal
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703444804575071882708462028.html?mod=WSJ_WSJ_US_PoliticsNCampaign_3

Biden to Call for Senate Ratification of CTBT -- Global Security Newswire
http://www.globalsecuritynewswire.org/gsn/nw_20100218_6499.php

Stage set for new fight over START treaty -- The Cable/Foreign Policy
http://www.carnegieendowment.org/publications/index.cfm?fa=view&id=30993

http://thecable.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2010/02/17/stage_set_for_new_fight_over_missile_defense

START is Key to Reducing the Nuclear Threat -- Carnegie Endowment For Peace
http://www.carnegieendowment.org/publications/index.cfm?fa=view&id=30993

START is key to reducing the nuclear threat -- Matthew Rojansky and James. F. Collins, The Hill
http://thehill.com/opinion/op-ed/81321-start-is-key-to-reducing-the-nuclear-threat

The End of Obama’s Vision of a Nuke-Free World by Scott Ritter

The End of Obama’s Vision of a Nuke-Free World

by Scott Ritter

As any student of foreign and national security policy well knows, the devil is in the details. Back in April 2009, in a speech delivered in Prague, the Czech Republic, President Barack Obama articulated his vision of a world free of nuclear weapons. Since that time, however, the Obama administration has offered very little of substance to push this vision forward. When one looks past the grand statements of the president for policy implementation that supports the rhetoric, one is left empty-handed. No movement on ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT). No extension of a Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty with Russia (START). No freeze on the development of a new generation of American nuclear weapons. Without progress in these areas, any prospects of a new approach to global nuclear nonproliferation emerging from the May 2010 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference are virtually zero.

Perhaps the most telling indicator of failed nonproliferation policy on the part of the Obama administration is the fact that there has been no progress on the issue of Iran’s nuclear program, and in particular the ongoing controversy surrounding a proposed uranium exchange. The deal would have Iran swap a significant portion of its existing stock of 3.5 percent enriched uranium (the level needed to fuel Iran’s planned nuclear power reactors, as opposed to uranium enriched to 90 percent, which is needed for nuclear weapons) in exchange for nuclear fuel rods containing uranium enriched to 19.5 percent (the level needed to operate a U.S.-built research reactor in Tehran that produced nuclear isotopes for medical purposes). Iran is running out of fuel for this reactor, and needs a new source of fuel or else it will be forced to shut it down. As a signatory member of the NPT, Iran should have the right to acquire this fuel on the open market, subject of course to International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards, but the United States and Europe have held any such sale hostage to Iran’s agreeing to suspend its indigenous uranium enrichment program, which is the source of the 3.5 percent enriched uranium currently in Iran.

The crux of the U.S. and European concerns rests not with Iran’s possession of 3.5 percent enriched uranium, but rather that the enrichment technique employed by Iran to produce this low-enriched uranium could be used, with some significant modifications, to manufacture high-enriched uranium (90 percent) usable in a nuclear weapon. This reality, and the fears of a nuclear-armed Iran it produces, trumps the fact that the IAEA today is in a position to certify that it can account for the totality of Iran’s inventory of nuclear material, and that any diversion of nuclear material would be detected by the IAEA almost immediately. Furthermore, beyond its capacity to enrich uranium, there is no real evidence that Iran has engaged in a nuclear weapons program.

But the fear and hype that emanate from American and European policymakers, strongly influenced by the zero-tolerance policy of Israel when it comes to Iran and anything nuclear, peaceful or otherwise, have created an environment where common sense goes out the window and anything becomes possible. Take, for instance, Iran’s current stock of 3.5 percent enriched uranium. The IAEA certifies that Iran is in possession of approximately 1,800 kilograms of this material. Policy wonks and those in the intelligence community given to hypotheticals have postulated scenarios that have Iran using this stock of 3.5 percent enriched uranium as the feedstock for a breakout enrichment effort that, if left to its own devices, could produce enough high-enriched uranium (90 percent) for a single nuclear bomb. This breakout capability would require Iran to reconfigure thousands of the centrifuges it uses for low-level enrichment for use in the stepped-up process of follow-on enrichment. Ironically, one of the next steps required in such a scenario would be for Iran to reconfigure its centrifuges to enrich uranium up to 20 percent—roughly the level Iran needs for the nuclear fuel required to operate the Tehran research reactor.

Fears about a potential covert Iranian enrichment breakout capability reached feverish proportions when, in September 2009, Iran revealed the existence of (and U.S. intelligence proclaimed the discovery of) a prospective small underground centrifuge enrichment facility near the city of Qom. The fact that this facility was under construction, and consisted as of September 2009 of little more than a reinforced hole in the ground without any equipment installed, did nothing to allay the fears of those who saw an Iranian nuclear bomb behind every bush, or under every rock. Suddenly Iran was on the verge of having a nuclear bomb, and something had to be done to prevent this from happening.

The focus of attention shifted away from Iran’s ongoing enrichment capability, which the U.S. and Europe demanded be permanently suspended, to Iran’s 1,800 kilograms of 3.5 percent enriched uranium. This material represented Iran’s theoretical atomic bomb. If the material could be placed under international control, then Iran’s nuclear weapons ambitions, at least for the immediate future, could be thwarted. Iran was not going to freely hand over this material. However, a deal was negotiated between the U.S. and Iran that would have Iran ship 1,600 kilograms of its 3.5 percent enriched uranium to Russia, which would then further enrich it to 19.5 percent before sending it to France, which would process the uranium into fuel rods unusable for nuclear weapons. This fuel swap appeared to provide an elegant solution to a vexing problem. Indeed, President Obama embraced it as his own initiative when it was announced in October 2009.

For Iran, the swap was always about acquiring the needed nuclear fuel rods, manufactured from 19.5 percent enriched uranium, in order to continue operation of its research reactor in Tehran, which produces much-needed nuclear isotopes for medical purposes. The main attraction for the Iranians for such a deal, beyond acquiring the fuel rods, was that they would not need to produce any 19.5 percent enriched uranium itself, and thus not have to reconfigure their current centrifuge-based enrichment infrastructure to operate beyond its 3.5 percent enrichment threshold. Iran has consistently maintained that it neither requires, nor desires, any capability to enrich uranium beyond the 3.5 percent level needed to manufacture nuclear fuel rods for its own nuclear power reactors. Having its uranium enrichment infrastructure locked in at 3.5 percent simplified not only Iran’s own operations, but also the safeguard monitoring and inspection requirements of the International Atomic Energy Agency, charged with verifying Iran’s compliance with the terms of the NPT. Iran viewed the fuel swap as a means of facilitating international acceptance of its uranium enrichment program, a point of view that was in fundamental opposition to that of the United States and Europe.

No amount of finessing the specifics of a fuel swap, whether it be done in stages, managed by a neutral third party, or carried out over the course of several months or several years, could reconcile the Iranian position with that of the U.S. and Europe. At the center of this problem is the Iranian uranium enrichment program itself. Any fuel swap deal is little more than window dressing to the larger issue of whether or not Iran will be permitted by the international community to enrich uranium. To the U.S. and Europe, finer points such as whether such enrichment would be capped at 3.5 percent, or diversified to include 19.5 percent, remain irrelevant, since their unified policy approach is to suspend all uranium enrichment activities inside Iran.

The fatal flaw in the Obama fuel swap proposal, when it was broached in October 2009, was that it failed to explicitly state that any fuel swap had to be linked to Iran’s suspension of its uranium enrichment program. While policy wonks in and out of the Obama administration can argue that such a position was more than implied, given the existence of U.N. Security Council resolutions that explicitly call for suspension, any deal that introduces Iran’s stocks of low-enriched uranium as a legitimate commodity provides de facto legitimization of the processes that produced that commodity. Since Iran has consistently refused to suspend its uranium enrichment activities, it had every reason to treat the proposed fuel swap as a stand-alone deal that focused on a short-term problem, and not as part of the larger U.S.-driven demands for enrichment suspension.

The U.S. policy objective was never to provide Iran with 19.5 percent enriched uranium fuel rods, or to lock Iran in at a 3.5 percent enrichment threshold, but rather to get the majority of Iran’s existing stocks of 3.5 percent enriched uranium out of the country, thereby eliminating any scenario that had Iran using this low-enriched uranium as feedstock for any breakout nuclear weapons production capability, no matter how farfetched such a scenario might be. This is why the Obama administration never paid much attention to the details of such a swap, since these details simply didn’t matter. The U.S. approach was never about facilitating a swap so much as it was about facilitating a kidnapping. The policy objective was to get the majority of Iran’s enriched uranium stocks under international control. Once Iran no longer had access to 1,600 kilograms of its 1,800-kilogram stockpile of low-enriched uranium, the Obama administration could blunt the fear-driven concerns over the immediacy of any Iranian nuclear capability. It would take Iran several months to reconstitute its low-enriched uranium stocks to the level needed to produce its hypothetical nuclear bomb. During this period, the U.S. would redouble its demands for suspension of uranium enrichment and develop a comprehensive package of stringent economic sanctions that would be imposed on Iran should it fail to cooperate.

The fatal flaw in the U.S. approach was that it failed to recognize that such policy formulations may work on paper but in the real world things are far more complicated. The Obama administration had hoped for immediate Iranian agreement to the fuel swap. Once Iran’s enriched uranium was safely out of Iran, the U.S. would then redouble its diplomatic pressure to suspend enrichment activities while simultaneously pressing for international consensus on sanctions. U.S. policy formulators envisioned a seamless transition between these various stages of policy implementation. But Iran, by agreeing in principle to a fuel swap, but demanding closer scrutiny of the details inherent in any such deal, complicated implementation of the U.S. plan.

By December 2009, a point at which the U.S. had hoped to have the Iranian uranium under its control and a sanctions campaign under way, Iran had yet to agree to the specifics of any fuel swap but at the same time publically remained committed to the concept. That approach paralyzed the U.S.-led effort to rally support behind sanctions since most nations did not want to do anything that would threaten the fuel swap negotiations. As 2010 rolled around, the Iranian delay tactics forced the U.S. to shed all pretenses around the fuel swap. While Iranian negotiators spoke of a potential swap formula that could unfold over the course of several months, the U.S. spoke of a swap timetable stretching out several years, making such a swap useless for the purpose it was ostensibly being instituted for—the Iranian nuclear research reactor and the manufacture of medical isotopes.

