U.S. Ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency Gregory Schulte (Dieter Nagl/Getty Images). No Aid for Iranian Heavy-Water Reactor, IAEA Diplomats Agree By Greg Webb, Global Security Newswire VIENNA — Iran will not receive international aid to improve the safety of a heavy-water research reactor it is building at Arak, diplomats decided today.  Following a day of backroom negotiations, delegates at the International Atomic Energy Agency agreed to a plan that withholds funding for assistance without formally rejecting the request (see GSN, Nov. 21). Iran could reapply for the assistance in the future, but for now it will receive no agency aid at the Arak facility, which Tehran says is intended to produce isotopes for medical, agricultural and industrial applications...Full Story

Russia, Switzerland Call for BWC Verification Switzerland and Russia this week called for the introduction of legally binding verification measures to enforce an international ban on biological weapons (see GSN, Nov. 21)...Full Story

Lawmakers Pledge to Fight U.S. CW Disposal Slowdown U.S. lawmakers and other officials yesterday said they would oppose the latest Defense Department schedule for elimination of chemical weapons stocks, which now calls for work to be completed in 2023, the Associated Press reported (see GSN, Nov. 21)...Full Story

	Wednesday, November 22, 2006

No Aid for Iranian Heavy-Water Reactor, IAEA Diplomats Agree By Greg Webb, Global Security Newswire VIENNA — Iran will not receive international aid to improve the safety of a heavy-water research reactor it is building at Arak, diplomats decided today.  Following a day of backroom negotiations, delegates at the International Atomic Energy Agency agreed to a plan that withholds funding for assistance without formally rejecting the request (see GSN, Nov. 21). Iran could reapply for the assistance in the future, but for now it will receive no agency aid at the Arak facility, which Tehran says is intended to produce isotopes for medical, agricultural and industrial applications. U.S. and Western officials, however, have argued that Arak is far from a peaceful facility, but rather a plutonium production plant to advance Iran’s nuclear weapon ambitions. “It all sounds very innocent:  ‘safety,’ ‘medical isotopes.’  When you talk to experts, when you listen to the Board of Governors, when you read Security Council resolutions, there is a concern about this,” said one Western diplomat.  “If Iran were serious about wanting to produce medical isotopes, they would be pursuing what countries across the world do, which is the industry standard, a light-water reactor that would be suited for this.” “Given past board decisions, the widespread distrust of Iran’s nuclear program, and the risk of plutonium being diverted from this reactor for use in a weapon, the United States, Europe, and other board members cannot agree to have the IAEA assist the project on Arak,” U.S. Ambassador Gregory Schulte told reporters today. Under the deal achieved today, the agency’s technical cooperation committee agreed by consensus to make no recommendation to the IAEA Board of Governors on 832 projects the committee has been asked to approve for funding over the next two years. The board, which begins its final meeting of the year tomorrow, would then approve 831 projects and take no decision on the Arak request, according to officials here.  The issue will be first item on the agenda at tomorrow’s board meeting, a Western diplomat said. The deal follows several days of negotiations in which developing nations fought to avoid creating the precedent in which the board rejects technical assistance for peaceful projects.  Countering that effort were the United States and others who oppose offering any aid, even safety technology, to a program they believe is a nuclear weapons effort.  By not rejecting the Iranian request outright, the committee left open the possibility that Tehran could resubmit its proposal at a later date. “In theory, it could be put forward again, but quite frankly, if we’re in a similar situation as today, I cannot imagine that the board would approve it at that time either,” said the Western diplomat. The entire discussion was spurred by an Iranian request for aid on eight projects, all of which were assessed by agency officials as not furthering any effort to create nuclear weapon materials. The Iranian requests would cost $1.7 million over the next two years.  With the exception of Arak, none of the requests is controversial.  They include support for developing a nuclear waste facility and for establishing domestic regulatory tools for the Iranian nuclear industry. The Arak request, simply titled “Strengthening Safety Capabilities for the Construction of a Research Reactor” in the agency list of requests, asks for only $12,540 in 2007 and scales up to about $100,000 in 2008.  In a statement yesterday, Iran indicated that it plans to provide 50 percent of the funding for all of its requested projects. Back to top       D.P.R.K. Not Ready to Give up Nuclear Arms, Official Says Comments from a senior North Korean official indicate that the regime might not be prepared to give up its nuclear weapons, the Associated Press reported  today (see GSN, Nov. 21). “Why would we abandon nuclear weapons?” Deputy Foreign Minister Kang Sok Ju told reporters in Beijing.  “Are you saying we conducted a nuclear test in order to abandon them?” Kang called on the United States to lift sanctions levied against Pyongyang.  North Korea plans to make that demand at preparatory meetings that would be conducted before the next round of six-party talks, according to NHK television in Japan. The multilateral negotiations could resume in December, AP reported. “North Korea has an obligation to give up all nuclear weapons and all existing nuclear programs,” said Japanese Deputy Cabinet Secretary Hiroshi Suzuki.  “The whole purpose of resuming the six-party talks is to make sure that we have tangible progress or concrete results” (Associated Press/Yahoo!News, Nov. 22). Meanwhile, France yesterday released a North Korean ship after 10 days of weapons inspections, Agence France-Presse reported (see GSN, Nov. 16). A U.N. Security Council resolution approved in the wake of Pyongyang’s Oct. 9 nuclear test allows for inspections of ships entering or leaving North Korea. Inspectors found no weapons on board the cement freighter An Nok Gang, which arrived Nov. 11 from Indonesia at the French-administered island of Mayotte (Agence France-Presse/The Tocqueville Connection, Nov. 21). Back to top       China, India Agree on Nuclear Cooperation The leaders of China and India have pledged to increase nuclear cooperation between their countries, the Associated Press reported today (see GSN, Nov. 21). Chinese President Hu Jintao and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh met this week in New Delhi. While there had been indications that the two nuclear powers would sign an atomic trade pact akin to the pending U.S.-Indian deal, the agreement appears to be closer to a pledge than an actual plan (Matthew Rosenberg, Associated Press/Yahoo!News, Nov. 22). China this week expressed support for India’s efforts to expand its nuclear energy base, indicating that it might not use its position on the Nuclear Suppliers Group to block the U.S.-Indian deal, The Australian reported.  The group must approve relaxation of export rules for the agreement to go through. “Every country has the right to develop energy in any form, including nuclear form, to meet its development needs,” said Sun Yuxi, China’s ambassador to India (Bruce Loudon, The Australian, Nov. 21). Hu tomorrow heads for Pakistan, where a government spokeswoman labeled as “speculative” reports that China was prepared to build six nuclear reactors for Islamabad (Nirupama Subramanian, The Hindu, Nov. 22). Back to top       Canadian Report Backs IAEA Inspections of Company An internal report to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission recommended having the International Atomic Energy Agency inspect a company that works with radioactive material that could be used in hydrogen bombs, The Globe and Mail reported yesterday (see GSN, March 23). SRB Technologies Inc. of Ontario uses tritium for illumination of emergency-exit and safety signs, among others. The commission is scheduled to review the report next week at a licensing hearing for the company. The report states that inspections would “facilitate the implementation of Canada’s international safeguards obligations,” according to the Globe and Mail.  The inspection mandate should be included in the company’s next license, and give inspectors widespread access to the company’s manufacturing plant and its records, according to the report. The U.N. nuclear watchdog did not press for inspections of SRB, a diplomatic source close to the agency said.  Its monitoring efforts are focused on materials that are more likely to be used in nuclear weapons, particularly plutonium and enriched uranium. “To our knowledge … there has certainly not been any request from the agency, through the Canadians, to have anything concerning this company safeguarded,” the source said (Martin Mittelstaedt, The Globe and Mail, Nov. 21). Back to top       Pentagon Spends $500M for New Supercomputer The U.S. Defense Department yesterday agreed to pay two companies nearly $500 million for development of a new supercomputer, the Associated Press reported (see GSN, Nov. 16). Cray Inc. is set to receive $250 million under its contract with the Pentagon, while IBM will receive $244 million.  Both contracts are for four years. The companies will support work by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.  The agency’s High Productivity Computing Systems program seeks to create a computer calculation speed of two to four petaflops.  A petaflop is the performance of a quadrillion mathematical operations per second. Systems designed by Cray and IBM are already at the top of the list of the world’s fastest 500 computers.  The IBM system at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in New Mexico and the Cray machine at Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico are used primarily for military purposes related to nuclear weapons simulations, AP reported (John Markoff, Associated Press/New York Times, Nov. 21). Back to top

