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US and Vietnam in controversial nuclear negotiations
The US is said to be negotiating a controversial agreement with Vietnam to provide nuclear fuel and technology without the usual constraints on enriching uranium to prevent proliferation.The deal has been under discussion for several months following Hanoi's announcement of plans to build 14 nuclear power stations over the next 20 years, according to the Wall Street Journal. Washington has required several other countries, most recently the United Arab Emirates and Jordan, to agree to source all their nuclear fuel on the international market and to renounce the right to enrich uranium as a requirement for assistance in developing nuclear power. Vietnam signed an initial memorandum of understanding on nuclear power with the Bush administration in 2001. But the Obama administration has accelerated talks in recent months as Vietnam reaches agreements with other countries including Russia which has been contracted to begin building a light water reactor for $8bn in 2014. The US and Vietnam signed a new memorandum of understanding in April over broad co-operation on nuclear power including access to "reliable sources of nuclear fuel". An agreement would allow US companies such as General Electric and Bechtel to sell nuclear reactors and other equipment to Vietnam. But the talks have drawn criticism that Washington is setting a different standard for Vietnam than some other countries. Henry Sokolski, director of the Nonproliferation Education Centre in Washington, said the US agreeing to allow Hanoi to produce its own nuclear fuel would undermine anti-proliferation efforts. "After the US set such a good example with the UAE, the Vietnam deal not only sticks out, it could drive a stake through the heart of the general effort to rein in the spread of nuclear fuel-making," he told the Wall Street Journal. However, Vietnam has said it is not interested in producing its own nuclear fuel because it would be diplomatically sensitive to do so. Hanoi has also signed nuclear co-operation agreements with several other countries including China, France and India. The state department did not respond to question Posted by: tipper 2010-08-06 |
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