With the true U.S. policy objective thus exposed, Iran last week announced that it would carry out its own indigenous enrichment of uranium to the 19.5 percent needed to fuel the research reactor. Whether Iran has the technical or practical capabilities necessary to bring such a plan to fruition is debatable. While reconfiguring its existing centrifuge cascades to produce 19.5 percent enriched uranium is not impossible, Iran has never before attempted to process enriched uranium into nuclear fuel rods. Likewise, there is a question about the viability of Iran’s feedstock of uranium hexafluoride (UF6), the gaseous material that is fed into the centrifuges for the purpose of enriching uranium.

Iran’s stores of foreign-procured UF6 are nearly exhausted. So is the stock of UF6 that Iran produced using foreign supplies of natural uranium. What is left for Iran is UF6 produced from indigenous sources of natural uranium. However, these stocks are believed to be contaminated with molybdenum, a metallic substance the presence of which creates destructive mass-distribution problems when Iran’s centrifuges are spun up to the more than 60,000 revolutions per minute needed to extract enriched uranium from the UF6 feedstock. If Iran cannot come up with the means to extract the molybdenum from its indigenous UF6, then short of finding an outside supplier of natural uranium or clean UF6 (activities that would have to be declared to the IAEA), the Iranian enrichment program will halt.

This would not prevent Iran from using its existing stocks of 3.5 percent enriched uranium as the feedstock for any effort to produce 19.5 percent uranium. Reconfiguration of its centrifuges to conduct this higher level of enrichment is likewise well within the technical capability of Iran. The ultimate testament to the failure of U.S. nonproliferation policy when it comes to Iran’s nuclear program is the reality that, in an effort to retard any Iranian nuclear breakout scenario that saw Iran rapidly converting its low-enriched stocks to high-enriched fissile material, the United States has actually facilitated such a scheme. Had the U.S. sought to lock Iran’s enrichment infrastructure in at a 3.5 percent capacity, any deviation from that level would have been viewed with suspicion. However, by creating the conditions that have Iran now seeking to build enrichment facilities capable of 20 percent enrichment, the Obama administration has significantly reduced the threshold of detection and prevention which was in place when all Iran produced was 3.5 percent enriched uranium.
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Copyright © 2010 Truthdig, L.L.C.

Scott Ritter was a Marine Corps intelligence officer from 1984 to 1991 and a United Nations weapons inspector in Iraq from 1991 to 1998. He is the author of numerous books, including "Iraq Confidential" (Nation Books, 2005) , "Target Iran" (Nation Books, 2006) and his latest, "Waging Peace: The Art of War for the Antiwar Movement" (Nation Books, April 2007).

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/02/18-6

Interest is building in small nuclear reactors

Interest is building in small nuclear reactors
Babcock & Wilcox's small nuclear reactor design is a rising contender amid the push in the U.S. to revive its nuclear energy industry. The Tennessee Valley Authority, First Energy and Oglethorpe Power have forged agreements with Babcock to get the design cleared for commercial use. Though none of the three utilities agreed to purchase a reactor, their commitment is expected to boost the technology


http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703444804575071402124482176.html?mod=dist_smartbrief

Israeli PM Netanyahu: If Iran Gets Nukes, So Will Turkey, Egypt, And Saudi Arabia From The Jerusalem Post:

Israeli PM Netanyahu: If Iran Gets Nukes, So Will Turkey, Egypt, And Saudi Arabia
From The Jerusalem Post:

MOSCOW - Following his meeting with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and local Jewish community leaders on Monday, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu went out to eat with his wife Sara at a Moscow restaurant and coincidentally ran into Greek Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs George Papandreou.

The Greek premier, facing an economic crisis back home, asked if he could join the Netanyahus.

In an apparent to prod the Greeks toward action on the Iranian issue Netanyahu said that a nuclear would eventually lead to the Nuclearization of Turkey, Greece’s long-time nemesis, as well as Egypt and Saudi Arabia.

Read more ....
http://www.jpost.com/International/Article.aspx?id=168849

The Iran Nuclear Issue: The View from Beijing

The International Crisis Group has compiled a very insightful report on this subject that may be accessed at http://www.crisisgroup.org/home/index.cfm?id=6535&l=1 . The summary of their briefing is below.
The Iran Nuclear Issue: The View from Beijing

Asia Briefing N°100
17 February 2010

OVERVIEW

The revelation in 2009 of nuclear facilities near Qom intensified international criticism of Iran’s opaque nuclear development. As Western countries prepare to pursue tougher sanctions at the UN, China’s acquiescence as a permanent Security Council member is vital but will be difficult to obtain. Beijing is reluctant to pursue further sanctions, insisting that a solution to the nuclear impasse must be sought first and foremost through diplomacy. It emphasises that as long as Iran honours its Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) commitments not to use nuclear technology for military purposes, it should not be obliged to forgo its rights, including enrichment, under that accord.

Beijing is unconvinced that Iran has the ability to develop nuclear weapons in the short term and does not share the West’s sense of urgency about the possibility of a nuclear-armed Iran, despite the risks that this would present to China’s long-term interests. Moreover, it does not believe the sanctions proposed by the West will bring about a solution to the issue, particularly given the failure of this approach so far. And while Beijing has stated that it supports a “nuclear-free” Middle East, it does not want to sacrifice its own energy interests in Iran. However, if China finds itself facing unanimous support for sanctions from other Security Council members, it will delay but not block a resolution, while seeking to weaken its punitive terms.

China has vested interests in a good relationship with Iran. Iran is China’s third largest source of imported crude oil and possesses the abundant energy reserves that the rising power needs to sustain its rapid economic growth. China’s thirst for energy and its vast foreign reserves are an ideal complement to Iran, which has the world’s second-largest crude oil reserves but desperately needs investment to develop them. But China’s priorities in Iran go beyond economic interests. Strong bilateral relations help to counter U.S. dominance in the Middle East and increase Beijing’s strategic leverage. China sees Iran’s influence in the Middle East and Central Asia as useful to advancing its political, economic and strategic agenda in that region. The two countries also share important historical and political affinities, shaped by suspicion towards the West and reinforced by an experience of sanctions and a perception of U.S. interference in their domestic politics. At the same time, the condemnation by some Iranian clerics of Chinese actions following the July 2009 Xinjiang riots has also led Beijing to view the relationship through the lens of protecting its domestic stability.

Chinese officials have been pursuing a delay-and-weaken strategy with regard to UN sanctions by focusing on the importance of a negotiated settlement. Pursuit of the diplomatic track delays punitive action and maximises Beijing’s bargaining power with regard to both Iran and the West. Nevertheless, if Russia finally supports sanctions, China will likely come on board to avoid diplomatic isolation. Ultimately, Beijing will not side with Iran at the expense of its relations with the U.S. Despite recent troubles in the Sino-U.S. relationship, China still values those ties more than its ties to Tehran. To protect its interests, however, it will negotiate strongly to weaken the terms of proposed sanctions.

This briefing examines the factors influencing China’s policy towards Iran, the framework within which Beijing will ultimately make its decisions and the likely implications for international efforts to address the nuclear issue, particularly within the UN.

PDF: http://www.crisisgroup.org/library/documents/asia/north_east_asia/b100_the_iran_nuclear_issue___the_view_from_beijing.pdf

MS Word: http://www.crisisgroup.org/home/index.cfm?id=6535&l=1

Joe Cirincione: Obama's Nuclear Decision Day

Joe Cirincione: Obama's Nuclear Decision Day from The Huffington Post
by Joe Cirincione
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/joe-cirincio...d_b_465223.html

A secret meeting in the White House today will set US nuclear policy. It will also test Barack Obama's sincerity and determination.

NRC licensing board suspends licensing hearings for Yucca Mountain

NRC licensing board suspends licensing hearings for Yucca Mountain
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission's Atomic Safety and Licensing Board has suspended most licensing hearings connected to the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear-waste repository in Nevada upon request of the Department of Energy. The board's decision was praised by Nevada lawmakers. Las Vegas Review-Journal/Stephens Washington News Bureau//The Associated Press

http://www.lvrj.com/news/breaking_news/nrc-judges-halt-yucca-license-hearings-84486597.html

NATO and the Nuclear Umbrella

NATO and the Nuclear Umbrella
Wolfgang Ischinger and Ulrich Weisser, International Herald Tribune
A recent report by George Robertson, a former secretary general of NATO, and two co-authors, Franklin Miller and Kori Schake, criticizes the German proposal to withdraw the remaining American nuclear weapons from German territory as damaging not only to Germany, but to the alliance as a whole.
Full Article

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/16/opinion/16iht-edischinger.html

The Nuclear Industry: Unexpected Reaction The Economist

The Nuclear Industry: Unexpected Reaction
The Economist
The nuclear industry got an unexpected boost from Barack Obama in his State of the Union address last month.
Full Article

http://www.economist.com/businessfinance/displaystory.cfm?story_id=15457220

Missile Threat Signals U.S./Russia Reset Strains Conor Sweeney, Reuters

Missile Threat Signals U.S./Russia Reset Strains
Conor Sweeney, Reuters
Moldova's rebel region of Transdniestria said on Monday it was ready to host Russian tactical missiles if the Kremlin were to ask, escalating growing tensions about defense between Moscow and Washington.
Full Article

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE61E35E20100215?type=politicsNews

Saudi Minister Plays Down Iran Sanctions

Saudi Minister Plays Down Iran Sanctions
Abeer Allam, Financial Times
Saud al-Faisal, the Saudi foreign minister, on Monday played down the efficacy of tighter sanctions against Iran and said immediate action was needed to avert a nuclear arms race in the region.
Full Article
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/675747bc-1add-11df-88fa-00144feab49a.html?nclick_check=1

Dangerous Hysteria over Iran’s Nuclear Programme By Patrick Seale

Dangerous Hysteria over Iran’s Nuclear Programme
By Patrick Seale
12 February 2010

Iran’s announcement that it is to start enriching uranium to close to 20 per cent, under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency, to produce radioisotopes for its medical reactor in Tehran has triggered a fresh outbreak of hysteria. There have been renewed calls for sanctions to force it to close down its nuclear programme.

