FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 2, 2005
CONTACT: Jennifer Linker, 202/939-2372, jlinker@CarnegieEndowment.org
In an April 29th op-ed in The Wall Street Journal, Henry Sokolski and George Perkovich challenge Iran’s argument about its “inalienable” right to enrich uranium under the Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT). Citing the overall intent of the NPT to curb the spread of dangerous nuclear technology, Sokolski and Perkovich argue that the right of states to develop "peaceful nuclear energy" is not absolute and Iran’s stance that a state can legally acquire all nuclear technology up to but not including a complete nuclear weapon is a misinterpretation of the treaty.
Citing Article III and IV, they note that non-nuclear weapons states can develop nuclear energy only "in conformity" with NPT restrictions; restrictions that include safeguards preventing the diversion of nuclear technology from peaceful uses to weapons. Sokolski and Perkovich hold that those nuclear activities and materials, including centrifuge enrichment of uranium and plutonium reprocessing, which cannot be safeguarded, cannot be protected under the NPT.
Sokolski and Perkovich propose that states pursuing dangerous nuclear fuel-related activities must present a clear economic case for developing civilian nuclear technology. The current large surplus of uranium enrichment capacity in the world makes nuclear fuel-related activities money losers; therefore they support curbing these activities for a period of time. During this pause, they recommend understanding what nuclear activities and materials the IAEA can and cannot safeguard, as well as returning to the treaty and clarifying what activities are allowed and under what circumstances.
The full commentary is available to WSJ subscribers at: http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB111474293254420461,00.html?mod=opinion%5Fmain%5Fcommentaries
Henry Sokolski is executive director of the Nonproliferation Policy Education Center. He is also co-editor with Patrick Clawson of Getting Ready for a Nuclear Ready Iran (forthcoming). George Perkovich is vice president for studies at Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and coauthor of Universal Compliance: A Strategy for Nuclear Security.
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