Posted on 31-5-2004

U.S. Revives Efforts to Retrieve Nuclear Materials
Environment News Service (ENS), May 28, 2004

U.S. Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham has announced a global initiative
to intensify and accelerate efforts aimed at preventing high risk nuclear
and radiological materials from falling into the hands of terrorists or
rogue states.

Making the announcement at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)
in Vienna, Austria, at a meeting with IAEA senior officials, Abraham said
that the program is designed to address the threat posed by the entire
range of nuclear materials.

The new program, called the Global Threat Reduction Initiative, aims to
minimize as quickly as possible the amount of nuclear material available
that could be used for nuclear weapons. It will seek to put into place
mechanisms to ensure that nuclear and radiological materials and related
equipment, wherever they may be in the world, are not used for malicious
purposes. "We will do this by the securing, removing, relocating or
disposing of these materials and equipment - whatever the most appropriate
circumstance may be - as quickly and expeditiously as possible," Abraham
said.

The United States and other countries are concerned that terrorists may
steal or acquire high-enriched uranium or spent nuclear reactor fuel from
a research or other facility to produce a nuclear bomb or, more likely, a
dirty bomb - a device that disperses radioactive materials with
conventional explosives. "We are forced to assume that rogue states and
terrorists, in concert with for-profit proliferators, will act vigorously
to achieve their ends," he said.

At a press conference, IAEA chief Dr. Mohamed ElBaradei said security
issues have become a global priority in the past several years, with
nuclear weapons related know-how spreading extensively. He said this makes
the control of nuclear material that could be used for nuclear weapons
extremely critical, and welcomed the proposal on the part of Secretary
Abraham and the United States. "The proposal is a continuation and
extension of initiatives that the IAEA, the USA and others have been
working on for many years, and with renewed intensity in the past couple
of years, to address nuclear security around the world," Dr. ElBaradei
said.

The Global Threat Reduction Initiative includes accelerating the ongoing
repatriation of Russian origin, high-enriched uranium fuel and spent
nuclear fuel of both Russian and U.S. origin. "We will first work in
partnership with Russia to repatriate all Russian-origin fresh HEU fuel by
the end of next year," Abraham said. "We will also work with Russia to
accelerate and complete the repatriation of all Russian-origin spent fuel
by 2010. We will do this on a priority basis according to security threat,
so that we remove or secure the most dangerous materials first."

The program will retrieve high-enriched uranium sent by Moscow to 20
reactors in 17 countries and ship it back to Russia for storage at the
Dmitrovgrad All-Russia Institute for Atomic Reactors east of Moscow. “I am
pleased to see the Secretary join the chorus of voices that have called
for more urgent action on this front," said Kenneth Luongo, executive
director of the Russian-American Nuclear Security Advisory Council, an
independent, nongovernmental research organization which advises both the
Russian and U.S. governments on nuclear policy. “This was the right
decision at a time when terrorist threats against the U.S. are
intensifying. We’ve delayed too long and we need to move out rapidly on
this mission," Luongo said.

The cores of civilian research reactors that use high-enriched uranium
will be converted to use low-enriched uranium that cannot be used to make
nuclear weapons. Equipment not covered by existing threat reduction
efforts will be identified and secured.

Abraham said that despite progress made by the United States and Russia in
improving the security of nuclear materials, more comprehensive and urgent
efforts are needed to respond to emerging and evolving threats. He said
that a significant amount of such materials in research reactors and other
equipment around the world still poses a proliferation challenge. Abraham
noted that more than 200 research reactors are close to the end of their
lifespans, and an additional 400 have already been shut down or
decommissioned. Abraham said that more money and international cooperation
will be required to meet this challenge and complete the job.

The United States will establish a single organization within the
Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration to focus
exclusively on these efforts. It plans to dedicate more than $450 million
to them. International and global cooperation will be an integral part of
the Global Threat Reduction Initiative. Secretary Abrahams proposed that
the IAEA and international community join in holding a Global Threat
Reduction Initiative Partners' Conference.

This conference would examine how to address material collection and
security in places where a broader international effort is required. It
would also focus on material collection and security of other
proliferation materials, such as those located at conversion facilities,
reprocessing plants, and industrial sites, as well as the funding of such
work.

Nonproliferation experts have noted that important questions about the new
initiative remain unanswered, the Russian-American Nuclear Security
Advisory Council warned. They want details on the types of incentives that
will be necessary to convince countries to relinquish their
highly-enriched uranium (HEU) and convert reactors utilizing this
material.

The Council questions whether the U.S. will assist with the shutdown of
other older HEU-fueled reactors, wonders how the United States intends to
recover almost two-thirds of the HEU it has supplied to foreign reactors
that is not encompassed by the current U.S. spent fuel take-back program.

In Vienna, Secretary Abraham expressed appreciation for the efforts of the
staff of the United Nations nuclear agency, who are tasked with monitoring
safety of all nuclear installations around the world and compliance with
international treaties. "Believe me when I say that you labor on the
frontlines of the 21st century's greatest conflict - a conflict between
the civilized nations of the Earth, and the terrorists and terrorist
states that would use devastating technologies to destroy them."

Tens of millions of people in New York, Rome, Geneva, Tokyo, Sydney,
London, and other spots all over the globe will sleep soundly tonight
because people like you and others who work on these challenges are
tireless in their efforts," Abraham said. "My government takes your
mission very seriously. It is our mission as well. We thank you, and we
pledge our determination and resources to help you go about the business
of making the world a safer place."

Copyright Environment News Service (ENS) 2004. All Rights Reserved.