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                         NUCLEAR POLICY
 
1 EU backs limited nuclear sanctions against Iran
2 Guardian Unlimited: Russia opposes draft UN resolution on Iran 
3 washingtonpost.com: U.S., European Allies at Odds on Terms of Iran R
4 AFP: China, France united on Iran, NKorea nukes - 
5 AFP: British envoy plays down US-European differences over Iran sanc
6 AFP: Russia rejects Europe's UN draft resolution on Iran 
7 Guardian Unlimited: Tehran Radio Warns of Nuclear Impasse 
8 AFP: US sensitive to Moscow concerns over Iran sanctions 
9 UPI: U.N. draft on Iran punitive, minister says
10 Guardian Unlimited: Russia Opposes Draft Resolution on Iran 
11 UN Nuclear Watchdog Chief Calls For Talks With Dpr Korea, Iran
12 UN Nuclear Chief Meets With Us Secretary Rice; Calls For Talks With 
13 Guardian Unlimited: South Korea Enforces Sanctions on North
14 Korea Herald: New estimate of N.K. WMDs   
15 Korea Herald: U.S. to explain nuke umbrella   
16 Korea Herald: U.S. to impose 'India-Pakistan sanctions' on N.K.   
17 Korea Herald: [NEWS FOCUS]Seoul caving in to pressure over PSI   
18 Korea Herald: [EDITORIAL]Sweeping reshuffle   
19 Korea Herald: Seoul to bar N.K. arms officials   
20 Korea Herald: Russia advocates cautious response to N.K.   
21 Korea Herald: Seoul to deny entry to N. Koreans   
22 INSIDE JoongAng Daily: Politicians held for contacting North's agent
23 INSIDE JoongAng Daily: Seoul bars some visits from across the DMZ
24 Korea Times: North Korea Has 50 Kg of Plutonium
25 Korea Times: Effectiveness of UN Panel on N. Korea Questioned 
26 Korea Times: USFK Chief to Meet Journalists 
27 Korea Times: [Michael Breen] Ethics of Sunshine 
28 AFP: Six-party talks only route for US dialogue with North Korea - H
29 AFP: SKorea makes first move to enforce UN sanctions on North -
30 UPI: South Korea updates North's bomb estimate
31 Guardian Unlimited: Tokyo Denies Report It Wants Nuke Meet | 
32 Guardian Unlimited: S. Korea: North Can Make 7 Nuclear Bombs 
33 RIA Novosti: Ex-nuclear head will not ask court for dismissal of his
34 AFP: Billion-dollar contracts signed as French, Chinese leaders meet
35 Xinhua: China, France ink joint statement, 14 cooperation agreements
36 UPI: Analysis: Israel assesses NATO ties
37 UPI: Walker's World: Chirac's Chinese detour
 
                         NUCLEAR REACTORS
 
38 Guardian Unlimited: Time running out fast for oldest nuclear plants,
39 Times of India: The world has failed on N-tech transfer - Rahul
40 Telugu Portal: India seeks review of nuclear energy policies -
41 US: NRC: Nuclear Management Company, LLC; Palisades Plant Exemption
42 Boston Globe: U.S. tries to reassure India over nuclear deal - 
43 Bayshore Broadcasting Corporation: Bruce B plans being reviewed
44 US: GRACE Energy Initiative: Is Nuclear Power the Solution to Climat
45 US: Public Citizen: Public Citizen Defends Environmental Nonprofit 
 
                          NUCLEAR SECURITY
 
46 US: NRC: NRC Approves Final Rule on National Source Tracking System 
47 US: NRC: NRC Seeks Public Comment on Revisions and Additions to Phys
48 UPI: NNSA upgrades Russian navy nuke security
 
                          NUCLEAR SAFETY
 
49 News & Star: Evacuation after nuclear train breaks down at station
 
                         NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE
 
50 US: Gallup Independent: Waste to be moved through Gallup
51 US: Deseret News: Goshute leader backs N-storage
52 US: RIA Novosti: Russian-Kazakh JV to mine first ton of uranium in e
53 US: Salt Lake Tribune: Skull Valley: Former leader out as Goshutes e
54 US: ITAR-TASS: Russian-Kazakh uranium enrichment JV in Angarsk to be
55 FOE Scotland: NUCLEAR WASTE - BRIBERY NO SOLUTION TO DEADLY LEGACY
56 US: Mos News: Russian-Kazakh Uranium Enrichment Center to Start Work
 
                           PEACE
 
 
                        US DEPT. OF ENERGY
 
57 DOE: DOE Announces Over $8 Million to Increase Use and 
58 Tri-City Herald: Worker complaints draw changes 
59 Tri-City Herald: Ex-official Grumbly speaks on vit, DOE 
60 washingtonpost.com: Security Officials Sent to Los Alamos - 
61 DenverPost.com: Tepee finds new home in Cold War museum
62 Federal Times: Another possible data security breach at Los Alamos
63 lamonitor.com: Police discover suspected classified data 
64 lamonitor.com: Big magnet ready for new tests at LANL 
65 AFP: FBI investigating possible security breach at Los Alamos lab -
66 UPI: U.S. nuclear secrets feared on stolen disk
67 Guardian Unlimited: Security Officials Sent to Los Alamos
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                         FULL NEWS STORIES
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 1 EU backs limited nuclear sanctions against Iran
 
Date: Thu, 26 Oct 2006 08:55:40 -0500 (CDT)

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Reuters.com

EU backs limited nuclear sanctions against Iran
http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=topNews&storyID=2006-10-17T150642Z_01_L17764198_RTRUKOC_0_US-NUCLEAR-IRAN-EU.xml&WTmodLoc=NewsHome-C1-topNews-4

Tue Oct 17, 2006

By Paul Taylor

LUXEMBOURG (Reuters) - The European Union, spurred by North Korea's nuclear
test, backed limited United Nations sanctions against Iran's nuclear program
on Tuesday after Tehran spurned conditions for opening negotiations.
The EU's 25 foreign ministers, meeting in Luxembourg, called for incremental
measures targeted first at individuals and materials involved in Iranian
uranium enrichment activities, which the West suspects is aimed at making a
bomb.