But the more Iran is threatened, the more defiant it becomes -- and the more remote the chance of an agreement. The latest quarrel seems to be about the quantity of low enriched uranium Iran is ready to swap with Russia and France in exchange for nuclear fuel rods for medical purposes -- rods which cannot be used to make weapons.

As Iran is deeply suspicious of Western intentions, it has proposed sending its uranium abroad in batches. But its Western interlocutors want it to surrender the bulk of its uranium supplies all at once – some 1,200 kilograms – so as to preclude any possibility of enrichment to weapons-grade levels.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki held talks last week with Yukiya Amano, the new Japanese IAEA chief, who replaced the Egyptian Muhammad al-Baradei. Mottaki described the talks as ‘very good’, while a more sceptical Amano called for an ‘accelerated’ dialogue.

Two rival coalitions now confront each other on the international scene: the first wants to impose harsher sanction on Iran and, if sanctions prove ineffective, to bomb its nuclear facilities; the second recommends a patient dialogue with Tehran, and nothing but dialogue.

Somewhere between the two – and uneasily holding the ring between them -- is U.S. President Barack Obama. His early policy of engagement with Iran has hardened into something like impatient opposition to the Islamic regime, and even into a reluctant acceptance that tougher sanctions may be necessary. This is a serious blow to his policy of reaching out to the Arab and Muslim world.

Israel and its hard-line friends in the United States are prominent in the first coalition. They have long campaigned for resolute action against Iran – as they did for the overthrow of Saddam Hussein in the 1990s. Their claim is that an Iranian bomb would pose an ‘existential’ threat to Israel as well as a global menace. ‘We must recruit the whole world to fight [Iran’s President Mahmud] Ahmadinejad,’ President Shimon Peres declared recently, echoing the bellicose tone Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu adopts whenever he refers to Iran.

Israel has repeatedly hinted that it would resort to military action on its own if diplomacy failed to curb Iran’s nuclear ambitions. Among European countries, France has been the most vocal in calling for harsher sanctions, with some voices in Britain not far behind.

In his recent appearance before the Iraq inquiry in London, Tony Blair, Britain’s unrepentant former prime minister, mentioned Iran no fewer than 58 times. There was a need to ‘deal’ with Iran, he suggested, much as he and former U.S. President George W Bush had dealt with Iraq in 2003!

The coalition advocating dialogue with Tehran includes China, Turkey, Brazil, and -- with more or less unanimity -- Iran’s Arab neighbours. Arab states have no wish to see a nuclear-capable Iran, but they are far more frightened of an Iranian-Israeli war, which could have devastating consequences for the security and stability of the region and for Arab oil exports.

China, Iran’s leading trading partner, is opposed to sanctions and seems ready to veto any move at the Security Council to impose them. ‘To talk about sanctions at this moment will complicate the situation and might stand in the way of finding a diplomatic situation,’ Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said in Paris last week. Turkey, in turn, has long advocated negotiations with Iran and has resolutely opposed military action against it – which is undoubtedly one of the reasons why Turkish-Israeli relations have cooled this past year. Brazil, which now occupies a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council, has also advocated a dialogue with Tehran. Ahmadinejad was in Brazil last November, while President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is expected in Iran in May.

Amr Moussa, the secretary general of the Arab League, has urged the Arabs to take the initiative in talking to Iran, with the aim of drawing it into some sort of regional security arrangement. The idea is gaining some ground in Arab circles.

As Iran presses ahead with uranium enrichment – as it has the right to do for peaceful purposes under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) -- the contest between the two coalitions is likely to sharpen. On balance, however, the scales are tilted against punishing Iran more than it is already being punished. Obama may agree to some tightening of the sanctions regime -- in Paris this week his Defence Secretary Robert Gates said ‘the only path that is left to us...is the pressure track’ – but he has by no means joined those hawks who blatantly recommend bombing Iran. Indeed, Obama is widely believed to have warned Israel that an attack on Iran would damage U.S. interests.

Obama’s pro-Israeli critics have accused him of ‘appeasement.’ At last week’s Munich security conference, U.S. Senator Joe Lieberman, chairman of the Senate committee on homeland security, declared: ‘We have a choice here: to go to tough economic sanctions to make diplomacy work or we will face the prospect of military action against Iran.’ ‘A nuclear-armed Iran,’ he added, ‘would provoke chaos in the Middle East, send world oil prices soaring and end any hope of a peaceful solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.’

These predictions would seem to be entirely mistaken. Far from provoking chaos, an Iranian bomb could stabilise the region and curb Israel’s aggressive behaviour towards its neighbours-- something the Arabs have not managed to achieve in the past six decades. Indeed, by creating a balance of power with Israel, and thereby limiting its freedom of action, Iran might actually encourage Israel to make peace with its neighbours, including the Palestinians. The only development which would send oil prices soaring is an Israeli attack on Iran.

All the indications are that the debate about what to do about Iran will continue without either side landing a decisive blow. It may be that events inside Iran will bring matters to a head. Yesterday, 11 February, was the anniversary of the 1979 revolution. The whole world was watching to see whether anti-government protests would manage to affect the future policies of the Islamic Republic.

MEC International Ltd.

Registered in England No. 3212282,
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Obama's Remarks on Energy By Barack Obama

February 16, 2010
Obama's Remarks on Energy
By Barack Obama

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, everybody. Thank you. Please have a seat. Have a seat. Good morning, everybody. Before I begin let me just acknowledge some of the people who are standing behind me here: First of all, two people who have been working really hard to make this day happen -- Secretary Steven Chu, my Energy Secretary -- Steven Chu. (Applause.) And my White House advisor on everything having to do with energy, Carol Browner. (Applause.)

I want to acknowledge the outstanding governor of Maryland, Martin O'Malley, as well as his lieutenant governor, Anthony Brown. (Applause.) We've got Mark Ayers from the building trades, and Billy Hite from the UA Plumbers and Pipefitters -- give them a big round of applause. (Applause.) Gregory Jaczko, who's with the Nuclear Energy Commission, is here. Where is he? (Applause.) Ed Hill, president of IBEW International. (Applause.) And I want to thank Chuck Graham and everybody here at Local 26 for their great hospitality. (Applause.)

Thank you for the warm welcome. Thanks for showing me around. I was just mentioning that I got a chance to pull the first fire alarm since I was in junior high. (Laughter.) And I didn't get in trouble for it.

This is an extraordinarily impressive facility, where workers are instructed on everything from the installation of sophisticated energy hardware and software to the basics of current and resistance. We need to look no further than the workers and apprentices who are standing behind me to see the future that's possible when it comes to clean energy.

It's a future in which skilled laborers are helping us lead in burgeoning industries. It's a future in which renewable electricity is fueling plug-in hybrid cars and energy-efficient homes and businesses. It's a future in which we're exporting homegrown energy technology instead of importing foreign oil. And it's a future in which our economy is powered not by what we borrow and spend but what we invent and what we build.

That's the bright future that lies ahead for America. And it's one of -- it's a future that my administration is striving to achieve each and every day. We've already made the largest investment in clean energy in history as part of the Recovery Act -- an investment that is expected to create more than 700,000 jobs across America -- manufacturing advanced batteries for more fuel-efficient vehicles, upgrading the power grid so that it's smarter and it's stronger, doubling our nation's capacity to generate renewable energy. And after decades in which we have done little to increase the efficiency of cars and trucks, we've raised fuel economy standards to reduce our dependence on foreign oil while helping folks save money at the pump.

But in order to truly harness our potential in clean energy we're going to have to do more, and that's why we're here. In the near term, as we transition to cleaner energy sources, we're going to have to make some tough decisions about opening up new offshore areas for oil and gas development. We'll need to make continued investments in advanced biofuels and clean coal technologies, even as we build greater capacity in renewables like wind and solar. And we're going to have to build a new generation of safe, clean nuclear power plants in America.

That's what brings us here. Through the Department of Energy -- under the leadership of Nobel prize-winning physicist, Steven Chu -- although, just a quick side note: When he was talking to some of the instructors here, and they were talking about currents and this and that and the other, I indicated to him that he could have saved a lot of money. Instead of getting a Ph.D., he could have come here and learned some of the same stuff. (Laughter and applause.) You know, the instructors here were just keeping up -- they were right there with him.

But through the Department of Energy and Secretary Chu's leadership, we are announcing roughly $8 billion in loan guarantees to break ground on the first new nuclear plant in our country in three decades -- the first new nuclear power plant in nearly three decades. (Applause.)

It's a plant that will create thousands of construction jobs in the next few years, and some 800 permanent jobs -- well-paying permanent jobs -- in the years to come. And this is only the beginning. My budget proposes tripling the loan guarantees we provide to help finance safe, clean nuclear facilities -- and we'll continue to provide financing for clean energy projects here in Maryland and across America.

Now, there will be those that welcome this announcement, those who think it's been long overdue. But there are also going to be those who strongly disagree with this announcement. The same has been true in other areas of our energy debate, from offshore drilling to putting a price on carbon pollution. But what I want to emphasize is this: Even when we have differences, we cannot allow those differences to prevent us from making progress. On an issue that affects our economy, our security, and the future of our planet, we can't keep on being mired in the same old stale debates between the left and the right, between environmentalists and entrepreneurs.

See, our competitors are racing to create jobs and command growing energy industries. And nuclear energy is no exception. Japan and France have long invested heavily in this industry. Meanwhile, there are 56 nuclear reactors under construction around the world: 21 in China alone; six in South Korea; five in India. And the commitment of these countries is not just generating the jobs in those plants; it's generating demand for expertise and new technologies.

So make no mistake: Whether it's nuclear energy, or solar or wind energy, if we fail to invest in the technologies of tomorrow, then we're going to be importing those technologies instead of exporting them. We will fall behind. Jobs will be produced overseas, instead of here in the United States of America. And that's not a future that I accept.

