North Korea nuclear seals removed

North Korea nuclear seals removed

A sticking point in talks has been how to verify North Korea’s disarmament

The UN’s atomic watchdog says it has removed seals and surveillance cameras from part of North Korea’s main nuclear complex at Pyongyang’s request. North Korea says the move is part of a plan to reactivate the Yongbyon plant, and that it plans to return nuclear material to the site next week. The move comes amid a dispute over an international disarmament-for-aid deal. A similar step in 2002 sparked a crisis which eventually resulted in Pyongyang testing a nuclear weapon in 2006. The removal of seals and cameras “was completed today” at the site, a spokeswoman for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said. IAEA inspectors will have no further access to the reprocessing plant, she added. The US said North Korea’s decision to exclude UN monitors was “very disappointing” and urged Pyongyang to reconsider the move or face further isolation. “We strongly urge the North to reconsider these steps and come back immediately into compliance with its obligations as outlined in the six-party agreements,” White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said. He said that Washington remained “open to further discussions” with the North on their obligations for denuclearisation. The North has been locked in discussions for years over its nuclear ambitions with five other nations – South Korea, the US, China, Russia and Japan. Symbolic gesture Pyongyang began dismantling the reactor, which can be used to make weapons-grade plutonium, last November. However, on Friday it announced that it was working to reactivate it. North Korea was expecting to be removed from the US terror list after submitting a long-delayed account of its nuclear facilities to the international talks in June, in accordance with the disarmament deal it signed in 2007. Satellite view of nuclear site

It also blew up the main cooling tower at Yongbyon in a symbolic gesture of its commitment to the process. However, the US said it would not remove North Korea from its list of state sponsors of terrorism until procedures by which the North’s disarmament would be verified were established. North and South Korea have been technically at war since their 1950-53 conflict ended without a peace treaty. Fuel rods Experts say the Yongbyon plant could take up to a year to bring back into commission, so there will be no new plutonium production for a while. However, there is plenty already available in the form of the spent fuel rods, taken from the reactor core, but only removed to a water-cooled tank on the site, says the BBC’s John Sudworth in Seoul. It is this nuclear material that will now be introduced into the separate plutonium reprocessing plant, according to the information given to the IAEA. Some estimates suggest the fuel rods could yield about 6kg (13lbs) of plutonium within two to three months – enough for one atomic bomb to add to North Korea’s existing stockpile.

 

North Korea nuclear seals removed

North Korea nuclear seals removed

A sticking point in talks has been how to verify North Korea’s disarmament

The UN’s atomic watchdog says it has removed seals and surveillance cameras from part of North Korea’s main nuclear complex at Pyongyang’s request. North Korea says the move is part of a plan to reactivate the Yongbyon plant, and that it plans to return nuclear material to the site next week. The move comes amid a dispute over an international disarmament-for-aid deal. A similar step in 2002 sparked a crisis which eventually resulted in Pyongyang testing a nuclear weapon in 2006. The removal of seals and cameras “was completed today” at the site, a spokeswoman for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said. IAEA inspectors will have no further access to the reprocessing plant, she added. The US said North Korea’s decision to exclude UN monitors was “very disappointing” and urged Pyongyang to reconsider the move or face further isolation. “We strongly urge the North to reconsider these steps and come back immediately into compliance with its obligations as outlined in the six-party agreements,” White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said. He said that Washington remained “open to further discussions” with the North on their obligations for denuclearisation. The North has been locked in discussions for years over its nuclear ambitions with five other nations – South Korea, the US, China, Russia and Japan. Symbolic gesture Pyongyang began dismantling the reactor, which can be used to make weapons-grade plutonium, last November. However, on Friday it announced that it was working to reactivate it. North Korea was expecting to be removed from the US terror list after submitting a long-delayed account of its nuclear facilities to the international talks in June, in accordance with the disarmament deal it signed in 2007. Satellite view of nuclear site