Russia, Switzerland Call for BWC Verification Switzerland and Russia this week called for the introduction of legally binding verification measures to enforce an international ban on biological weapons (see GSN, Nov. 21). The United States in 2001 led efforts that successfully blocked protocol measures to verify adherence to the Biological Weapons Convention.  Washington argued that the plan was unworkable and could enable industrial espionage against complying laboratories and companies. The sixth treaty review conference began Monday and continues through Dec. 8.  As nations meet again in Geneva, Switzerland renewed the push for inspections of some kind. Switzerland “remains convinced that the drafting of an additional, legally binding protocol for the verification of the provisions of the convention should remain the goal of the conference,” Swiss Ambassador Jurg Streuli said Monday. Switzerland has created a working document to reignite movement toward verification mechanisms, Swiss Radio International reported (Swiss Radio International/BBC Monitoring). Meanwhile, the Russian Foreign Ministry posted on its Web site Tuesday a statement supporting a binding inspection regime for the 155-member treaty. “The convention is an important and integral part of the international security system, and is an effective instrument of preventing the proliferation of biological weapons,” the statement said, according to Interfax.  “We remain convinced that the resumption of the talks on the drafting and adoption of a legally binding mechanism of verifying the implementation of the convention is the most effective way of strengthening the regime of nonproliferation of biological and toxic weapons” (Interfax, Nov. 21). Rapid advances in biosciences hold enormous possibilities for benefit but also represent reason to be vigilant, Brigitte Troyon, deputy director for international law and cooperation at the International Committee of the Red Cross, said during an address at the review conference. “What is technically possible, for example in the domain of genetic engineering, was unimaginable 10 years ago.  New breakthroughs and technologies in the life sciences have promising applications with enormous potential to benefit humanity.  But they will also make poisoning and the deliberate spread of disease easier, more lethal, more target-specific and more difficult to detect,” she said, according to a release from the Red Cross. Troyon also noted the increased involvement of groups outside diplomatic circles in preventing the spread and use of bioweapons.  Since 2001, there has been a greater participation from the public health sector, life scientists and industry, as well as law enforcement and the defense and security communities, she said. The Red Cross urged diplomats to take action on a number of measures to strengthen the convention, including: increasing efforts to gain universal adherence; increased involvement by nations in implementation and preventive efforts; adoption of national implementing legislation in nations where it is absent; scheduling of expert meetings to discuss scientific developments and the responsibilities of scientists and industry. The group also called for increased support for nations trying to implement BWC obligations (International Committee of the Red Cross press release, Nov. 22). Back to top       Health Labs Said Not Ready for Bioterrorism Many U.S. public health laboratories are not prepared to detect and respond to an act of bioterrorism, the Scripps Howard News Service reported yesterday (see GSN, Nov. 15). “There are a lot of vulnerabilities in our system,” said Jeffrey Levi, executive director of the Trust for America’s Health.  “The most basic is whether we can rapidly identify a problem and thoroughly investigate disease threats.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data reviewed by Scripps indicated a wide range of capabilities among states in detecting and diagnosing incidents of food poisoning. Health departments have been able to isolate the cause of an outbreak of food poisoning in only 36 percent of cases, Scripps reported.  That figure indicates problems in trying to track a case of bioterrorism. Health officials in Oregon never figured out that a 1984 salmonella outbreak was caused intentionally by followers of the Bhagwan Shri Rajneesh, Scripps reported.  Police found a laboratory and vials carrying salmonella cultures during a raid on the cult compound two years after the incident. “Our surveillance systems are only as strong as our weakest link,” said chief CDC spokesman Ton Skinner.  “We can do better.  It is important that all state and local health departments have the resources they need” (Thomas Hargrove, Scripps Howard News Service, Nov. 22). Meanwhile, New Hampshire hospitals last week conducted a bioterrorism drill, the Associated Press reported. The state’s 26 acute care hospitals participated in the Nov. 15 exercise, along with two rehabilitation facilities, a state hospital and a Veterans Affairs medical center. There was strong communication among the hospitals, according to an early assessment.  Officials hope the drill will highlight training needs.  Analysis of the exercise is expected to help hospitals and state agencies determine where improvements are needed in emergency planning, AP reported (Associated Press/Boston Globe, Nov. 21). Back to top