Now, I know it's been long assumed that those who champion the environment are opposed to nuclear power. But the fact is, even though we've not broken ground on a new power plant -- new nuclear plant in 30 years, nuclear energy remains our largest source of fuel that produces no carbon emissions. To meet our growing energy needs and prevent the worst consequences of climate change, we'll need to increase our supply of nuclear power. It's that simple. This one plant, for example, will cut carbon pollution by 16 million tons each year when compared to a similar coal plant. That's like taking 3.5 million cars off the road.

On the other side, there are those who have long advocated for nuclear power -- including many Republicans -- who have to recognize that we're not going to achieve a big boost in nuclear capacity unless we also create a system of incentives to make clean energy profitable. That's not just my personal conclusion; it's the conclusion of many in the energy industry itself, including CEOs of the nation's largest utility companies. Energy leaders and experts recognize that as long as producing carbon pollution carries no cost, traditional plants that use fossil fuels will be more cost-effective than plants that use nuclear fuel.

That's why we need comprehensive energy and climate legislation, and why this legislation has drawn support from across the ideological spectrum. I raised this just last week with congressional Republican leaders. I believe there's real common ground here. And my administration will be working to build on areas of agreement so that we can pass a bipartisan energy and climate bill through the Senate.

Now, none of this is to say that there aren't some serious drawbacks with respect to nuclear energy that have to be addressed. As the CEOs standing behind me will tell you, nuclear power generates waste, and we need to accelerate our efforts to find ways of storing this waste safely and disposing of it. That's why we've asked a bipartisan group of leaders and nuclear experts to examine this challenge. And these plants also have to be held to the highest and strictest safety standards to answer the legitimate concerns of Americans who live near and far from these facilities. That's going to be an imperative.

But investing in nuclear energy remains a necessary step. What I hope is that with this announcement, we're underscoring both our seriousness in meeting the energy challenge and our willingness to look at this challenge not as a partisan issue but as a matter that's far more important than politics -- because the choices we make will affect not just the next generation but many generations to come.

The fact is changing the ways we produce and use energy requires us to think anew; it requires us to act anew; and it demands of us a willingness to extend our hand across some of the old divides, to act in good faith, and to move beyond the broken politics of the past. That's what we must do; that's what we will do.

Thank you very much, everybody. Appreciate it. (Applause.)

END

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2010/02/16/obamas_remarks_on_energy_104428.html

Report: Japan eyes nuclear power co-op with U.S.

Report: Japan eyes nuclear power co-op with U.S.
Japan is seeking to forge a nuclear-cooperation deal with the U.S., according to a media report. This comes after the Japanese government declared that developing the power source will be part of its push for further growth. Arirang.co.kr (South Korea)

http://www.arirang.co.kr/News/News_View.asp?nseq=100232&code=Ne8&category=1

U.S. should amend nuclear deal with South Korea

U.S. should amend nuclear deal with South Korea
The nuclear power deal between the U.S. and South Korea should be revised to allow the Asian nation to reprocess spent fuel rods for peaceful purposes, according to this editorial. This comes after a U.S. official this past year stated that there was no need to change the agreement and the U.S. Senate doubted South Korea's intentions. Relations between the two countries could be affected should the U.S. decide to stop South Korea from reprocessing. Chosun Ilbo (South Korea)

http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2010/02/16/2010021600765.html

Nuclear industry official: U.S. lagging

Nuclear industry official: U.S. lagging
http://www.trib.com/news/state-and-regional/article_1ef52a26-2db4-5ffb-af90-0a7dfa9b06b5.html

China is ramping up nuclear energy sector, Areva executive says

China is ramping up nuclear energy sector, Areva executive says
The U.S., which has 104 nuclear reactors, is the biggest nuclear energy producer in the world, but China is catching up, according to Areva executive Robert W. Poyser. Speaking at a forum in Wyoming sponsored by the Citizens for Uranium Resource Education, Poyser said that "China is going to be producing up to 100 reactors over the next 20 years, and we're sitting here trying to figure out what to do." Star-Tribune (Casper, Wyo.)

http://www.trib.com/news/state-and-regional/article_1ef52a26-2db4-5ffb-af90-0a7dfa9b06b5.html

Official: U.S. to award Southern first nuclear loan guarantee

Official: U.S. to award Southern first nuclear loan guarantee
Southern this week is expected to receive a loan guarantee to construct and operate two nuclear reactors, an unidentified administration official said. The loan guarantees, which are meant to show President Barack Obama's support for the power source, will go toward the first new nuclear plants in almost 30 years, the official added. Reuters

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN1213242020100212?type=marketsNews

U.S. Airborne Laser Eliminates Target Missile
Friday, Feb. 12, 2010

The U.S. Missile Defense Agency used its Airborne Laser to eliminate a mock ballistic missile during a test yesterday, Reuters reported (see GSN, Aug. 20, 2009).

The test occurred at 8:44 p.m. Pacific Standard Time at the Point Mugu Naval Air Warfare Center-Weapons Division Sea Range not far from Ventura, Calif., Reuters reported.

"The Missile Defense Agency demonstrated the potential use of directed energy to defend against ballistic missiles when the Airborne Laser Testbed successfully destroyed a boosting ballistic missile," the agency stated.

"This was the first directed energy lethal intercept demonstration against a liquid-fuel boosting ballistic missile target from an airborne platform," it added.

The weapon is carried aboard a converted Boeing 747 and is intended to destroy ballistic missiles in the early stage of flight.

"The revolutionary use of directed energy is very attractive for missile defense, with the potential to attack multiple targets at the speed of light, at a range of hundreds of kilometers (miles), and at a low cost per intercept attempt compared to current technologies," the agency said (Wolf/Alexander, Reuters, Feb. 12).

Shortly after the first test, the Airborne Laser yesterday successfully targeted but intentionally did not destroy a solid fuel short-range missile, according to an agency press release. The weapon had been used to eliminate an identical missile on Feb. 3 (U.S. Missile Defense Agency release, Feb. 11).

http://gsn.nti.org/gsn/nw_20100212_9329.php

Boeing 747 uses laser to destroy missile

Boeing 747 uses laser to destroy missile

A U.S. military aircraft, equipped with an airborne laser device, successfully shot down a test missile in the sky off the central California coast Thursday night.

The high-energy laser, mounted on the nose of a modified Boeing 747-400F, was focused on the missile target during its boosting phase. The laser beam burned a hole in the side of the missile.

It was the first time that a laser weapon has engaged and destroyed an in-flight ballistic missile, and is the first time that any system has accomplished destroyed a missile as it was in its boosting phase.

More here:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35369649/ns/lo...ews-seattle_wa/

The Rise of U.S. Nuclear Primacy | Foreign Affairs by KA Lieber

The Rise of U.S. Nuclear Primacy | Foreign Affairs
by KA Lieber - 2008 - Cited by 36 - Related articles
Could the U.S. government really destroy all of an adversary's nuclear weapons in a nuclear first strike? Does Washington want that ability? ...

http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/61508/keir-a-lieber-and-daryl-g-press/the-rise-of-us-nuclear-primacy

America's Nuclear Strategy: Defensive or First Strike?

America's Nuclear Strategy: Defensive or First Strike?
Apr 18, 2000 ... The systems itemized above are the five essential ingredients of a first-strike capability. The US is vigorously pursuing each one and some ...
www.antiwar.com/orig/aldridge1.html

Europe's Five "Undeclared Nuclear Weapons States"

Europe's Five "Undeclared Nuclear Weapons States"
Are Turkey, Germany, Belgium, The Netherlands and Italy Nuclear Powers?
- by Michel Chossudovsky - 2010-02-12

http://globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=17550

IAEA Suggests Iran's New Enrichment Modest

IAEA Suggests Iran's New Enrichment Modest
George Jahn, Associated Press
AhmadinejadIran expects to produce its first batch of higher enriched uranium in a few days but its initial effort is modest, using only a small amount of feedstock and a fraction of its capacities, according to a confidential document shared Wednesday with The Associated Press.

But the document also indicated that Iran was keeping silent on whether or not it would ramp up production, which would bring it closer to the ability to produce the fissile core of nuclear weapons.
Full Article
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100210/ap_on_re_eu/iran_nuclear

* February 10, 2010 IAEA Report on Iran (PDF)
* ISIS Report: Iran's Enrichment for the Tehran Research Reactor
http://isis-online.org/isis-reports/detail/irans-enrichment-for-the-tehran-research-reactor-update/

Iran Is Now A Nuclear State

Iran Is Now A Nuclear State
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad addresses tens of thousands of Iranians gathered in Azadi (Freedom) Square in southwestern Tehran today, marking the 31st anniversary of the Islamic revolution

Iran is now a 'nuclear state', President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announced this morning.
He spoke as tens of thousands of people took to the streets in Tehran to mark the 31st anniversary of the Islamic revolution.Today Ahmadinejad told scores of cheering Iranians that the Islamic Republic is capable of producing weapons-grade uranium.