After four months of talks with EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana, Iran
this month rejected a U.N. demand that it suspend enrichment.

"The Iranians' refusal leaves us no choice today but to take to the Security
Council route. The Security Council should adopt gradual, reversible
measures proportionate to Iranian actions," French Foreign Minister Philippe
Douste-Blazy told reporters.

German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier called it the "first step in
sanctions" but stressed the EU's offer of cooperation remained on the table
if Iran was willing to meet the conditions.

Ministers made clear that alarm at North Korea's nuclear test and its
implications for other countries were one key factor in showing their
resolve toward Iran, although their economic interests with Tehran are far
greater.

"The most important thing is to have a united response as we showed with
North Korea. We must show Iran that the international community is
completely determined to remain united," European External Relations
Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner said.

"We offered a very attractive package which could be beneficial for Iran,
but up to now we have not received an acceptance," she told reporters.

Spanish Secretary of State for European Affairs Alberto Navarro
said sanctions would be gradual because Europe, unlike the United States,
needed Iran as an oil supplier.

DOOR OPEN

Mark Fitzpatrick of the London-based International Institute for Strategic
Studies said the approach with Tehran would be gentler than with Pyongyang.
"A sanctions resolution on Iran will not be swift or biting as it has been
with North Korea," he said, noting that while Pyongyang openly affirmed its
nuclear weapons intentions, Tehran insisted its program was peaceful. There
was no conclusive proof it sought an atom bomb, he said.

Solana, who negotiated with Iranian national security chief Ali Larijani in
a vain effort to persuade Tehran to suspend its most sensitive nuclear work,
said the door would remain open.

"I think there is always hope, and I would like it to be possible to start
again, but it is up to Iran now to accept the conditions to start real
negotiations," he said.

In a statement, the ministers expressed deep concern that Iran had not yet
suspended enrichment activities and said the EU has no choice but to support
consultations in the United Nations on measures on the basis of resolution
1696, which told Iran to suspend enrichment by August 31 or face sanctions.
The six major powers that backed the incentives package that Solana put to
Iran -- the United States, Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany -- are
to start consultations at the United Nations on Wednesday on a sanctions
resolution, diplomats said.

Moscow and Beijing have so far been reticent about any sanctions, but a
European diplomat said they had accepted the principle of an incremental
approach raising pressure.

In Vienna, a senior diplomat familiar with International Atomic
Energy Agency monitoring in Iran said Iranian efforts to develop its
enrichment program beyond the initial test phase appeared slow.

Iran had planned to have a second cascade of 164 centrifuge enrichment
machines running by end-September but this had not happened, he said, while
the first cascade was only being sporadically fed with uranium UF-6 gas for
enrichment into fuel.

Analysts have estimated Iran will need 3-10 years to produce enough fuel for
bombs.

(Additional reporting by Ingrid Melander and Carsten Lietz in Luxembourg and
Mark Heinrich in Vienna)

) Reuters 2006. All Rights Reserved.
*****************************************************************
 2 Guardian Unlimited: Russia opposes draft UN resolution on Iran 

Mark Tran
Thursday October 26, 2006

Guardian Unlimited               

International attempts to forge a united front in the nuclear 
standoff with Iran today suffered a setback as Russia declared 
its opposition to current UN proposals.

Sergei Lavrov, the Russia foreign minister, said a draft UN 
resolution imposing limited sanctions against Tehran did not 
match existing agreements between major powers.

"Our goal is to eliminate the risks of sensitive technologies 
getting into the hands of Iran until the IAEA [the International 
Atomic Energy Agency] clarifies issues of interest to it, while 
maintaining all possible channels of communication with Iran," 
Russian news agencies quoted Mr Lavrov as saying.

"It seems to me that, in this context, the draft resolution 
clearly does not correspond to those tasks agreed on by the six 
sides."

The draft resolution - drawn up by Britain, France and Germany - 
has also run into opposition from the US, with Washington 
considering it not to be tough enough.

The major powers have been working for weeks to come up with a 
response to Iran's refusal to suspend uranium enrichment despite 
a package of incentives offered in the summer.

Iran says its nuclear programme is designed to meet growing 
energy needs, not to produce nuclear weapons. However, the US is 
convinced Tehran is determined to make a nuclear bomb.

Britain, France and Germany yesterday presented Russia and China
with the text of a resolution that requires states to "prevent
the supply, sale or transfer" of Iran's nuclear and ballistic
programmes.

The New York Times reported that the resolution includes barring
Iranian students from studying nuclear physics at foreign
universities and a ban on visas for any Iranians involved in
nuclear activities.

However, the sticking point is Russia's construction of Iran's
first nuclear power plant at Bushehr, in the south-west of the
country.

Russia, which has rejected US demands to halt work on the plant,
last month agreed to supply fuel for it in March next year,
enabling it to go online in September 2007.

The Russian deputy foreign minister, Sergei Kislyak, said the
project to build the power plant was one of several obstacles
holding up agreement on the UN resolution.

"Lengthy negotiations will be needed to find a mutually
acceptable solution," the Russian Interfax news agency quoted
him as saying.

UN ambassadors from the five permanent members of the security
council and Germany are scheduled to hold further discussions on
the resolution today.

Condoleezza Rice, the US secretary of state, yesterday again
urged the UN to adopt sanctions against Iran's nuclear programme.

"For the international community to be credible, it must pass a
resolution now that holds Iran accountable for its defiance," Dr
Rice told the Heritage Foundation, a rightwing thinktank.
 
[UP] 

Guardian Unlimited © Guardian News and Media Limited 2006
*****************************************************************
 3 washingtonpost.com: U.S., European Allies at Odds on Terms of Iran Resolution -
                    
By Washington Post Staff Writers

Thursday, October 26, 2006; Page A20

UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 25 -- The United States and its European 
allies split Wednesday over the terms of a U.N. resolution 
calling for a ban on Iranian trade in ballistic missiles and 
nuclear materials, according to Security Council diplomats.