It also blew up the main cooling tower at Yongbyon in a symbolic gesture of its commitment to the process. However, the US said it would not remove North Korea from its list of state sponsors of terrorism until procedures by which the North’s disarmament would be verified were established. North and South Korea have been technically at war since their 1950-53 conflict ended without a peace treaty. Fuel rods Experts say the Yongbyon plant could take up to a year to bring back into commission, so there will be no new plutonium production for a while. However, there is plenty already available in the form of the spent fuel rods, taken from the reactor core, but only removed to a water-cooled tank on the site, says the BBC’s John Sudworth in Seoul. It is this nuclear material that will now be introduced into the separate plutonium reprocessing plant, according to the information given to the IAEA. Some estimates suggest the fuel rods could yield about 6kg (13lbs) of plutonium within two to three months – enough for one atomic bomb to add to North Korea’s existing stockpile.

 

Will the world survive it?

A Wednesday. Will the world survive it? Image: A woman passes behind layers of the world’s largest superconducting solenoid magnet, one of the experiments preparing to take data at European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN)’s Large Hadron Collider particule accelerator.

It is one of the biggest and most controversial experiments to be carried out in recent times. On September 10, a machine costing a staggering $7.75 billion (Rs 31,000 crore) will be fired up to recapture conditions not seen since the birth of the universe almost 14 billion years ago. The machine, located at CERN, a Geneva-based nuclear research lab, will carry on the experiment inside a 27-km tunnel deep beneath the French-Swiss border.

 

Will the world survive it?

A Wednesday. Will the world survive it? Image: A woman passes behind layers of the world’s largest superconducting solenoid magnet, one of the experiments preparing to take data at European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN)’s Large Hadron Collider particule accelerator.

It is one of the biggest and most controversial experiments to be carried out in recent times. On September 10, a machine costing a staggering $7.75 billion (Rs 31,000 crore) will be fired up to recapture conditions not seen since the birth of the universe almost 14 billion years ago. The machine, located at CERN, a Geneva-based nuclear research lab, will carry on the experiment inside a 27-km tunnel deep beneath the French-Swiss border.

 

‘India has given up on nuclear tests’

There is no way that India can conduct nuclear tests now, believes Dr A N Prasad, former director of Bhabha Atomic Research Centre and a staunch opponent of the Indo-US civil nuclear deal.

Speaking on the NSG nod to the India-specific waiver, Dr Prasad told rediff.com, “It is certain that the Indian government has given up hopes of  testing nuclear devices in the future.”

Dr Prasad added, “At Vienna [Images], they will fix the language but the intent of the entire issue will not be known.”

 “Since the beginning of this nuclear issue, the discussion has been revolving around India’s commitment of voluntary moratorium on testing. Many countries were not satisfied with it. Even the Indian government started talking about that how Indian scientists have already obtained relevant data from the Pokhran tests. It was said that the government has been advised that India does not require to conduct nuclear tests. Public comments were made that now, computer simulation is sufficient to test devices. This shows that the government is reconciled about giving up nuclear tests. Rest of the fight was to avoid the backlash on the issue,” he observed.

NSG nod elicits mixed reactions

He alleges that, “Somewhere, the government must have given the assurance that India doesn’t require testing. The government has already said that India has the legal right to conduct nuclear tests and the United States has the legal right to react. The US has appreciated this statement. After a good amount of investment is done in the nuclear power sector, it will be difficult to return equipments, fuel, spares and resources. Because they have the right to react, your right to conduct tests is unlikely to be exercised at the cost of heavy economic fall-out.”

India gets NSG waiver by consensus

He pointed out that the International Atomic Energy Agency has stipulated that once an imported power plant comes under the purview of safeguards,  it will remain so till it is abandoned or it is unusable.

So, even if the fuel supplies are stopped, the power plants will be of no use to India.

