nuclear-news

Moves by USA to stop international production of weapons grade plutonium and uranium

Assuming the U.S. signed the accord, …..enough political pressure could be put on India and Pakistan to join other nuclear powers in ratifying the treaty…..the U.S. administration planned to work harder to persuade China to exert more pressure on North Korea to end its nuclear and missile programmes

U.S. plans push for nuclear material ban: official, Reuters US Online, by Christiaan Hetzner; Dec 28, BERLIN – The United States plans to revive diplomatic efforts next year to halt production of weapons-grade plutonium and uranium, a special adviser to President Barack Obama told a German newspaper.

In an interview with the Sueddeutsche Zeitung published on Tuesday, Gary Samore, White House coordinator for arms control, said he believed North Korea was not interested in provoking a war with the South and only wished to take advantage of its tactical military advantage.

“Regarding the Fissile Material Cut-Off Treaty (FMCT), we are trying to reinstate negotiations at the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva and will launch an initiative next year,” he told the newspaper.

“Even if we succeed, however, it will take years until the negotiations are completed. The same goes for any further disarmament deals with Russia,” he continued, adding that the political realities by then could be completely different.

Samore expected the U.S. administration to submit the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) to the Senate next year for ratification, but he refrained from giving a forecast on the outcome of a vote.

“We will present our arguments next year, but we do not know if they will have the desired effect,” he said.

Assuming the U.S. signed the accord, he said he believed enough political pressure could be put on India and Pakistan to join other nuclear powers in ratifying the treaty.

“North Korea is the only unknown and so far there are no signs that the country will agree to it. But if we succeed in convincing all the others (…) it will be considerably easier to persuade North Korea in the course of negotiations,” he said.

“That, or the parties change the rules in such a way that the treaty can enter into effect without North Korea.”

HELP NEEDED FROM CHINA

Samore said further efforts to agree with Russia on limiting nuclear weapons were proving difficult, since Moscow was willing to reduce its tactical superiority only if NATO addressed its conventional superiority in exchange………

the U.S. administration planned to work harder to persuade China to exert more pressure on North Korea to end its nuclear and missile programmes when Obama meets Chinese head of state Hu Jintao in Washington in early January.

U.S. plans push for nuclear material ban: official | Maine News, Sports, Weather – Portland, ME – WPFO FOX23 – MyFOXMaine.com | Politics

December 29, 2010 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | politics international, USA