The Bush administration supports the Europeans' broad aims of 
sanctioning Tehran for refusing to halt nuclear activities. But 
the White House declined to endorse a European-backed draft 
resolution, fearing it would be too weak to constrain from 
developing nuclear weapons, U.S. and European diplomats said.

Nuclear Development in Iran

On Wednesday, , and presented and with the text of a resolution
that requires states to "prevent the supply, sale or transfer"
of Iran's nuclear and ballistic programs and would halt Tehran's
ability to secure financing and technical assistance for them.
The resolution would also ban travel and freeze the assets of
individuals associated with the weapons programs, said a council
diplomat who has seen the draft.

But it exempts Russia from the trade embargo, allowing it to
continue a previously approved nuclear energy agreement to
support the construction of Iran's Bushehr nuclear power plant.

The Europeans rejected a series of U.S. amendments that would
have imposed greater restrictions on Russia's nuclear trade with
Iran and that characterized Iran's nuclear activities as a
threat to international peace and security. They said the U.S.
proposals may have provoked a Russian veto. The Europeans also
have far stronger trade relations with Iran than does the United
States and have been reluctant to approve tougher sanctions.

European negotiators, however, did agree to include a proposal
by U.S. Ambassador John R. Bolton to invoke a provision known as
Article 41, which obliges states to enforce U.N. sanctions. They
have given China and Russia two days to respond to the
resolution before presenting it to all 15 members of the
Security Council.

"We're going to be meeting with the Russians and the Chinese
tomorrow to get their reaction," Bolton said. "The Europeans
gave them two days in both Moscow and Beijing, which we hope
will be sufficient time so that we can make progress rapidly."

European negotiators thought they had secured U.S. backing for
the proposal to exempt Russia from the trade ban at a meeting of
political directors in late September.

But the deal failed to secure the full backing of the Bush
administration because of concerns that Iran could use the
Bushehr exemption as a cover for importing other prohibited
goods.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice this week backed a proposal
by Bolton to present the Europeans with tougher language. When
the Europeans refused, Bolton said the United States would not
co-sponsor their resolution.

Iran says its nuclear energy program is designed to meet the
country's growing energy needs, not to produce nuclear weapons.
The United States alleges the effort is a front for a weapons
program.

The U.N. nuclear watchdog, the Vienna-based International Atomic
Energy Agency, maintains that it has not found proof that Iran
is developing nuclear weapons. But it charges that Iran's
efforts to develop its nuclear program in secrecy over the past
18 years have helped fueled international suspicions.

The United Nations and key European governments have been
pressing Tehran, without success, for about three years to
provide the world with verifiable assurances that its program is
peaceful.

In August, the Security Council threatened to consider sanctions
against Iran if it did not suspend its enrichment of uranium and
consider a package of U.S.-backed European incentives.

Iran maintains that it prepared to hold talks with the council's
five major powers -- the United States, Russia, China, France
and Britain -- as well as Germany over the fate of its nuclear
program. But it has refused to first halt its nuclear
activities, insisting that it has the authority, under the 1970
Non-Proliferation Treaty, to develop nuclear energy.

Earlier this week, the head of the U.N. atomic energy agency,
Mohamed ElBaradei, told The Washington Post that Iran continues
to advance its nuclear enrichment activities, and that Iranian
technicians are on the verge of using a new cascade of 164
centrifuges to enrich uranium.

Kessler reported from Washington.

The Washington Post Company: 	 	
*****************************************************************
 4 AFP: China, France united on Iran, NKorea nukes - 

  [Visiting French President Jacques Chirac (L) with Chinese
President Hu Jintao in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing] 
 
BEIJING (AFP) - United Nations Security Council members China
and France have presented a united front against the separate
nuclear ambitions of North Korea and Iran.

A joint communique released by Chinese President Hu Jintao and
visiting French President Jacques Chirac expressed "grave
concern" over North Korea's October 9 atomic bomb test and
called on Iran to heed UN mandates over its nuclear program.

It called the North Korean test "contrary to the goal of the
denuclearization of the Korean peninsula and the efforts of the 
international community to strengthen the non-proliferation 
regime."

North Korea caused a global uproar with the test blast,
triggering a UN Security Council resolution imposing economic
sanctions aimed at curbing the reclusive state's weapons program.

The two leaders also called on Tehran to finally abide by a
Security Council resolution that had set an August 31 deadline
for Iran to abandon its nuclear weapons development plans or
face sanctions.

Iran has ignored the deadline.

"The two sides call for respect of Security Council resolution
1696 and agree to pursue their joint efforts for a resolution of
the nuclear issue to maintain a close permanent contact on this
matter," the statement said.

The Security Council's five permanent members -- China, France,
Russia, Britain and the United States -- were expected on
Thursday to begin discussing a new draft resolution that spells
out possible Iran sanctions.

The draft urges UN member states to take steps to prevent Iran
from transferring any materials or knowledge related to those
programs to other parties and to deny Tehran any financial,
technical or other assistance that could aid them.

The draft warns that the council would "consider further
measures" if Iran still refuses to comply with a demand that it
freeze uranium enrichment, which can provide the raw material
for nuclear weapons.

The support of China -- which has historically strong links to
its North Korean neighbor and extensive energy interests in Iran
-- is seen as crucial in achieving UN objectives on both issues.

However, it has so far shown an unwillingness to push Iran and
North Korea too hard.

Chirac is on a four-day visit to China ending on Saturday. 

AFP
*****************************************************************
 5 AFP: British envoy plays down US-European differences over Iran sanctions draft - 

 Thu Oct 26, 3:43 PM ET 		 	 

UNITED NATIONS (AFP) - Britain's UN envoy Emyr Jones Parry played 
down differences between the United States and its European 
allies on a draft resolution mandating sanctions against Iran" /> 
over its refusal to halt sensitive nuclear fuel work. 

 Envoys from France, Britain and Germany earlier this week
presented their Russian and colleagues with a draft resolution
that calls on UN member states to slap nuclear and ballistic
missile related sanctions on Iran. 