Read more
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1250127/Iran-Revolution-day-protests-Islamic-Republic-nuclear-state.html

More News On Iran

'Tense' Iran marks anniversary, confirms nuclear breakthrough -- CNN
http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/meast/02/11/iran.revolution.anniversary/index.html?section=cnn_latest

Iran Claims Nuclear Gain as Protesters Clash -- New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/12/world/middleeast/12iran.html

Ahmadinejad hails 'nuclear' Iran -- AFP
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hr1C01cHw8vZOgCpWHa6CxpgnAnA

Iran 'makes first batch of 20% enriched uranium' -- BBC
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8510451.stm

Iran Makes Batch of Highly Enriched Uranium -- Time Magazine/AP
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1963604,00.html

Technical setbacks cause Iran to falter in push to enrich uranium, report says -- Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/10/AR2010021003988.html

US wants UN sanctions resolution on Iran within weeks -- Reuters
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN092228220100209

US to Target Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps with New Sanctions -- Voice of America
http://www1.voanews.com/english/news/middle-east/US-Target-Irans-Revolutionary-Guard-Corps-New-Sanctions--84038362.html

Treasury Dept. sanctions four firms for ties to Iran's arms programs -- Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/10/AR2010021003415.html

ANALYShttp://in.news.yahoo.com/137/20100211/760/twl-analysis-china-silence-signals-softe.html

IS - China silence signals softening on Iran sanctions -- Yahoo News/Reuters
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100211/ap_on_re_as/as_china_iran_sanctions_3

Renewed focus on China position on Iran sanctions -- Yahoo News/AP

TVA board nominees support nuclear growth from World Nuclear News by Jeremy Gordon

TVA board nominees support nuclear growth
from World Nuclear News by Jeremy Gordon

Tennessee Valley Authority's (TVA's) proposed expansion of its nuclear power plant fleet is likely to get the backing of its board of directors after four nominees to the board expressed support for nuclear energy during a US Senate confirmation hearing.

http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/C-TVA_board_nominees_support_nuclear_growth-1002104.html

Jordan and U.S. Move Closer to Nuclear Pact Washington Seeks Civilian-Cooperation Deal, With Limits, as Prospect of Mideast Arms Race Looms

Jordan and U.S. Move Closer to Nuclear Pact
Washington Seeks Civilian-Cooperation Deal, With Limits, as Prospect of Mideast Arms Race Looms


Jordan is continuing discussions to finalize a civilian nuclear-cooperation deal with the U.S., officials said. The completion of the talks would make Jordan the second Arab state to get nuclear aid from the U.S.

Wall Street Journal, The

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704182004575055684101873228.html?mod=dist_smartbrief

Eximbank to financially support nuclear energy exports, exec says

Eximbank to financially support nuclear energy exports, exec says

The Export-Import Bank of Korea seeks to play an important role in nuclear-export business by establishing a lenders group to manage financing for local companies, Chairman Kim Dong-soo said. The financial institution will take part in the United Arab Emirates nuclear energy business and will do what it can to turn South Korea into an industry powerhouse, he added.

Korea Times, The
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/biz/2010/02/123_60551.html

Wash. lawmaker touts Hanford site as "ideal" for nuclear expansion

Wash. lawmaker touts Hanford site as "ideal" for nuclear expansion
Washington Republican Rep. Norman "Doc" Hastings said he supports the construction of another nuclear energy facility at the Hanford site. Speaking at a clean-energy gathering in Washington state, Hastings said that Hanford is an "ideal" site to expand nuclear production. KNDO-TV/KNDU-TV (Yakima, Wash.)

http://www.kndo.com/Global/story.asp?S=11951828

Yucca Mountain seen as possible reprocessing site Nuclear waste still up in air

Yucca Mountain seen as possible reprocessing site

Nuclear waste still up in air

Republican Senate and gubernatorial candidates in Nevada have stated their support for studying nuclear-waste reprocessing at Yucca Mountain, a week after a plan to store such material at the site suffered a setback. "If the safety precautions are there, we should do it," said U.S. Senate hopeful Danny Tarkanian, who placed reprocessing on top of his list of steps to diversify the state's economy. Las Vegas Review-Journal

http://www.lvrj.com/news/yucca-mountain-seen-as-possible-reprocessing-site-83787692.html

Iran moves closer to nuclear warheads

Iran moves closer to nuclear warheads
from The Washington Times stories: News by George Jahn ASSOCIATED PRESS
VIENNA, Austria -- Iran moved closer to being able to produce nuclear warheads Monday with formal notification that it will enrich uranium to higher levels, even while insisting that the move was meant only to provide fuel for its research reactor. Iranian envoy Ali Asghar Soltanieh told the Associated Press that he informed the International Atomic Energy Agency of the decision to enrich at least some of its low-enriched uranium stockpile to 20 percent, considered the threshold value for highly enriched uranium. Mr. Soltanieh, who represents Iran at the Vienna-based IAEA, also said that the U.N. agency's inspectors now overseeing ...
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/feb/08/iran-moves-closer-nuclear-warheads/

Official: Argentina's third nuclear plant to be completed this year

Official: Argentina's third nuclear plant to be completed this year
Work on the Atucha II nuclear power plant in Argentina will be finished by the end of the year, Planning Minister Julio De Vido said. The facility, which is projected to generate about 700 megawatts, will supply about 3% of the country's total electricity. The Wall Street Journal/Dow Jones Newswires

http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20100205-710936.html?mod=dist_smartbrief

GE Hitachi is looking to build nuclear facility in India's Gujarat state

GE Hitachi is looking to build nuclear facility in India's Gujarat state
GE Hitachi Nuclear said it is eager to construct its nuclear-power project in India's Gujarat state -- one of the sites the Indian government selected for U.S. reactor vendors. The company is seeking to bring in its next-generation 1,520-megawatt Economic Simplified Boiling Water Reactor model for the venture. The Hindu Business Line (India)
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2010/02/06/stories/2010020653130100.htm

Commentary: Pragmatic rules required to advance nuclear energy

Commentary: Pragmatic rules required to advance nuclear energy
President Barack Obama has emphasized the need to be realistic in the development of energy sources, including nuclear, according to this editorial. Regulatory agencies must follow through on Obama's pledge and craft pragmatic policies to develop and advance nuclear and other clean-energy sources, the editorial argues. The Detroit News

http://detnews.com/article/20100201/OPINION01/2010303/Energy-realism-includes-nuclear-power

Exelon's Rowe to Serve on Nuclear Waste Disposal Panel

Exelon's Rowe to Serve on Nuclear Waste Disposal Panel

More details are emerging on a plan by the Obama administration to set up a Blue Ribbon Commission to study and develop long-term solutions for storing spent nuclear fuel rods from the nation's power plants (DEN, Jan. 29, Ex-Rep. Hamilton, Scowcroft to Lead New DOE Nuclear Waste Panel), the Phoenix Business Journal reported. The panel, which will be led by former Rep. Lee Hamilton, D-Ind., and ex-National Security Advisor Brent Scowcroft, will include 15 commission members. Named to the panel were Exelon President and CEO John Rowe, former Sens. Pete V. Domenici, R-N.M., and Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., ex-FERC commissioner Vicky Bailey and ex-NRC commissioner Richard A. Meserve. The commission was given 18 months to ready an interim report and 24 months to submit the final version, but Hamilton said he hoped progress would "move on a faster track than that."


Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., said President Obama's endorsement of nuclear power, the commission and higher loan guarantees for construction would "enable the United States to catch up with the rest of the world in building the most reliable way to produce cheap, carbon-free electricity." The announcement of the commission, following news of the raised loan guarantees, rapidly spurred opposition from some environmentalists, Sustainable Business reported.


The Nuclear Information and Resource Service said 3,000 letters against nuclear power plants were sent to the White House in 48 hours. The group's president, Michael Mariotte, said Obama "needs to remember what Candidate Obama promised: no more taxpayer subsidies for nuclear power." Ellen Vancko, Union of Concerned Scientists nuclear energy and climate change project manager, said: "At a time when our country is struggling economically, it is a mistake to force U.S. taxpayers to assume financial risks that the private sector will not by guaranteeing tens of billions of dollars in risky loans to an industry with a track record of cancellations and defaults."

Sustainable Business via Reuters.com, Feb. 6; Phoenix (Ariz.) Business Journal, Feb. 5.

DOE news release, Jan. 29.

Dangerous steps in Iran's nuclear dance

Dangerous steps in Iran's nuclear dance
Just days after Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad said Tehran's nuclear fuel could be processed abroad, he ordered stockpiles of uranium to be enriched to a high degree domestically. Tehran's dualistic diplomacy is designed to increase Iran's bargaining ability in regards to a fuel deal, while proving a point to hawks in the United States. - Kaveh L Afrasiabi (Feb 8, '10)

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/LB09Ak01.html

Iran threat real, but Al-Qaeda danger greater: Clinton

Iran threat real, but Al-Qaeda danger greater: Clinton
Washington (AFP) Feb 7, 2010 - The Iranian nuclear threat is real but the United States faces an even greater danger from Al-Qaeda, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned in an interview Sunday. "In terms of a country, obviously a nuclear-armed country like North Korea or Iran pose both a real or a potential threat," Clinton told CNN's "State of the Union", making it clear the Iranians don't yet possess an atomic weapo ... more

http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Iran_threat_real_but_Al-Qaeda_danger_greater_Clinton_999.html

Moscow 'concerned' by US-Romania missile shield deal

Moscow 'concerned' by US-Romania missile shield deal
Moscow (AFP) Feb 5, 2010 - Russia's foreign ministry voiced its concern Friday at Romania's plans to host part of a new US missile shield system in Europe, saying it would seek explanations from Europe and Washington. "This is a serious matter which we will be analysing with care," the ministry said in a statement. "Naturally, we are concerned by this. There is a need to obtain clarifications. "We will raise this ... more

http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Moscow_concerned_by_US-Romania_missile_shield_deal_999.html

Defiant Ahmadinejad orders higher enrichment of uranium

Defiant Ahmadinejad orders higher enrichment of uranium

Tehran (AFP) Feb 7, 2010
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Sunday ordered Iran's atomic chief to begin higher uranium enrichment, raising the stakes in a dispute with the West days after seeming to accept a UN-drafted nuclear deal.

Ahmadinejad's declaration drew immediate fire from Britain, which said it was "clearly a matter of serious concern," while US Defence Secretary Robert Gates called for mounting "international pressure" on the Islamic republic.

In a speech at an exhibition on laser technology broadcast live on state television, Ahmadinejad blamed world powers for the stalemate over the nuclear fuel deal, but left the door open for possible negotiation over the proposal.

"I had said let us give them (world powers) two to three months and if they don't agree, we would start ourselves," he said.

"Now Dr (Ali Akbar) Salehi, start to make the 20 percent with the centrifuges," the hardliner told Iran's atomic chief, who was in the audience, referring to high-enriched uranium required as fuel to power a Tehran reactor.

Britain said that if Iran ploughed ahead with higher uranium enrichment, it would be in breach of five United Nations Security Council resolutions.

"Reports that Iran is planning to enrich some of their fuel to 20 percent level of enrichment are clearly a matter of serious concern," a spokeswoman for the foreign ministry said in a statement issued in London.

