Clear or Nuclear: Will Saudi Arabia Get the Bomb?

Al-Arabiya
May 20, 2013
Link
By: Dr. Naser El-Tamimi

As the impasse over Tehran’s nuclear program worsens, those most likely to be directly affected by an Iranian bomb are showing greater alarm. While the media fixates on Israel and its possible reaction, other regional players have no less at stake.

Despite Riyadh’s long-held advocacy of making the Middle East a zone free of weapons of mass destruction, there has been much speculation in the past few years about the possibility of its acquiring, or developing, nuclear weapons should Tehran obtain the bomb.

In the words of Saudi King Abdullah: “If Iran developed nuclear weapons (...) everyone in the region would do the same,” a sentiment echoed by Prince Turki al-Faisal, former head of Saudi Arabia’s General Intelligence Directorate.
Why go nuclear?

Customs has an Important Part to Play: IAEA: ‘Illegal Shipping of Nuclear Material a Serious Challenge’

Khaleej Times
May 20, 2013
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There were 50 cases where nuclear material, including uranium, was found being transferred across borders last year — and a lack of international customs coordination could see that number grow.

The information was revealed at the World Customs Organisation (WCO) IT Conference and Exhibition hosted by the Dubai Customs from May 14 to 16, under the theme ‘Effective Solutions for Coordinated Border Management’. This was the third roundtable of the WCO IT Conference and Exhibition. Main topics of discussion were ways in which three entities —customs departments, the government and the private sector — can work together so the international trade supply chain can be integrated.

Gary Tsai, Alex Tsai: Father, Son Accused of Making WMD for North Korea

WGNtv (Chicago Local)
May 7, 2013
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A father and son, both of Taiwan, were charged with exporting machinery from the U.S. that could be used to make weapons of mass destruction in North Korea.

The son, Gary Tsai, resides in Glenview and is set to be processed for release in Kankakee tonight. He will then be released to his Glenview home for home confinement.

Tsai’s Glenview neighbors are in shock. They thought they knew the 36-year-old and his wife who live on their block.He was in court today, linked to a man who is allegedly selling equipment to North Korea for the manufacturing of weapons of mass destruction. That man overseas is the defendant’s 67-year-old father, Alex Tsai, who, according to the complaint has been designated a proliferator of weapons of mass destruction. Alex was arrested in Estonia last Wednesday, while his son was taken into custody at his Glenview home. The younger Tsai’s wife was in court today but is not charged with any wrongdoing.

Egypt and South Korea Sign Agreement on Nuclear Power Programme

Daily News (Egypt)
May 10, 2013
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Egypt signed a memorandum of understanding with South Korea on Thursday during a visit by an Egyptian delegation attending the nuclear power capacity-building programme of the Korea International Cooperation Agency, according to Korean news agency Yonhap.

Head of the Egyptian delegation Khalil Yasso, the chairman of the group of Egyptian nuclear plants, signed the memorandum of understanding at the start of a seminar to discuss cooperation between the two countries in the field of nuclear power development, reported Yonhap. Yasso signed the understanding with the South Korean Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Yoon Sang-jick.

The agreement will see the two countries work together to train the workforce for a nuclear power plant, share technical information, and discuss ways to appease the concerns of local residents, reported Yonhap.

Turkey-Japan Nuclear Deal Leaves Many Questions Unanswered

Business News Europe
May 12, 2013
By: David O'Byrne
Link

As the saying goes regarding any contract, "the devil is in the detail". In the case of Turkey's newly signed nuclear agreement with Japan, the problem so far is the lack of detail.

To begin with, contrary to the majority of media reports what was actually signed was not a "$22bn deal for the construction of Turkey's second nuclear plant".

Rather, as was confirmed by Japanese Prime Minister Shenzo Abe in a sole press conference, it was an inter-governmental agreement between Turkey and Japan allowing for exclusive negotiations with a Japanese-led consortium for the development of the Sinop plant. In effect, little more than talks agreed previously first with South Korea, and later with Japan both of which foundered. The former over Turkey's refusal to grant the project treasury guarantees and the latter after Japanese operator Tepco felt unable to continue in the wake of the Fukushima disaster.

Brazil, Argentina Sign Agreement To Build Nuclear Reactors for Research and Production of Radioisotopes

Bernama (Malaysia)
May 9, 2013
Link

Atomic power agencies from Brazil and Argentina signed an agreement to build two nuclear reactors for research and production of radioisotopes, said the Ministry of Science and Technology (MCT).

The agreement, signed by the Brazilian National Commission for Nuclear Energy (CNEN) and the National Commission of Atomic Energy (CNEA), is centered on the construction of two reactors: the Brazilian Multipurpose Reasearch Reactor (RMB) and the RA-10 in Argentina, said a spokesman from the MCT.

The action meets the Bilateral Integration and Coordination Mechanism, established in the Joint Declaration of 2008 and signed by President Cristina Fernandez and Brazil's former president Lula Da Silva, said the source.

Scientific Journals Adapt to New US. Trade Sanctions on Iran

Science
May 3, 2013
By: Eliot Marshal
Link

Scientific journals are being asked to help tighten U.S. trade sanctions on Iran. On 30 April, the Dutch publishing behemoth Elsevier of the Netherlands sent a note to its editorial network saying that all U.S. editors and U.S. reviewers must "avoid" handling manuscripts if they include an author employed by the government of Iran. Under a policy that went into effect in March -- reflecting changes in a law passed by the U.S. Congress in December -- even companies like Elsevier not based in the United States must prevent their U.S. personnel from interacting with the Iranian government.