The text also provides for a freeze on assets related to Iran's
nuclear and missile programs as well as travel bans on nuclear
and weapons scientists involved in those programs. 

The text was worked out in consultations with the United States,
which according to some diplomats had pressed for a tougher
text, including a call for an end to Moscow's assistance to
Iran's Russian-built Bushehr nuclear power station. 

But in an apparent bid to mollify Moscow, the text drawn up by
the three European powers specifically stresses that the Bushehr
project shall be exempted from the proposed sanctions. 

"The Americans and we are on board and we are very close to each
other," Jones Parry said. "I wouldn't blow up the differences.
We didn't screw down the final details but the essence of the
resolution has been worked out and we are in close harmony." 

He added that "it will take quite a while" to reach a consensus
on the draft among the council's 15 members "because it is a
hard, technical resolution to do. The politics of it are intense
and it's part of a strategy toward a country which is very
important." 

Envoys of the Security Council's five veto-wielding permanent
members -- Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States
-- plus Germany were to meet later Thursday at the British UN
mission in New York to review the draft. 

"I don't think we'll touch on specifics," said China's UN
delegate Li Junhua, who urged patience. 

"Since the door to diplomatic efforts is still open why should
we rush to sanctions," he said, noting that "sanctions in our
own assessment won't help." 

China and Russia, which have significant economic interests in
Iran, are reluctant to slap tough measures on Tehran, and a
Western diplomat said that Moscow was certain to oppose any call
to suspend its aid to Bushehr. 

Last month, Russia and Iran officially agreed on a 12-month
deadline for completing the controversial Bushehr project,
despite earlier pressure from Tehran that the station be
completed in half that time. 

Delays have plagued the project ever since the two countries
entered into an initial agreement in 1995, with US officials
pressing Russia to suspend the program. 

The Bushehr contract is worth about one billion dollars to
Russia. 

Western powers suspect Iran is covertly trying to build nuclear
weapons. 

But Tehran has repeatedly ignored UN Security Council demands
that it halt uranium enrichment, a process which, if extended,
can provide the raw material for a nuclear warhead. 

It insists that its nuclear program is peaceful and solely
geared toward generating electricity. 

Copyright © 2006 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved.
*****************************************************************
 6 AFP: Russia rejects Europe's UN draft resolution on Iran 

 by Sebastian Smith Thu Oct 26, 11:47 AM ET 		 	 

MOSCOW (AFP) - Russia has rejected a draft UN resolution put 
forward by European powers targeting Iran" /> Iran's nuclear 
programme, saying the proposed measures did not advance 
objectives agreed on earlier by major world powers. 

 Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the resolution put forward
Wednesday by Britain, France and Germany would not be effective
in containing Iran's programme and contradicted the consensus
reached by the five permanent UN Security Council members and
Germany. 

"I think that in this respect the draft resolution that has been
presented clearly does not further the objectives that the six
powers agreed on earlier," Lavrov was quoted as saying by
Interfax news agency Thursday. 

Those goals, Lavrov said, included preventing proliferation of
"sensitive technology" while also keeping open "all necessary
channels of communication with Iran." 

One of Lavrov's top deputies, Sergei Kislyak, said separately
that Russia was "carefully studying" the draft resolution.
However, a "long negotiating process is required" to find a
mutually acceptable decision. 

Lavrov later stated that Russia was ready to discuss ways of
preventing deliveries of "sensitive technologies connected to
uranium enrichment and processing of spent fuel," in comments
quoted by RIA Novosti. 

Russia has long resisted the West's push for tough sanctions,
partly due to a lucrative contract to construct Iran's first
nuclear power station at Bushehr. 

The draft resolution, which proposes "necessary measures" to
prevent nuclear and missile technology from reaching Iran, does
not directly mention Bushehr. 

The United States has called on Russia to halt nuclear
cooperation with Iran, but France's UN ambassador, Jean-Marc de
la Sabliere, said the Europeans favoured exempting the Bushehr
project. 

Kislyak told Interfax: "There are much bigger problems there
than the construction of the Bushehr station." 

In comments released Saturday, Lavrov repeated Russia's
insistence that Iran respect international demands on its
nuclear programme, but added: "We cannot support, and will
actively oppose, any attempt to use the Security Council to
punish Iran or to use Iran's nuclear programme in order to
promote the idea of regime change." 

De la Sabliere, who played a key role in drafting the proposed
sanctions, said they invoked Article 41 of Chapter Seven of the
UN Charter which calls for sanctions not involving the use of
force. 

The draft warns that the Security Council would "consider
further measures" if Iran still refused to comply with a demand
that it freeze uranium enrichment, a process used to produce
fuel for nuclear reactors but which, if extended, can also
provide the raw material for bombs. 

De La Sabliere told reporters that the text also contained a
freeze on assets related to Iran's nuclear and missile programs
as well as travel bans on nuclear and weapons scientists. 

He said the draft would be discussed Thursday among envoys of
the council's five veto-wielding members -- Britain, China,
France, Russia and the United States -- plus Germany. 

He added that the punitive measures were needed to respond to
Tehran's defiance after the failure of negotiations between the
European Union" /> European Unionand Iran. 

Russia's stance against the draft resolution was played down
Thursday by a French foreign ministry spokesman, Jean-Baptiste
Mattei, who said it was not surprising at this stage. 

"We are in a normal process of elaborating a UN resolution with
the aim of reaching an agreement and ensuring the unity of the
international community," Mattei said. 

"Everyone announces their positions... We have noted the Russian
declarations," he said. 

Russia has long been closely involved in Iran and in addition to
building the Bushehr power station supplies hi-tech conventional
weapons to Tehran. 

Repeated delays in completing the Bushehr power station have
prompted speculation that Moscow is quietly heeding Washington's
warnings. 

On Wednesday Sergei Shmatko, the head of the Russian company
that is heading the project, Atomstroiexport, announced further
delays, insisting that the reasons were technical in nature. 

Meanwhile in Beijing, French President Jacques Chirac" />
President Jacques Chiracand Chinese President Hu Jintao" /> Hu
Jintaopresented a united front, issuing a joint communique on
the separate nuclear ambitions of Iran and North Korea" /> North
Korea. 