Complete coverage: The Indo-US nuclear tango

Prasad did accept that, “The waiver obtained by India at Vienna will help Indian reactors get fuel. In that sense, it will be a great relief. It will help in the short term to mid-term prospects of the nuclear energy industry. But in the long run, it will be detrimental to India’s research programme for thorium based technology.”

According to Prasad, the nuclear power plant suppliers are bound to influence India’s policies, once they enter the market.

Text of revised draft for NSG

“The world is not well tuned to thorium based energy programmes, so the enriched uranium based plants manufacturers will push India in a certain direction,” Dr Prasad said.

 

Russia’s conflict with Georgia

US wary of punishing Russia for conflict with Georgia New York, Sep 4 (ANI): The Bush administration does not plan to draw up a “mindless list” of penalties that could alienate Russia because of its recent conflict with Georgia. Assistant Secretary of State for European Affairs Daniel Fried said Washington is keen to know how much Russia would like to isolate itself from the world. We don’t want to have a bad relationship with Russia. We’ve never wanted that,” the New York Times quoted Fried, as saying. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has asked her advisers to “think this (stand-off with Russia) through in a serious way,” as the Bush Administration is nearing its end. With the European Union failing to reach an agreement Monday on imposing sanctions for Moscow’s invasion of Georgia, Fried has been consulting with EU officials on “next steps,” to be taken, if any, against Moscow. Meanwhile, Vice-President Dick Cheney is on a visit to Georgia, Ukraine and Azerbaijan to assess the fall out of the conflict. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates has ordered a review of military cooperation agreements with Russia as part of a wider evaluation of relations in response to the continued presence of Russian troops in parts of Georgia. The review, a Pentagon spokesman said, encompasses the Pentagon’s Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), a program to combat the proliferation of nuclear, biological, chemical and other weapons of mass destruction. However, the most prominent program administered by the agency – known as Nunn-Lugar – will not be affected, said Mark Hayes, a spokesman for Sen. Richard G. Lugar of Indiana, the senior Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Georgia sent troops into the enclave of South Ossetia on Aug. 7 in an attempt to regain control of the republic, which had declared independence from Georgia on several occasions. Russia retaliated by sending troops into South Ossetia; another disputed enclave, Abkhazia; and Georgia. Despite agreeing to a cease-fire brokered by France last month, Russian troops remain in parts of Georgia. Before the Russian incursion, Gates said, the United States thought it could have a “long-term strategic dialogue” with Russia. But the invasion has called into question the entire premise of U.S.-Russia talks, he said, adding that ties could be negatively affected for years. Other activities subject to review include: Partnership for Peace exercises, several bilateral military exercises, several naval exercises and tabletop exercises, in which participants study strategy around a table or in a classroom. The Bush administration also is putting off implementation of an Agreement for Peaceful Nuclear Cooperation, or the so-called “123 Agreement,” which was approved in May. A senior U.S. official said there should have been “a clear high-level warning to the Russians,” but the Bush administration did not issue one because it “didn’t think they would invade Georgia proper.” Mr. Fried echoed other U.S. and European calls on Moscow to fully respect a cease-fire and to pull all its troops out of Georgia, and said the West is struggling to figure out how to “make clear that [the Russians’] acts against Georgia and threats against other neighbors are unacceptable” without antagonizing the Russian people. (ANI)

 