Gates, meanwhile, called on the international community to stand united against Iran.

"The international community has offered the Iranian government multiple opportunities to provide reassurance of its intentions. The results have been very disappointing," Gates said after meeting his Italian counterpart Ignazio La Russa in Rome.

"If the international community will stand together and bring pressure on the Iranian government, I believe there is still time for sanctions and pressure to work. But we must all work together."

Analysts called Ahmadinejad's comments an attempt to pressure Washington and drive a wedge between the six world powers, some of whom are still hesitant to back fresh sanctions against Tehran.

"Ahmadinejad wants to put pressure on the West, especially the US. He was responding to those in the West who do not want Iran to strike a deal," Iranian analyst Mohammad Saleh Sadeghian told AFP.

"I think that Iran prefers a swap deal over the option of producing the fuel" of 20 percent enriched uranium itself, he added.

A Western analyst who asked not to be named said Iranian declarations such as Ahmadinejad's on Sunday were attempts to "delay potential sanctions by dividing the six world powers without backing down on the nuclear programme."

World powers fear that Tehran wants to enrich uranium to very high levels for use in an atomic weapons programme, and hence want to remove its low-enriched uranium (LEU) through the UN-drafted deal.

Iran insists its nuclear enrichment drive is purely peaceful.

Tehran and world powers are locked in a stalemate over the UN-drafted deal, which envisages the Iran's 3.5 percent LEU being sent to Russia and France for enrichment to 20 percent and then returned as fuel for the Tehran reactor.

Ahmadinejad insisted that world powers "unconditionally" accept exchanging Iran's LEU for high purity 20 percent enriched uranium to be used as nuclear fuel for the Tehran reactor, which makes medical isotopes.

His statement comes after he indicated in an interview on state television last Tuesday that Iran was ready to send its LEU abroad for conversion into 20 percent nuclear fuel.

Iranian officials have opposed the UN-brokered proposal, saying they would prefer a simultaneous exchange on Iranian soil, a plan rejected by world powers.

Ahmadinejad said on Sunday that if the world powers "come forward and say 'we will exchange (uranium) unconditionally and cooperate on your reactors and medicine'... fine then we will cooperate" too.

Salehi also emphasised that world powers have little time left on a fuel deal with Iran.

"If they do not enter this fuel exchange we have to be ready for 20 percent enrichment," Fars news agency quoted him as saying.

http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Defiant_Ahmadinejad_orders_higher_enrichment_of_uranium_999.html

US doubts Iran claim nuclear deal 'close'

US doubts Iran claim nuclear deal 'close'
Ankara (AFP) Feb 6, 2010 - US Defense Secretary Robert Gates expressed doubts Saturday that a deal was close on Iran's disputed nuclear programme, as the UN atomic chief said Tehran presented no new proposals at talks in Germany. The comments come amid growing Western impatience with Iran for failing to respond clearly to a proposal for sending some of its uranium abroad for enrichment, amid fears Tehran may be trying ... more
http://www.spacewar.com/reports/US_doubts_Iran_claim_nuclear_deal_close_999.html

Iran opens two new missile plants

Iran opens two new missile plants

File image courtesy AFP.
by Staff Writers
Tehran (AFP) Feb 6, 2010
Defence Minister Ahmad Vahidi opened two new missile production plants on Saturday, just three days after Iran fired a rocket carrying live animals into space, state television reported.

The plants will produce a ground-to-air missile dubbed the Qaem (Rising) and a surface-to-surface missile dubbed Toofan 5 (Storm), the broadcaster said.

The Qaem is designed to target helicopters at low and medium altitudes, it added.

http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Iran_opens_two_new_missile_plants_999.html

Indian govt hails test of nuclear-capable missile

Indian govt hails test of nuclear-capable missile
Bhubhaneswar, India (AFP) Feb 7, 2010 - India successfully tested a nuclear-capable missile on Sunday, a defence ministry spokesman said, days after the government proposed a resumption of talks with arch-rival Pakistan. The surface-to-surface Agni-III missile with a range of more than 3,000 kilometres (2,000 miles) was fired from Wheeler Island, off the coast of the eastern state of Orissa. "It hit the target with pin-point a ... more

http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Indian_govt_hails_test_of_nuclear-capable_missile_999.html

Obama Budget Seeks 13.4 Percent Increase for National Nuclear Security Administration Walter Pincus, The Washington Post

Obama Budget Seeks 13.4 Percent Increase for National Nuclear Security Administration
Walter Pincus, The Washington Post
President Obama's fiscal 2011 budget blueprint calls for an increase in funding of more than 13 percent for the agency that oversees the U.S. nuclear weapons complex, a greater percentage increase than for any other government agency.
Full Article
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/02/AR2010020203884.html


President Obama's fiscal 2011 budget blueprint calls for an increase in funding of more than 13 percent for the agency that oversees the U.S. nuclear weapons complex, a greater percentage increase than for any other government agency.

The request could help reduce opposition to a new strategic arms control treaty with Russia. Republicans have argued that the Obama administration will jeopardize national security if it agrees to cuts in the U.S. nuclear arsenal without modernizing the country's remaining weapons.

The $11.2 billion request for the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) represents a 13.4 percent increase for the agency from the previous fiscal year. Most agencies across the rest of the government saw either no increase in the spending plan announced this week or a single-digit percentage increase.

At the NNSA, the Obama administration is seeking a funding increase of 25 percent, to $2 billion, for the continued safety and surety of the nuclear weapons stockpile. That would ensure funds for the agency to reach full production of the refurbished Navy W-76 Trident submarine warhead, to refurbish the B-61 bomb, and to study options for maintaining the W-78, the warhead in the Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile.

In addition, the budget request provides for a 10.4 percent increase, to $1.6 billion, in funds for additional work in science and technology to enhance confidence in the annual certification of the nuclear stockpile. An additional $2 billion would go to the long-term program to upgrade weapons-complex facilities, including a new plutonium facility for the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico and a uranium manufacturing plant at Oak Ridge, Tenn.
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Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), who has actively followed negotiations over a new nuclear treaty with Russia, said the increase in the budget was "a definite improvement over previous years." But he said he will be meeting with administration officials to make certain that the budget correlates with the upcoming Nuclear Posture Review and the 10-year modernization plan that could help in dealing with any future treaty.

Other observers already see the new budget as a boon for arms-control advocates.

"The budget signals that the price for the START follow-on agreement with Russia and Senate certification of the CTBT [Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty] is additional money for nuclear weapons modernization and production facilities," said Hans M. Kristensen, director of the Nuclear Information Project of the Federation of American Scientists. He said the additional funds for research will provide continued employment for scientists so that skills remain to build new nuclear weapons if needed.

Daryl Kimball, executive director of the Arms Control Association, said the proposed budget figures show that the administration is not allowing the nuclear arsenal to be degraded, as some critics have charged. Instead, Kimball said, the budget shows that there is "a major effort to extend the service lives of warheads."

"Even without the additional funding proposed by the administration, confidence in the ability to maintain U.S. warheads in the absence of nuclear test explosions has been increasing," he said.

Other large increases in funding requests at the NNSA pertain to nonproliferation, which President Obama has stressed as part of his arms-control agenda. An estimated $100 million will go to Russia as part of a $400 million commitment to help it dispose of plutonium.

Obama also requested $559 million for the Global Threat Reduction Initiative, an increase of 68 percent from the previous year. This is to aid in bringing under control additional nuclear materials from overseas and to convert research reactors fueled with highly enriched uranium to low-enriched uranium.

US certifies India-IAEA Safeguards Agreement on civil n-facilities

US certifies India-IAEA Safeguards Agreement on civil n-facilities



WASHINGTON: In yet another step towards full implementation of the India-US civil nuclear deal, President Barack Obama has certified that India
has placed its nuclear facilities under the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards.

Obama made the Congressionally-mandated certification Wednesday in a presidential memorandum to the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton asking her to have it inserted in the Federal Register that records all government actions.

Obama's confirmation that India has formally agreed to provide the UN nuclear watchdog access to a specified number of nuclear reactors takes the deal yet another step closer to implementation of the landmark deal. Military facilities are excluded from the safeguards agreement.

But a couple of other crucial steps are still pending. India and the US are still negotiating an agreement on reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel. The two sides are said to be on track to complete the talks by August as provided under the deal.

India also needs to approve liability protection for US companies. The Indian cabinet has approved the necessary legislation, but it has yet to be placed before parliament.

In a presidential memorandum released by the White House, Obama wrote: "I hereby determine and certify that:

1. The agreement between the government of India and the International Atomic Energy Agency for the application of safeguards to civilian nuclear facilities, as approved by the board of governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency on August 1, 2008 (the 'Safeguards Agreement'), has entered into force; and

2. The government of India has filed a declaration of facilities pursuant to paragraph 13 of the Safeguards Agreement that is not materially inconsistent with the facilities and schedule described in paragraph 14 of the Separation Plan present in the national Parliament of India on May 11, 2006, taking into account
the later initiation of safeguards that was anticipated in the Separation Plan."

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Politics/Nation/US-certifies-India-IAEA-Safeguards-Agreement-on-civil-n-facilities-/articleshow/5534227.cms

Iran Urged to Follow Up on Nuclear U-Turn Andrew Gully, Agence France-Presse

Iran Urged to Follow Up on Nuclear U-Turn
Andrew Gully, Agence France-Presse
AhmadinejadThe United States and key allies urged Iran Wednesday to follow up on a surprise U-turn from President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad by formally committing to a UN-brokered deal to swap enriched uranium for nuclear fuel.