The communique called on Tehran to finally abide by a Security
Council resolution that had set an August 31 deadline for Iran
to abandon its uranium enrichment program or face sanctions. 

"The two sides call for respect of Security Council resolution
1696 and agree to pursue their joint efforts for a resolution of
the nuclear issue to maintain a close permanent contact on this
matter," the statement said. 	 		 			

Copyright © 2006 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved.
*****************************************************************
 7 Guardian Unlimited: Tehran Radio Warns of Nuclear Impasse 

From the Associated Press        

[UP] 

Thursday October 26, 2006 8:01 PM

AP Photo XHS107 

By NASSER KARIMI 

Associated Press Writer 

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Russia signaled opposition Thursday to a
European-proposed U.N. draft resolution to impose sanctions on
Iran over its nuclear program, and Tehran's state-run radio
warned Europe an impasse was looming. 

Hours before the Security Council's five permanent members, plus
Germany, were to meet for the first time to discuss the European
draft, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov suggested passage
of the measure would require a fight. 

He said the resolution, which imposes limited sanctions on Iran
because of its refusal to cease uranium enrichment, was a
departure from existing agreements between major powers. 

The six major powers of United States, Russia, Germany, France,
Britain and China have offered Iran incentives to halt uranium
enrichment, but Tehran has rejected them. Enrichment can produce
material for nuclear power reactors or weapons. 

Russia and China - veto-wielding Security Council members with
strong commercial ties to Tehran - have agreed in principle to
sanctions, but refused to close the door on the possibility of
last-minute talks with Iran aimed at re-establishing cooperation
with the International Atomic Energy Agency, a U.N. watchdog. 

``Our goal is to eliminate the risks of sensitive technologies
getting into the hands of Iran until the IAEA clarifies issues
of interest to it, while maintaining all possible channels of
communication with Iran,'' Lavrov said on state television. 

``And it seems to me that, in this context, the draft resolution
clearly does not correspond to those tasks agreed on by the six
sides,'' he said. 

Meanwhile, a commentary on Iran's state-run radio, which often
reflects the government's perspective, warned Europe that an
impasse was brewing. The Iranian radio commentary said Russia
wanted to give the EU more time to entice Iran into cooperating
with the IAEA. 

``If Russia opposes the resolution, then Europe's stance in
further negotiation with Iran would be in a worse situation,''
the commentary said. 

The Iranian radio commentary also accused the U.S. of impeding
the EU-Iran talks. 

European nations this week proposed sanctions - banning the sale
of missile and atomic technology to Iran and ending most U.N.
help for its nuclear programs - after weeks of exploratory talks
with a European Union negotiator ended without progress. 

The EU had proposed that Iran at least temporarily freeze
enrichment as a condition for multilateral talks aimed at
erasing suspicions it may be trying to build nuclear arms in
violation of its treaty commitments. 

Tehran refused, saying its uranium enrichment program aims only
to generate electricity. The United States and others suspect it
is a cover for building atomic weapons. 

Thursday also brought a sign of cooperation between the European
sponsors of the current draft resolution and China, thought to
have a similar stance on sanctions as Russia. 

French President Jacques Chirac and Chinese President Hu Jintao
issued a joint statement Thursday pledging to ``keep in close
and regular contact and work to find a peaceful solution of the
Iran nuclear issue,'' though they didn't mention any new
initiatives. 

The U.S. indicated Wednesday that it saw the European draft as
too weak but stopped short of discarding it. 

A key concern for Moscow is the future of its $1 billion
contract to build Iran's first nuclear power station in the
southwestern Iranian city of Bushehr. 

Sanctions, as laid out in the European draft resolution, would
impose certain limits on the Bushehr project but would not force
an end to it. Russia has steadfastly rejected U.S. demands to
halt work at the site, which is due to go online in September. 

In Washington, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said
Bushehr would not be an obstacle. 

``We believe this is something we can work with,'' he said
Thursday without providing any details. ``We don't think it is
going to be an obstacle.'' 

McCormack said he expected discussions among the permanent
members of the Council would go on for several days and then
other governments would join in and consult with their capitals. 

``We know Russia has concerns about putting too much pressure on
Iran,'' he added. 

French Foreign Ministry spokesman Jean-Baptiste Mattei echoed
McCormack's comments. 

``We have taken note of the Russian declarations. ... We will
now pursue discussions in New York,'' he said in Paris. 

--- 

Associated Press Writer Henry Meyer in Moscow contributed to
this report. 
		 	 	   

Guardian Unlimited © Guardian News and Media Limited 2006
*****************************************************************
 8 AFP: US sensitive to Moscow concerns over Iran sanctions 

 Thu Oct 26, 5:20 PM ET 		 	 

WASHINGTON (AFP) - The United States said it understands Russia's 
worries about proposed UN Security Council sanctions against 
Iran" /> Iranfor its nuclear program after Moscow said it 
rejected the draft. 

"We know that the Russians have some concerns about the tactics
and concerns about applying too much pressure too quickly on the
Iranians. We certainly understand their point of view," said
State Department spokesman Sean McCormack. 

"There's certain logic that goes along with that. They have
clearly expressed that to us as well as others," McCormack said. 

"We expect that there are probably going to be changes along the
way. That is just the nature of multilateral negotiations on
these UN Security Council resolutions," he added. 

"But the fact of the matter is, the Russian government, along
with the other members of the P5-plus-1 have agreed to this
diplomatic way forward, this process that we see unfolding right
now," he said, referring to the five permanent members of the
Security Council plus Germany. 

"The whole idea and logic of this strategy has been that we
gradually increase the diplomatic pressure on Iran, over a
period of time, while maintaining the unity of this core group,
the P-5-plus-1," McCormack added. 

Earlier Thursday Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said
Russia rejects the draft put to the Security Council by France,
Britain and Germany, and supported by Washington, that would
penalize Tehran for refusing UN demands that it halt its uranium
enrichment program, which is believed targeted at developing
nuclear weapons. 