Concern over French nuclear leaks

Concern over French nuclear leaks A French nuclear monitoring body has expressed concern at the number of leaks from French nuclear power stations in recent weeks. The director of Criirad, an independent body, said the organisation was worried by the numbers of people contaminated by four separate incidents. In the most recent leaks, about 100 staff at Tricastin, in southern France, were exposed to low doses of radiation. It came two weeks after a leak forced the temporary closure of a reactor. There has also been a 10-fold increase in the number of incidents reported by people working in the French nuclear power industry, Criirad director Corinne Castanier said. “This type of contamination is a recurring problem. But that many people in such a short period of time, this worries us,” she said, adding that most incidents rated fairly low on a scale used to judge the potential danger of nuclear incidents. Ms Castanier linked the high number of incidents to an increased pressure to deliver energy quickly and suggested that working conditions were getting worse at power facilities. ‘No health problem’ Electricite de France says Wednesday’s incident at Tricastin – a huge nuclear complex near the town of Avignon – was not connected to the earlier uranium leak at the plant. The Tricastin nuclear site contains a power plant and a treatment facility The staff at Tricastin were “slightly contaminated” by radioactive particles that escaped from a pipe at a reactor complex, an EDF spokeswoman said. The company says sensors detected a rise in the radiation level while maintenance work was being carried out at a reactor that had been shut since 12 July. The rise in radiation prompted 97 EDF and maintenance subcontractors to be evacuated and sent for medical tests. “Seventy of them show low traces of radioelements, below one 40th of the authorised limit,” EDF said, adding that the incident would not affect people’s health or the environment. “What concerns us is less the level of the people contaminated than the number of people contaminated,” EDF spokeswoman Caroline Muller told the Associated Press news agency. Safety concerns Two weeks ago, the authorities had to issue a ban on fishing and water sports in two local rivers after 30 cubic metres of liquid containing unenriched uranium leaked from a broken underground pipe onto the ground and into the water. The environment minister has since ordered tests of all France’s nuclear power plants to ensure such leaks have not gone undetected elsewhere. On Friday, energy company Areva said liquid containing slightly enriched uranium leaked at another of its sites in south-east France. The same day, 15 EDF workers were exposed to what the company called “non-harmful” traces of radioactive elements at the Saint-Alban plant in the Alpine Isere region. The incidents have raised questions about the state-run nuclear industry, at a time when some countries are considering nuclear energy because of the soaring price of oil, correspondents say. France derives more than 75% of its electricity from its 59 nuclear power plants, and President Nicolas Sarkozy has recently announced plans to expand the nuclear programme. Here is The Tricastin nuclear site contains a power plant and a treatment facility

Source: BBC

 

Concern over French nuclear leaks

Concern over French nuclear leaks A French nuclear monitoring body has expressed concern at the number of leaks from French nuclear power stations in recent weeks. The director of Criirad, an independent body, said the organisation was worried by the numbers of people contaminated by four separate incidents. In the most recent leaks, about 100 staff at Tricastin, in southern France, were exposed to low doses of radiation. It came two weeks after a leak forced the temporary closure of a reactor. There has also been a 10-fold increase in the number of incidents reported by people working in the French nuclear power industry, Criirad director Corinne Castanier said. “This type of contamination is a recurring problem. But that many people in such a short period of time, this worries us,” she said, adding that most incidents rated fairly low on a scale used to judge the potential danger of nuclear incidents. Ms Castanier linked the high number of incidents to an increased pressure to deliver energy quickly and suggested that working conditions were getting worse at power facilities. ‘No health problem’ Electricite de France says Wednesday’s incident at Tricastin – a huge nuclear complex near the town of Avignon – was not connected to the earlier uranium leak at the plant. The Tricastin nuclear site contains a power plant and a treatment facility The staff at Tricastin were “slightly contaminated” by radioactive particles that escaped from a pipe at a reactor complex, an EDF spokeswoman said. The company says sensors detected a rise in the radiation level while maintenance work was being carried out at a reactor that had been shut since 12 July. The rise in radiation prompted 97 EDF and maintenance subcontractors to be evacuated and sent for medical tests. “Seventy of them show low traces of radioelements, below one 40th of the authorised limit,” EDF said, adding that the incident would not affect people’s health or the environment. “What concerns us is less the level of the people contaminated than the number of people contaminated,” EDF spokeswoman Caroline Muller told the Associated Press news agency. Safety concerns Two weeks ago, the authorities had to issue a ban on fishing and water sports in two local rivers after 30 cubic metres of liquid containing unenriched uranium leaked from a broken underground pipe onto the ground and into the water. The environment minister has since ordered tests of all France’s nuclear power plants to ensure such leaks have not gone undetected elsewhere. On Friday, energy company Areva said liquid containing slightly enriched uranium leaked at another of its sites in south-east France. The same day, 15 EDF workers were exposed to what the company called “non-harmful” traces of radioactive elements at the Saint-Alban plant in the Alpine Isere region. The incidents have raised questions about the state-run nuclear industry, at a time when some countries are considering nuclear energy because of the soaring price of oil, correspondents say. France derives more than 75% of its electricity from its 59 nuclear power plants, and President Nicolas Sarkozy has recently announced plans to expand the nuclear programme. Here is The Tricastin nuclear site contains a power plant and a treatment facility