But there was also alarm and the renewed threat of new sanctions as Ahmadinejad's apparent overture to the West on the nuclear issue was quickly followed by a rocket launch into space deemed by the White House "a provocative act."
Full Article

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gmGiZJEAAlvQazyWzxdCrk75rK2g

Pakistan nuclear arsenal safe: Top US spy chief

Pakistan nuclear arsenal safe: Top US spy chief
Washington (AFP) Feb 3, 2010 - Pakistan's military knows there were would "catastrophic consequences, primarily for Pakistan," if any of its nuclear bombs fell into the wrong hands, the top US intelligence official said Wednesday. Director of National Intelligence Dennis Blair's comments came one day after he told the Senate Intelligence Committee that "vulnerabilities exist" in Pakistan's nuclear safeguards. "The Pak ... more

http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Pakistan_nuclear_arsenal_safe_Top_US_spy_chief_999.html

# White House plan for Yucca Mountain draws concern from NEI

# White House plan for Yucca Mountain draws concern from NEI
The Nuclear Energy Institute expressed concern about the Obama administration's plan to revoke the license bid for Nevada's Yucca Mountain nuclear-waste project in a legally binding way that would keep it from being revived. The sector "does not support the termination of this program but believes that, if it is going to happen, it should occur in an orderly manner to permit the licensing process to be restarted if ever warranted," NEI President and CEO Marvin Fertel said. Las Vegas Review-Journal/Stephens Washington News Bureau

http://www.lvrj.com/news/breaking_news/-Yuccas-death-spiral-might-hit-NEI-snag-83411407.html

ooperative Threat Reduction Program to Expand Mission

ooperative Threat Reduction Program to Expand Mission
Global Security Newswire
Recent legislation could help the U.S. Cooperative Threat Reduction program more easily exploit opportunities to eliminate WMD materials while increasing its work outside the former Soviet Union, U.S. Senator Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) announced yesterday (see GSN, Dec. 22, 2009).
Full Article


http://www.globalsecuritynewswire.org/gsn/nw_20100128_7901.php

The President's Nuclear Vision

The President's Nuclear Vision
Joe Biden, The Wall Street Journal
BidenThe United States faces no greater threat than the spread of nuclear weapons. That is why, last April in Prague, President Obama laid out a comprehensive agenda to reverse their spread, and to pursue the peace and security of a world without them.

He understands that this ultimate goal will not be reached quickly. But by acting on a number of fronts, we can ensure our security, strengthen the global nonproliferation regime, and keep vulnerable nuclear material out of terrorist hands.
Full Article

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704878904575031382215508268.html

Saudi Arabia to take part in U.N. nuclear-safety accord

Saudi Arabia to take part in U.N. nuclear-safety accord
The government of Saudi Arabia declared it is joining the U.N.'s Nuclear Safety Convention. While the country does not have nuclear facilities, it is believed to have an interest in exploring the energy source. Under the convention, parties are required to comply with the standards set to maintain safety at plants. Zawya.com (Dubai, United Arab Emirates)/Agence France-Presse

http://www.zawya.com/Story.cfm/sidANA20100201T164656ZCMU82/Saudi%20to%20join%20nuclear%20safety%20pact

DOJ seeks $11.4M for defense fund against nuclear-waste litigation

DOJ seeks $11.4M for defense fund against nuclear-waste litigation
President Barack Obama is requesting that Congress provide the Justice Department with an additional $11.4 million to bolster its legal resources against lawsuits filed by utilities over the government's delay in collecting used nuclear fuel. The department said utilities have filed 72 suits representing more than $50 billion in alleged damages. "Defending these cases will involve intensive resources due to their complexity and high financial stakes," the DOJ wrote in its budget summary. The Wall Street Journal/Dow Jones Newswires

http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20100201-716852.html?mod=dist_smartbrief

Obama's energy budget earmarks $36 billion in loan guarantees

Obama's energy budget earmarks $36 billion in loan guarantees
President Barack Obama's budget request for 2011 includes $36 billion to back loans for new nuclear power plants -- twice as much as the current program. Nuclear energy proponents hope the guarantees will spur the construction of at least six nuclear power plants. The Washington Post

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/01/AR2010020101794.html?nav=emailpage

The great uranium stampede

The great uranium stampede

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/natural_resources/article7009629.ece

The Sunday Times January 31, 2010

The great uranium stampede
Everybody wants supplies as nuclear power comes roaring back


Australia's Olympic Dam deposit is the world's largest

Danny Fortson

It’s an odd place for a group of Frenchmen to pitch a tent city. Bakouma is one of the deepest, darkest corners of African jungle. From Bangui, the capital of the land-locked Central African Republic, it takes days to navigate the 800km of dirt track to this patch of virgin forest in the middle of the continent. Usually they go by light aircraft to a nearby landing strip.

Most of the 160 or so jungle dwellers are scientists but they are not there to count butterflies. They are drawing up plans for a uranium mine. Areva, France’s state-owned nuclear giant, is behind the project. It hopes to begin clearing forest next year after the government approves its plan.

Bakouma is not an isolated case. It’s just one example of a silent landgrab unfolding around the globe. After decades as a forgotten commodity, uranium, the radioactive element used as the primary fuel for nuclear power, is hot property again. Agents for companies, many of them government-controlled, are fanning out across the globe to gain access to the powdery, radioactive ore.

The scramble has been set off by the comeback of nuclear power. In the past couple of years countries that for decades had shunned it as an expensive, pariah technology have embraced it anew. Britain is leading the charge. The government envisages a new generation of reactors to replace the rickety old stations that will be retired in the coming years. The renaissance has taken hold elsewhere, from America to the Middle East and China.

For some, the resulting uranium rush is worrying. Rianne Teule, a nuclear campaigner at Greenpeace, said: “A lot of new countries in Africa are opening up to uranium mining but it is non-African companies that are exploiting the resource — Chinese, Canadian and French firms. It’s a whole new phase of colonialism.”

It’s also a serious business. As with oil, companies and governments are seeking to ensure supplies of a fuel that will play an increasing role as economies move away from traditional fossil-fuelled power.

Last year Kazakhstan leapfrogged Australia and Canada to become the largest supplier of uranium, producing about 14,000 tonnes, a fifth of global consumption.

Niger has also begun drawing the attention, and money, of big multinationals. Areva is investing more than €1 billion (£870m) in a giant new mine in the impoverished desert nation. CNNC, China’s state-owned nuclear firm, bought a stake in a project there last week. And Obtala Resources, a London-listed group run by Frank Scolaro, former chairman of Regal Petroleum, is in the final stages of negotiating licences for two new prospects.

“These are the kinds of projects we like,” said Scolaro. “The world is going nuclear and they will need the fuel.”

Today there are 439 reactors operating in the world. According to Steve Kidd at the World Nuclear Association, another 142 are in the pipeline, and 53 of these are already under construction. Of the latter, 20 are in China. “We forget that in France in the 1970s they were building five new reactors a year,” he said. “The Chinese are just doing what the French did, but on a Chinese scale.”

The mining boom has been boosted by a surge in the uranium price. “For three decades uranium cost $10 a pound because nuclear power wasn’t seen as very desirable. Now that we have all these concerns about the environment and going low-carbon, it’s different. It hit $137 [a pound] two years ago,” said Joe Kelly, head of nuclear fuel markets at Icap Energy. Today the spot price for unenriched uranium is $42 a pound, enough for most projects to go ahead.

The Cigar Lake mine in Saskatchewan, Canada, the world’s largest undeveloped high-grade deposit, jointly owned by Areva and Cameco of Canada, will open next year. It is one of eight that will begin producing in the next 12 months.

A couple of the biggest sources, meanwhile, could soon run out. America and Russia supply up to a fifth of the world’s needs from decommissioned bombs or stockpiles built up during their nuclear arms race. They are gradually releasing these into the market. “There is a worry that when the cold-war stocks run out we won’t be able to meet demand,” said Kelly.

The US Department of Energy has pledged not to flood the market. If it did, the price would crash and bring many new projects to an abrupt halt.

That would be no bad thing, said Greenpeace’s Teule, who argued that many of the new mining areas are virtually unregulated. A recent investigation in Niger uncovered radioactive shovels on sale in the local market in Arlit, a company town next to Areva’s mine there. The country is the world’s sixth-largest producer and has ambitions to move up the rankings. It employs only three nuclear inspectors to keep watch on the industry.

Areva acknowledged the problem but said the company has instituted a plan to stop radioactive “waste rock” and scrap metal from finding its way into the local community.

Teule said: “We are using this as a specific example to other countries about the problems they can get themselves into and to ensure there is proper regulation and reports on the environmental impact.”

Indeed, even as investors flood into Niger, companies are starting new projects in other poor countries such as Namibia and Malawi.

“Getting a mine going in Texas takes two bookshelves full of authorisations,” said one commentator. “In Niger you give a shovel to a guy on
$2 a day and you’re mining uranium.”

IAEA still in 'dialogue' on Iran enrichment deal: Amano

IAEA still in 'dialogue' on Iran enrichment deal: Amano
Davos, Switzerland (AFP) Jan 29, 2010 - UN nuclear watchdog chief Yukio Amano said Friday his agency was still trying to negotiate a uranium enrichment deal amid new Western warnings to the Islamic state over its atomic programme. "Our proposal is on the table. Dialogue is continuing," the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency told reporters at the World Economic Forum in Davos. Amano, who took over as hea ... more

http://www.nuclearpowerdaily.com/reports/IAEA_still_in_dialogue_on_Iran_enrichment_deal_Amano_999.html

President Obama to seek $54M for nuclear boost, source says

President Obama to seek $54M for nuclear boost, source says
President Barack Obama is reportedly expected to request that Congress provide $54 million in additional loan guarantees for nuclear energy in his 2011 budget proposal, according to a source in the administration. Obama endorsed nuclear energy in his State of the Union address, partly to win over Republican and moderate Democratic legislators in passing a comprehensive climate-and-energy measure. ABC News/The Associated Press

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/wireStory?id=9709897

Nuclear must play key role in in U.S. energy mix

Nuclear must play key role in in U.S. energy mix
The U.S. should consider nuclear as one of the energy solutions apart from solar, wind and geothermal power, writes Oregon State University professor emeritus John Ringle in this opinion article. Nuclear has no emissions and supplies power even at times when the wind does not blow and the sun does not shine. To keep the country's economy on track, the need for more nuclear facilities must be acknowledged. Statesman-Journal (Salem, Ore.)