The draft calls on UN member states to "take necessary measures
to prevent the supply, sale or transfer directly or indirectly
from their territories or by their nationals ... of all items,
materials, equipment, goods and technology which could
contribute to Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs." 

Lavrov said the resolution would not be effective in containing
Iran's programme and contradicted the consensus reached by the
five permanent UN Security Council members and Germany, even
though the draft specifically exempts from sanctions the
Russian-built Bushehr nuclear plant in Iran. 

Copyright © 2006 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved.
*****************************************************************
 9 UPI: U.N. draft on Iran punitive, minister says
     
United Press International - NewsTrack - 

10/26/2006 1:16:00 PM -0400

MOSCOW, Oct. 26 (UPI) -- The Russian foreign minister said a
proposed U.N. draft on Iran doesn't meet objectives outlined by
the six countries mediating the Iranian nuclear program. 

The resolution by Britain, France and Germany proposed sanctions
against Iran, including banning sales of missile and nuclear
technologies, freezing military bank accounts and restricting
visas for nuclear industry officials, the Novosti news agency
said Thursday. 

Sergei Lavrov said Russia would discuss ways to bar supplies of
sensitive technology to Iran until the U.N. International Atomic
Energy Agency gets clarification on Iran's nuclear program,
Novosti said. 

He said an original proposal by U.N. Security Council members
Russia, China, Britain, France, the United States and Germany
outlined incentives designed to persuade Iran to abandon uranium
enrichment that is believed to be part of a covert weapons
program, Novosti said. In July, the United Nations warned by
resolution Iran faced sanctions if it did not suspend its
enrichment operations by the end of August. 

The United States renewed calls for sanctions against Iran,
which refused to halt its nuclear program, after negotiations
with Iran did not break the impasse, Novosti said.

© Copyright 2006 United Press International, Inc. All Rights
Reserved
*****************************************************************
 10 Guardian Unlimited: Russia Opposes Draft Resolution on Iran 

From the Associated Press        

[UP] 

Thursday October 26, 2006 6:46 PM

AP Photo MOSB103 

By HENRY MEYER 

Associated Press Writer 

MOSCOW (AP) - Russia signaled its opposition Thursday to a draft
U.N. Security Council resolution proposed by European nations
that would impose sanctions on Iran over its disputed nuclear
program, calling it a departure from existing agreements between
world powers. 

Russia and China, veto-wielding permanent members of the council
that have strong commercial ties with Tehran, have been
reluctant to support sanctions against Iran. A key concern for
Moscow is the future of its $1 billion contract to build Iran's
first nuclear power station. 

``Our goal is to eliminate the risks of sensitive technologies
getting into the hands of Iran until the IAEA (the International
Atomic Energy Agency) clarifies issues of interest to it, while
maintaining all possible channels of communication with Iran,''
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in comments on state
television. 

``And it seems to me that, in this context, the draft resolution
clearly does not correspond to those tasks agreed on by the six
sides,'' he added, speaking on the sidelines of an international
Arctic conference in Russia's far north. 

The six major powers of United States, Russia, Germany, France,
Britain and China have offered Iran incentives to halt uranium
enrichment, but Tehran has rejected them. Enrichment can produce
material for nuclear power reactors or weapons. 

European nations this week proposed sanctions - banning the sale
of missile and atomic technology to Iran and ending most U.N.
help for its nuclear programs - after weeks of exploratory talks
with an European Union negotiator ended without progress. 

The sanctions would impose limits on the Russian-built nuclear
power station in the southwestern city of Bushehr, although they
do not force an end to it. Russia has consistently rejected U.S.
demands to halt work on the project and last month it agreed to
supply fuel for the plant in March 2007, enabling the facility
to go online in September. 

Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Kislyak said the project was one
of several obstacles holding up agreement on the U.N.
resolution. ``Lengthy negotiations will be needed to find a
mutually acceptable solution,'' he was quoted as saying by
Interfax news agency. 

Washington has been pushing for even tougher sanctions, and
Richard Grenell, spokesman for the U.S. mission to the United
Nations, said Wednesday there would be ``American changes to the
proposed European text.'' He refused to elaborate. 

In Paris, Foreign Ministry spokesman Jean-Baptiste Mattei said
consultations would continue at U.N. headquarters to try and win
the Russians over. ``We have taken note of the Russian
declarations. ... We will now pursue discussions in New York,''
he said. 

Iranian state radio voiced confidence that Russia's opposition
to the draft resolution could thwart the EU's moves against the
Iranian nuclear program. 

``If Russia opposes the resolution, then Europe's position in
further negotiations with Iran would be worse than it is now,''
the radio said in a commentary, adding that ``sanctions would
not be effective, satisfactory or conclusive.'' 

In a sign of Russia's determination to safeguard the Bushehr
contract, the head of the Russian state company that is building
the power plant said Thursday it would be completed on time. 

``All work on the nuclear power station is being carried out in
line with the existing timetable,'' Atomstroiexport's chief
Sergei Shmatko was quoted as saying by ITAR-Tass news agency. 

--- 

Associated Press writers Angela Charlton in Paris and Nasser
Karimi in Tehran, Iran, contributed to this report. 
		 	 	   
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian News and Media Limited 2006
*****************************************************************
 11 UN Nuclear Watchdog Chief Calls For Talks With Dpr Korea, Iran
 
Date: Wed, 25 Oct 2006 15:10:46 -0400


 
UN NUCLEAR WATCHDOG CHIEF CALLS FOR TALKS WITH DPR KOREA, IRAN
New York, Oct 23 2006 10:00AM
The head of the United Nations atomic watchdog is calling for talks 
with both the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and 
Iran to resolve the issues of their nuclear programmes.

“If I look at the problems that we are facing right now – the Korean 
situation, the Iran situation – these problems hinge, in my view, 
on the parties sitting together,” UN International Atomic Energy 
Agency (IAEA) Director General Mohamed ElBaradei said in an 
<"http://www.iaea.org/NewsCenter/Transcripts/2006/newsweek201006.html">interview 
with Newsweek magazine ahead of his scheduled meeting 
today with United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice 
in Washington.