Source: BBC

 

Bush and Brown’s warning to Iran

President Bush warns Iran that "all options" are on the table Gordon Brown and President George Bush have warned Iran to accept their “offers of partnership” or face tough sanctions and international isolation. The UK prime minister said he wanted to maintain a dialogue with Tehran, but if Iran ignores UN resolutions then sanctions would be intensified. Europe would take action to freeze overseas assets of Iran’s biggest bank and impose new oil and gas sanctions. The two were speaking at a press conference after talks in London. The trip is part of Mr Bush’s European tour – although he dismissed reports that it would be his last before leaving office as “speculation”. Iran’s nuclear ambitions In their talks on Monday the two leaders discussed issues including Iraq and Afghanistan, Burma and Zimbabwe and oil and food prices. Iran has been accused of not co-operating with the UN over its nuclear programme, amid fears it is enriching uranium to use in weapons. The prime minister said the Iranians did not have to choose a “path of confrontation” and Britain would do “everything possible” to maintain dialogue with Tehran. They face serious isolation and the people who are suffering are the Iranian people President Bush UK to boost Afghan troops Sketch: The Bush and Brown show But he said if it ignored UN resolutions, they would intensify sanctions and face “further isolation”. President Bush said Tehran’s demand for nuclear power for civilian purposes was “justifiable” – but could be met by Russia’s offer to supply them with fuel. In a message to Tehran, he said: “You bet you have a sovereign right, absolutely, but you don’t have the trust of those of use who have watched you carefully when it comes to enriching uranium.” Mr Brown said Britain would urge Europe to impose “further sanctions” on Iran and Europe would take action to freeze the overseas assets of the country’s biggest bank and impose new sanctions on oil and gas. Troop numbers President Bush thanked Mr Brown for his “strong statement” and added: “The Iranians must understand that when we come together and speak with one voice we are serious.” Let me thank President Bush for being a true friend of Britain Gordon Brown Bush and Brown in Belfast In Pictures: Bush visit He said pressure was necessary to “solve this problem diplomatically” – but added: “Iranians must understand, however, that all options are on the table.” Mr Brown, who became prime minister a year ago, and President Bush, who leaves office in six months’ time, also discussed Afghanistan, with Mr Brown announcing there would be an increase in British troop numbers. Mr Brown described the US president as a “true friend of Britain” while President Bush praised Mr Brown for being “tough on terror” and said it was in “all our interests” to help people in Afghanistan and Iraq. And he dismissed reports of a split between the UK and US on troop numbers in Iraq as “typical”. “He’s left more troops in Iraq than initially anticipated and like me, we will be making our decisions based on conditions on the ground … without an artificial timetable.” President Bush said history would judge whether the military tactics could have been different in Iraq, but he stood by the decision to remove Saddam Hussein as the right one for “our security”, for peace and for 25 million Iraqis. He said it was important to support democracy “at the heart of the Middle East”: “It’s a democracy that’s not going to look like America, it’s not going to look like Great Britain, but it’s a democracy that will give government responsive to the people”. He said it had “absolutely” been worth it and democracy in Iraq would make it easier to deal with “the Iranian issue” and would send a message to reformers and dissidents. He dismissed the idea that “perhaps freedom is not universal – maybe it’s only western people who can self govern” as “the ultimate form of political elitism”. After the press conference in Downing Street, Mr Bush and Mr Brown travelled to Stormont, Belfast, for talks with Northern Ireland First Minister Peter Robinson and his deputy, Martin McGuinness.