http://www.statesmanjournal.com/article/20100130/OPINION/1300303/1049

Blue-ribbon panel to find "new strategy" on nuclear-waste storage

Blue-ribbon panel to find "new strategy" on nuclear-waste storage
The newly formed Blue Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future will study the "full range of scientific and technical options" available as alternatives to Nevada's Yucca Mountain site for storage and disposal of radioactive waste, according to Energy Department Secretary Steven Chu. "The debate over Yucca Mountain is over, as the president has made clear many times," said White House adviser Carol Browner. "It is time to move forward with a new strategy based on the best science and the advice of a broad range of experts." Las Vegas Review-Journal/Stephens Washington News Bureau

http://www.lvrj.com/news/federal-panel-to-examine-nuclear-waste-storage-83143397.html

Obama eyes significant increase for nuclear loan guarantees

* Sources: Obama eyes significant increase for nuclear loan guarantees
President Barack Obama will reportedly recommend increasing loan guarantees for new nuclear projects to more than $54 billion. The move reflects Obama's call in his State of the Union speech to boost nuclear-energy generation in the country. Industry groups including the Nuclear Energy Institute said the guarantees are vital because many companies lack the available capital to fund such facilities. BusinessWeek/Bloomberg (1/29) Email this Story

* GE exec lauds Obama's endorsement of nuclear power
President Barack Obama's support for nuclear energy may generate jobs and strengthen national security, General Electric Vice Chairman John Krenicki said. The power source "has to be a part of the solution for good energy policy, so we were delighted to hear President Obama endorsing nuclear," Krenicki said during the World Economic Forum. BusinessWeek/Bloomberg (1/28) Email this Story

* GE is still targeting nuclear deals in Middle East, chief says: General Electric said it still seeks to secure nuclear-power deals in the Middle East, even though it lost out on a contract worth $40 billion to construct four nuclear reactors for the United Arab Emirates, Chairman and CEO Jeff Immelt said. The company would "love to do a nuclear project" in the region, he added, where more countries are aiming for nuclear as an energy alternative to fossil fuels. ArabianBusiness.com

US Asks Pakistan to Stop Blocking Nuclear Talks

US Asks Pakistan to Stop Blocking Nuclear Talks
Eliane Engeler, Associated Press
Pakistan is delaying international talks on a ban on the production of new nuclear bomb material, insisting that any deal must also require its archrival India to reduce its existing stockpile.
Full Article

http://www.ajc.com/news/nation-world/us-asks-pakistan-to-283912.html

U.S. to Discuss S. Korea's Demand for Nuclear Reprocessing: Campbell

U.S. to Discuss S. Korea's Demand for Nuclear Reprocessing: Campbell
Hwang Doo-hyong, Yonhap News
The United States will discuss next week South Korea's demand for the right to reprocess spent nuclear fuel to help South Korean firms make inroads into the global nuclear energy market, a senior U.S. official said Wednesday.
Full Article

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/national/2010/01/28/69/0301000000AEN20100128001300315F.HTML

U.S. to Outline New Iran Sanctions

U.S. to Outline New Iran Sanctions
Jay Solomon and Joe Lauria, The Wall Street Journal
State of the UnionEditor's Note: With President Barack Obama warning North Korea and Iran of increased isolation in his first State of the Union address, the United States will reportedly present the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, plus Germany, a list of Iranian individuals and firms to target with sanctions, according to the Wall Street Journal. Meanwhile, German Chancellor Angela Merkel signals support for broad-based sanctions as Siemens, Europe's biggest engineering conglomerate, announced an end to business with Iran.
Full Article

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029692904293082.html

Mitsubishi is close to its first European reactor deal, executive says

Mitsubishi is close to its first European reactor deal, executive says
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries said there is a "high possibility" it will secure its first nuclear power plant contract in Europe next year. A utility in northern Europe is close to awarding a contract for Mitsubishi's 1,700-megawatt model with advanced fault-detection technology, said Akira Sawa, the head of atomic business at the firm. Bloomberg

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601130&sid=aqelzhM83i.w

South Korea aims to take part in Dutch research reactor project

South Korea aims to take part in Dutch research reactor project
The Netherlands' decision to stop the contractor-selection process for the building of the PALLAS research reactor presents a new opportunity for South Korean firms to bid for the project, the South Korean government said. If the Dutch government decides to push through with the project, South Korean firms will take measures to get the deal, the government said, citing that although the bidding process has been stopped, the project itself has not been canceled. Yonhap News Agency (Korea)

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2010/01/25/73/0501000000AEN20100125002100320F.HTML

Feds must begin repayment to utilities for nuclear storage

Feds must begin repayment to utilities for nuclear storage

The federal government should begin paying back the billions of dollars owed to utilities nationwide after a federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., ruled in favor of Nebraska Public Power District over the government's nonpayment of $159 million for nuclear-waste storage. The court rejected the government's excuse of unavoidable delays at the proposed permanent storage facility at Nevada's Yucca Mountain, according to this editorial. Lincoln Journal Star (Neb.)
http://journalstar.com/news/opinion/editorial/article_f9e37f9c-0895-11df-b193-001cc4c03286.html

Kuwait, Emirates sign up for reactors

Kuwait, Emirates sign up for reactors
Kuwait City (UPI) Jan 20, 2009 - Kuwait has signed a 20-year agreement with France to develop the Gulf state's nuclear industry, beefing up the Gulf states' leadership of an Arab drive to develop nuclear power that will reshape the region's energy policy. The United Arab Emirates sealed a $20.4 billion deal in December for the construction of four 1,400-megawatt nuclear power plants with a consortium led by South Korea ... more

http://www.nuclearpowerdaily.com/reports/Kuwait_Emirates_sign_up_for_reactors_999.html

South Korea Warns North on a First Nuclear Strike

South Korea Warns North on a First Nuclear Strike
Choe Sang-Hun, The New York Times
South Korea would launch a pre-emptive conventional strike against the North if there were clear indications of an impending nuclear attack, the South Korean defense minister said Wednesday in Seoul, even as both countries were holding talks about improvements at their jointly operated industrial park.
Full Article

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/21/world/asia/21korea.html

Gates Wants Nuclear Talks with China

Gates Wants Nuclear Talks with China
Bill Gertz, The Washington Times
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates discussed China's military buildup with Indian leaders in New Delhi on Wednesday and told reporters he wants talks with China on nuclear weapons, something Beijing has resisted.
Full Article

http://washingtontimes.com/news/2010/jan/21/gates-wants-nuclear-talks-with-china/

Iran Snubs Nuclear Fuel Deal: Diplomats

Iran Snubs Nuclear Fuel Deal: Diplomats
Simon Morgan, Agence France-Presse
Iran has effectively rejected a UN-brokered nuclear fuel supply deal, diplomats here said Wednesday, but the UN's atomic watchdog, the IAEA, insisted the offer was "still on the table."
Full Article

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jE3pxVq3i-X7WBWT5okVqSexEYQg

How to Protect Our Nuclear Deterrent George P. Shultz et al., The Wall Street Journal

How to Protect Our Nuclear Deterrent
George P. Shultz et al., The Wall Street Journal
WSJThe four of us have come together, now joined by many others, to support a global effort to reduce reliance on nuclear weapons, to prevent their spread into potentially dangerous hands, and ultimately to end them as a threat to the world. We do so in recognition of a clear and threatening development.

The accelerating spread of nuclear weapons, nuclear know-how, and nuclear material has brought us to a tipping point. We face a very real possibility that the deadliest weapons ever invented could fall into dangerous hands.
Full Article
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704152804574628344282735008.html

Egyptian government requests nuclear training from Korea

Egyptian government requests nuclear training from Korea
The Egyptian government has requested that South Korea conduct a training program for Egyptian nuclear technicians, according to the Korea International Cooperation Agency. The training will reportedly include a three- to four-year study program at the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute. Chosun Ilbo (South Korea)/Arirang News (South Korea)
http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2010/01/19/2010011900793.html

Going Nuclear for the Election

Going Nuclear for the Election
World Nuclear News
As Ukraine's presidential election approaches, hopeful candidate Yulia Tymoshenko has embarked on a remarkable pro-nuclear campaigning spree.
Full Article
http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NP_Going_nuclear_for_the_election_1501101.html

South Korea Likely to Win Nuclear Power Plant Bid in Turkey: Report

South Korea Likely to Win Nuclear Power Plant Bid in Turkey: Report
MarketWatch
South Korea is likely to win the bid for building two nuclear power plants in Sinop of Turkey, Yonhap News Agency reported Saturday, citing Turkish media.
Full Article
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/south-korea-likely-to-win-nuclear-power-plant-bid-in-turkey-report-2010-01-16

Germany Warns Iran It Faces New Sanctions

Germany Warns Iran It Faces New Sanctions
Allyn Fisher-Ilan, Reuters
Iran faces further sanctions unless it changes stance in talks over its nuclear program, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Monday, even if there is no United Nations agreement to act against Tehran.
Full Article
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE60H4PG20100118

Review Says Iran Never Halted Nuke Work in '03

Review Says Iran Never Halted Nuke Work in '03
Eli Lake, The Washington Times
U.S. intelligence agencies now suspect that Iran never halted work on its nuclear arms program in 2003, as stated in a national intelligence estimate made public three years ago, U.S. officials said.
Full Article
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/jan/19/review-says-iran-never-halted-nuke-work-in-2003/


* Newsweek: Coming Around on Iran
http://blog.newsweek.com/blogs/declassified/archive/2010/01/15/coming-around-on-iran.aspx

Pakistan Blocks Agenda at U.N. Disarmament Conference

Pakistan Blocks Agenda at U.N. Disarmament Conference
Jonathan Lynn, Reuters
PakistanArms negotiators failed to start talks on Tuesday on cutting nuclear weapons when Pakistan blocked the adoption of the 2010 agenda for the U.N.-sponsored Conference on Disarmament.

The conference, the world's sole multinational negotiating forum for disarmament, spent much of 2009 stuck on procedural wrangles raised by Pakistan after breaking a 12-year deadlock to agree to a programme of work.

The impasse on Tuesday suggested 2010 would be another year of halting progress.
Full Article
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE60I26U20100119