“We need to move away from the idea that dialogue is a “reward” for 
good behaviour. You need dialogue when you have bad behaviour, 
because the purpose of the dialogue is to change the behaviour. 
As former [US] secretary of State James Baker said recently, talking 
to your enemy is not appeasement,” he added.

Asked about US assertions that Iran, despite its repeated denials, 
has a nuclear weapons programme, Mr. ElBaradei reiterated his previous 
statements that the jury is still out, adding that it was 
difficult to determine whether the Iranians intend to pursue a nuclear 
weapon, or are simply hedging their bet by developing their 
enrichment capability.

“But one of the lessons we learned from Iraq (where a current nuclear 
weapons programme was not found after the US-led invasion of 
2003) is that we really need to be very, very careful coming to 
conclusions because these issues make the difference between war 
and peace,” he declared.

“And as long as I know, and I am supported by all intelligence agencies 
in this, that Iran in the worst-case scenario is still a few 
years away, I have ample time to talk to them, I have ample time 
to negotiate with them, and I need to encourage them to cooperate 
with me.” 

Asked whether he thought the IAEA would be blamed for the DPRK’s 
development of atomic weapons, Mr. ElBaradei noted that the agency 
was “kicked out” in 2003 when the country withdrew from the Nuclear 
Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

“We lost jurisdiction. But I have been saying for the last two or 
three years that North Korea is the No. 1 security challenge to 
the NPT. I saw North Korea out of the [treaty] regime; I saw North 
Korea having plutonium; I saw North Korea feeling more and more 
isolated. I saw this coming,” he said.

As he has in other recent statements, he stressed that the IAEA’s 
annual budget of $120 million was insufficient and should be at 
least doubled to enable it to have independent satellite-monitoring 
and a state-of-the-art laboratory  for particle analysis.

“There is a difference between us and the (UN) Universal Postal Union. 
You can postpone issuing commemorative stamps or improving 
the efficiency of mail delivery,” he stressed. “But in our areas 
there are certain things that we have to do yesterday, because otherwise 
we are going to face a colossal danger. And people do not 
understand that. They do not prioritize.”
 2006-10-23 00:00:00.000 


___________________

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To listen to news and in-depth programmes from UN Radio go to: http://radio.un.org/ 
_______________________________

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*****************************************************************
 12 UN Nuclear Chief Meets With Us Secretary Rice; Calls For Talks With Dpr Korea, Iran
 
Date: Wed, 25 Oct 2006 15:10:45 -0400


 
UN NUCLEAR CHIEF MEETS WITH US SECRETARY RICE; CALLS FOR TALKS WITH 
DPR KOREA, IRAN
New York, Oct 23 2006  3:00PM
The head of the United Nations atomic watchdog met today with United 
States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in Washington to discuss 
the nuclear programmes of the Democratic People’s Republic 
of Korea (DPRK) and Iran, shortly after calling for talks with both 
countries.

“If I look at the problems that we are facing right now – the Korean 
situation, the Iran situation – these problems hinge, in my view, 
on the parties sitting together,” UN International Atomic Energy 
Agency (<"http://www.iaea.org/NewsCenter/News/2006/dg_usa.html">IAEA) 
Director General Mohamed ElBaradei said in an <"http://www.iaea.org/NewsCenter/Transcripts/2006/newsweek20102006.html">interview 
published 
in Newsweek magazine ahead of the meeting.

“We need to move away from the idea that dialogue is a “reward” for 
good behaviour. You need dialogue when you have bad behaviour, 
because the purpose of the dialogue is to change the behaviour. 
As former [US] secretary of State James Baker said recently, talking 
to your enemy is not appeasement,” he added.

Asked about US assertions that Iran, despite its repeated denials, 
has a nuclear weapons programme, Mr. ElBaradei reiterated his previous 
statements that the jury is still out, adding that it was 
difficult to determine whether the Iranians intend to pursue a nuclear 
weapon, or are simply hedging their bet by developing their 
enrichment capability.

“But one of the lessons we learned from Iraq (where a current nuclear 
weapons programme was not found after the US-led invasion of 
2003) is that we really need to be very, very careful coming to 
conclusions because these issues make the difference between war 
and peace,” he declared.

“And as long as I know, and I am supported by all intelligence agencies 
in this, that Iran in the worst-case scenario is still a few 
years away, I have ample time to talk to them, I have ample time 
to negotiate with them, and I need to encourage them to cooperate 
with me.” 

Asked whether he thought the IAEA would be blamed for the DPRK’s 
development of atomic weapons, Mr. ElBaradei noted that the agency 
was “kicked out” in 2003 when the country withdrew from the Nuclear 
Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

“We lost jurisdiction. But I have been saying for the last two or 
three years that North Korea is the No. 1 security challenge to 
the NPT. I saw North Korea out of the [treaty] regime; I saw North 
Korea having plutonium; I saw North Korea feeling more and more 
isolated. I saw this coming,” he said.

As he has in other recent statements, he stressed that the IAEA’s 
annual budget of $120 million was insufficient and should be at 
least doubled to enable it to have independent satellite-monitoring 
and a state-of-the-art laboratory for particle analysis.

“There is a difference between us and the [UN] Universal Postal Union. 
You can postpone issuing commemorative stamps or improving 
the efficiency of mail delivery,” he stressed. “But in our areas 
there are certain things that we have to do yesterday, because otherwise 
we are going to face a colossal danger. And people do not 
understand that. They do not prioritize.”
 2006-10-23 00:00:00.000 


___________________

For more details go to UN News Centre at http://www.un.org/news
To listen to news and in-depth programmes from UN Radio go to: http://radio.un.org/ 
_______________________________

To change your profile or unsubscribe go to:
http://www.un.org/apps/news/email/
*****************************************************************
 13 Guardian Unlimited: South Korea Enforces Sanctions on North

From the Associated Press        

[UP] 

Thursday October 26, 2006 5:16 PM

AP Photo SEL802 

By TANALEE SMITH 

Associated Press Writer 

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - South Korea made its first concrete
move Thursday to enforce U.N. sanctions imposed on North Korea
for its nuclear test, saying it will ban officials from the
communist country who fall under a U.N. travel restriction and
control financial transactions between the rivals. 