The sanctions, aimed at punishing Iran for its pursuit of nuclear technology, have been broadened somewhat from previous rules issued by the enforcement agency, the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), a division of the Treasury Department.

Hsien Tai Tsai and Yueh-Hsun Tsai Accused of Exporting Weapons Machinery to North Korea

Associated Press
May 6, 2013
Link

A Taiwanese businessman long suspected of ties to North Korea and his Illinois-based son have been charged in Chicago with seeking to bypass a U.S. ban on the export of weapons machinery to the hard-line communist nation, federal prosecutors announced Monday.

Hsien Tai Tsai, 67, and his 36-year-old son, Yueh-Hsun Tsai, are charged with one count each of conspiracy to defraud the United States in its enforcement of laws prohibiting the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Chicago said.

The statement suggests a wider investigation.

Japan, Turkey Sign $22-bn Nuclear Deal

AFP/Times of India
May 4, 2013
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Japan and Turkey on Friday signed a long-awaited deal to build a sprawling nuclear power plant on Turkey's Black Sea coast, a milestone for the Japanese nuclear industry as it recovers from the 2011 Fukushima disaster.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan hailed the $22 billion contract as a "very important step" that would transform bilateral relations with Japan into a "strategic partnership."

Japanese Prime Minister Signs Nuclear Agreement with the UAE

The National
May 2, 2013
Link
By: Awad Mustafa

The visiting Japanese prime minister, Shinzo Abe, yesterday signed a broad range of agreements with the UAE, including one on nuclear cooperation.

The deal made Japan the country’s ninth nuclear partner and signified what delegation members called a shift in Middle East policy.

Hamad Al Kaabi, the UAE’s permanent representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency, said it was likely that Japanese technology would be used in the four nuclear reactors being built in Barakah, in the Western Region.

Japan, Saudi Arabia to Talk on Nuclear Technology Export

UPI
May 1, 2013
Link

Japan and Saudi Arabia agreed to discuss conducting negotiations for the export of Japanese nuclear energy technologies, an official said.

The agreement for working-level talks on the subject was reached between Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Saudi Crown Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud, Kyodo News reported.

Abe was quoted as telling the prince, "Japan is enhancing the safety level of its nuclear plants" since the 2011 earthquake crippled the Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear plant.

Raytheon to Pay Fine for U.S. Export Control Violations

Chicago Tribune
April 30, 2013
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Raytheon Co , one of the largest U.S. weapons makers, has agreed to pay $8 million in civil penalties to resolve hundreds of alleged violations of U.S. export control laws over the past decade, the U.S. State Department said on Tuesday.

The State Department said it reached the agreement with Massachusetts-based Raytheon after an extensive review showed the company's "numerous violations demonstrated a recurring, corporate-wide weakness" in maintaining effective compliance controls.



Under the terms of the agreement, Raytheon neither admitted nor denied the allegations. However, the company voluntarily reported many -- if not most -- of the alleged violations to the government.

U.S. and Lithuania Sign Agreement for Cooperation on Countering Nuclear Smuggling

US Department of State
April 23, 2013
Link

Today, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Lithuanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Linas Linkevičius strengthened their countries’ partnership to combat nuclear terrorism by signing an agreement to advance protection against nuclear and radiological smuggling.

This “Joint Action Plan between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of the Republic of Lithuania on Combating Illicit Trafficking of Nuclear and Radioactive Materials and Related Technology” expresses the intention of the two governments to work together to enhance Lithuania’s capabilities to prevent, detect, and respond to nuclear smuggling incidents and to share experience with other countries in the region. The plan is the eleventh such agreement concluded, and Lithuania is the program’s second European Union and NATO partner. It is also one of the many steps the United States and Lithuania are taking to implement the commitments both nations made at the 2012 Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul.

Glencore Traded with Iranian Supplier to Nuclear Weapon's Programme

The Guardian
April 21, 2013
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One of Britain's biggest companies has made millions of pounds selling goods to Iran, including to a state-owned firm that supplies the regime's nuclear programme.

Glencore, a commodity trading house run by the billionaire Ivan Glasenberg, traded $659m (£430m) of goods, including aluminium oxide, to Iran last year, the Guardian has established.

The company, which is one of the biggest businesses in the FTSE 100 and has a market value more than three times that of Marks & Spencer, has admitted that some of its aluminium oxide ended up in the hands of Iranian Aluminium Company (Iralco).

Trafigura, another commodity trading house, has also admitted to trading an unspecified aluminium oxide (also known as alumina) with Iralco in the past.

China to Sell Its First Indigenously Developed 1000 MW Nuclear Reactor to Pakistan

Pakistan Kakhudahafiz
April 23, 2013
Link

China said it has acquired the first foreign contract for its self-developed 1000 mw nuclear reactor hinting that it could be exported to Pakistan, overriding the concerns of US and India.

ACP1000, a third-generation nuclear reactor developed independently by China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC), has secured its first foreign contract, the company said on Friday.

The reactor passed a review by an expert panel in Beijing on Friday and construction will begin at the foreign site after a domestic ACP1000 reactor work begins at the end of this year, CNNC vice-president Lyu Huaxiang told state-run China Daily.