When it comes to spent nuclear fuel reprocessing, the choice facing the United States is between denial and restraint, argued James Acton before the Blue Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future. The real success of the American policy of restraint, first implemented at the end of the Ford administration, has been that it avoided encouraging new states from embarking on civilian reprocessing programs. An American decision to support reprocessing could have the unintended consequence of enhancing proliferation risks.
Evidence to the Blue Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future
Nuclear proliferation is a political problem and the key to assessing proliferation risks is political judgment.
More work from Carnegie
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Europe’s Fledgling Economic Statecraft and the Trump ChallengeDonald Trump’s victory underscores the need for the EU to rethink its political economic model. As it adapts its policies, the union must recognize the trade-offs between its quest for economic security and its global identity as a champion of the rules-based order.
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