 

Bush and Brown’s warning to Iran

President Bush warns Iran that "all options" are on the table Gordon Brown and President George Bush have warned Iran to accept their “offers of partnership” or face tough sanctions and international isolation. The UK prime minister said he wanted to maintain a dialogue with Tehran, but if Iran ignores UN resolutions then sanctions would be intensified. Europe would take action to freeze overseas assets of Iran’s biggest bank and impose new oil and gas sanctions. The two were speaking at a press conference after talks in London. The trip is part of Mr Bush’s European tour – although he dismissed reports that it would be his last before leaving office as “speculation”. Iran’s nuclear ambitions In their talks on Monday the two leaders discussed issues including Iraq and Afghanistan, Burma and Zimbabwe and oil and food prices. Iran has been accused of not co-operating with the UN over its nuclear programme, amid fears it is enriching uranium to use in weapons. The prime minister said the Iranians did not have to choose a “path of confrontation” and Britain would do “everything possible” to maintain dialogue with Tehran. They face serious isolation and the people who are suffering are the Iranian people President Bush UK to boost Afghan troops Sketch: The Bush and Brown show But he said if it ignored UN resolutions, they would intensify sanctions and face “further isolation”. President Bush said Tehran’s demand for nuclear power for civilian purposes was “justifiable” – but could be met by Russia’s offer to supply them with fuel. In a message to Tehran, he said: “You bet you have a sovereign right, absolutely, but you don’t have the trust of those of use who have watched you carefully when it comes to enriching uranium.” Mr Brown said Britain would urge Europe to impose “further sanctions” on Iran and Europe would take action to freeze the overseas assets of the country’s biggest bank and impose new sanctions on oil and gas. Troop numbers President Bush thanked Mr Brown for his “strong statement” and added: “The Iranians must understand that when we come together and speak with one voice we are serious.” Let me thank President Bush for being a true friend of Britain Gordon Brown Bush and Brown in Belfast In Pictures: Bush visit He said pressure was necessary to “solve this problem diplomatically” – but added: “Iranians must understand, however, that all options are on the table.” Mr Brown, who became prime minister a year ago, and President Bush, who leaves office in six months’ time, also discussed Afghanistan, with Mr Brown announcing there would be an increase in British troop numbers. Mr Brown described the US president as a “true friend of Britain” while President Bush praised Mr Brown for being “tough on terror” and said it was in “all our interests” to help people in Afghanistan and Iraq. And he dismissed reports of a split between the UK and US on troop numbers in Iraq as “typical”. “He’s left more troops in Iraq than initially anticipated and like me, we will be making our decisions based on conditions on the ground … without an artificial timetable.” President Bush said history would judge whether the military tactics could have been different in Iraq, but he stood by the decision to remove Saddam Hussein as the right one for “our security”, for peace and for 25 million Iraqis. He said it was important to support democracy “at the heart of the Middle East”: “It’s a democracy that’s not going to look like America, it’s not going to look like Great Britain, but it’s a democracy that will give government responsive to the people”. He said it had “absolutely” been worth it and democracy in Iraq would make it easier to deal with “the Iranian issue” and would send a message to reformers and dissidents. He dismissed the idea that “perhaps freedom is not universal – maybe it’s only western people who can self govern” as “the ultimate form of political elitism”. After the press conference in Downing Street, Mr Bush and Mr Brown travelled to Stormont, Belfast, for talks with Northern Ireland First Minister Peter Robinson and his deputy, Martin McGuinness.