Lawmakers Pledge to Fight U.S. CW Disposal Slowdown U.S. lawmakers and other officials yesterday said they would oppose the latest Defense Department schedule for elimination of chemical weapons stocks, which now calls for work to be completed in 2023, the Associated Press reported (see GSN, Nov. 21). “I am going to continue to lead the fight to ensure that these heinous weapons are disposed of in a safe and timely manner,” said Senator Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). The Blue Grass Army Depot in Kentucky and the Pueblo Chemical Depot in Colorado would be the last sites emptied of chemical weapons.  Based on the latest schedule, complete disposal would occur 11 years after the final deadline allowed by the Chemical Weapons Convention. In April, U.S. officials indicated that work would not be finished before 2017. “I am disappointed that this is being delayed, and I will encourage our federal delegation to work with the Department of Defense to expedite the destruction of these weapons,” said Kentucky Governor Ernie Fletcher. “Unfortunately, it appears that everything we’ve got in this nation is going to Iraq, and that is the money drain not only on projects here, but all across the nation and it’s very unfortunate,” said state Senator Ed Worley.  “There very well may not be chemical weapons in Iraq, but there sure are in Richmond, Kentucky.” Pentagon spokesman Maj. Stewart Upton denied any connection between federal funding of chemical weapons disposal and the cost of the war in Iraq. “Destroying these weapons safely is not a fast, or simple, process,” Upton said in a prepared statement (Joe Biesk, Associated Press, Nov. 21). The slowdown in disposal is necessitated by funding requests from the Pentagon, the nongovernmental Chemical Weapons Working Group said yesterday.  Budget estimates call for delaying preparations to begin operations at Blue Grass from 2015 to 2017, the organization said.  Disposal operations would be extended from 2 1/2 years to 6 1/2 years. Pentagon documents indicate that stretching out disposal at Blue Grass and Pueblo would add $3.3 billion to the final price tag for the project, the group said. “It’s our understanding that the new budget plan would only allow the Kentucky facility to run four days a week instead of the desired seven days per week,” CWWG Director Craig Williams said in a press release. “This is preposterous,” he added.  “Shutting down the plant three days each week while still maintaining management payrolls, security costs and other expenses is absurd.  If there were ever an example of ‘penny-wise, pound foolish’ this is it” (Chemical Weapons Working Group release, Nov. 22). Back to top       Montenegro Joins Chemical Weapons Convention Montenegro last month deposited its instrument of succession to the Chemical Weapons Convention, according to a press release from the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (see GSN, Nov. 21). The newly independent Balkan nation is the 181st nation to join the pact that bans the development, possession and use of chemical weapons.  The international treaty enters into force for Montenegro retroactively to June 3, 2006, the date the country gained independence. The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons hopes to have all nations become party to the convention by 2007.  Fourteen states remain outside treaty (Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons release, Nov. 22). Back to top       Polish Chemical Experts to Guard NATO Summit Polish chemical weapons defense specialists have joined the security contingent for the upcoming NATO summit in Latvia, Agence France-Presse reported yesterday (see GSN, Oct. 5). The meeting of world leaders, including U.S. President George W. Bush, is scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday in the capital city of Riga. “The Polish contingent is made up of 95 soldiers who have been in Latvia since Saturday,” said Adam Kaczmarek, spokesman for the Brodnica-based army unit. “The Polish soldiers will be called into action in the event of a terrorist attack using chemical weapons and would ensure the evacuation of delegates at the summit,” he said. Poland also provided chemical weapons specialists to the 2004 Olympics Games in Athens, Greece (Agence France-Presse, Nov. 21). Back to top

Patriot Missiles Deployed to N.C. Military Base Patriot surface-to-air missiles have been deployed to Fort Bragg in North Carolina, the Associated Press reported (see GSN, Oct. 3). Officials described the missiles as part of a permanent arsenal designed to counter a spectrum of threats, including ballistic missiles and unmanned drones. The missiles will be operated by an air defense unit that is expected to relocate next year to Fort Bragg from Fort Bliss, Texas.  The unit previously was equipped with short-range Avenger missiles that would be used against aircraft (Associated Press/The News & Observer, Nov. 22).   Back to top

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