Meanwhile, a South Korean Defense Ministry report underscored
the lingering threat posed by the North, saying the regime is
believed to have enough plutonium to make as many as seven
nuclear bombs. The North is also working to make a small,
lightweight nuclear warhead that can be carried by ballistic
missile, according to the report released by an opposition
lawmaker. 

The U.N. resolution, passed in response to the North's
underground nuclear blast on Oct. 9, seeks to ban the country's
weapons trade and calls for North Korean ships to be searched
for suspected illegal materials. The resolution asks all member
countries to state how they plan to implement the sanctions
within 30 days of its Oct. 14 adoption. 

Unification Minister Lee Jong-seok said Seoul would ban some
North Korean officials from traveling to the South and control
transactions and remittances related to inter-Korean trade and
investment with Pyongyang, the South's Yonhap news agency
reported. 

It was unclear how tough the South will be in enforcing the
restrictions. Seoul had been hesitant to take strong measures to
support the sanctions, mindful of North Korea's massive armed
forces poised at the border, its family and cultural ties, and
its wish to expand economic relations with its neighbor. 

Also at issue was whether South Korea would expand its
participation in a U.S.-led drive to interdict North Korean
ships and aircraft suspected of carrying weapons of mass
destruction or related material. 

South Korea has been reluctant to participate fully in the
Proliferation Security Initiative because of concerns it could
lead to clashes with North Korea and undermine efforts to
persuade the communist state to give up its nuclear ambitions
through diplomacy. 

Still, Seoul's announcement is certain to be welcomed in
Washington, where Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on
Wednesday urged South Korea to show ``a strong commitment'' to
the sanctions. 

On Wednesday, Pyongyang warned that any move by the South to
impose trade, travel and financial sanctions would be seen as a
``declaration of confrontation'' that would elicit
``corresponding measures'' from the North. It also said
sanctions could cause a breakdown in inter-Korean relations. 

``If North-South relations collapse due to reckless and
imprudent sanctions against us the South Korean authorities will
be fully responsible for it and will have to pay a high price,''
said a statement carried by the North's official Korean Central
News Agency. 

South Korea rejected the North's warning Thursday. 

``If North Korea is concerned about the future of Korean people,
it should not aggravate the situation any more (and) return
immediately to the six-party talks,'' the Unification Ministry
said, referring to negotiations among the two Koreas, the U.S.,
Japan, China and Russia aimed at resolving the nuclear standoff. 

The South Korean Defense Ministry report on the North's nuclear
capabilities was based on a meeting of top military officials a
day after the North's test. 

The report says the North is believed to have extracted 110
pounds of high-grade plutonium, enough for up to seven nuclear
weapons. The North can use its Russian-made bombers to drop the
bombs, the ministry said, adding that the North has 82 Il-28
bombers at bases in Uiju and Jangjin. 

North Korea also has built a nuclear warhead weighing some two
to three tons. To be mounted on a missile, the warhead would
need to be less than a ton, the ministry said. 

The North stunned the world in 1998 by firing a long-range
ballistic missile over Japan into the Pacific. It also
test-fired seven missiles in July, including a long-range
missile believed capable of reaching the U.S. that crashed
shortly after launch. 

Meanwhile, a Japanese Foreign Ministry official said Japan wants
a meeting with the U.S. and South Korea as soon as possible to
solidify a common stance on the North Korean nuclear standoff.
Their foreign ministers met in Seoul last week. 

``Of course it's quite important to consolidate the three
nations on the issues,'' the official said on condition of
anonymity, citing ministry protocol. ``It's important for us to
have such meetings as soon as possible.'' 

Also Thursday, a leading international think tank warned of a
looming humanitarian crisis in North Korea, saying more people
could try to flee amid increased isolation and food shortages. 

The Brussels-based International Crisis Group urged regional
governments to improve their treatment of more than 9,000 North
Korean refugees in the region. 

``There's a very real possibility that the nuclear crisis will
be followed by a humanitarian crisis,'' said Peter Beck, head of
the group's Seoul office. ``The more belligerent the North is,
the less the world wants to help them, no matter how much you
try and separate politics from humanitarian issues.'' 

--- 

Associated Press Writers Jae-soon Chang in Seoul and Hans
Greimel in Tokyo contributed to this report. 
		 	 	   
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian News and Media Limited 2006
*****************************************************************
 14 Korea Herald: New estimate of N.K. WMDs   
        
The South Korean military estimates that North Korea possesses
up to 50 kilograms of weapons-grade plutonium, enough to make up
to seven nuclear weapons, government data released by a lawmaker
said yesterday. 

The military also assesses the North is now studying ways to
reduce the size of its nuclear warheads so they can be deployed
on ballistic missiles, according to the report which was
unveiled by Rep. Song Young-sun of the opposition Grand National
Party. 

The estimates are the result of a meeting between top military
officers, a day after the North's nuclear test on Oct. 9. 

The new report suggests a marginal increase in previous
estimates of the North's nuclear weapons capability. The Defense
Ministry had said North Korea was believed to have one or two
devices using plutonium which had been extracted in the early
1990s. It was believed the North possessed about 40 kilograms of
weapons-grade plutonium. 

In the updated assessment, the Defense Ministry also suggests
the device tested earlier this month weighed about 2 to 3 tons. 

Military officials reported to Defense Minister Yoon Kwang-ung
that if a 20-kiloton nuclear weapon was dropped in Yongsan,
Seoul, there would be more than 1.2 million casualties,
including 211 thousand deaths. The report was based on a U.S.
government simulation. One kiloton is equivalent with 1,000
kilograms of TNT in destructive power. 

The report said such a nuclear detonation could result in
widespread radiological contamination within 24 hours in a
radius of some 28 kilometers from the detonation site, reaching
many of Seoul's satellite cities. An explosion would also
produce electronic pulses that can paralyze operations of
electronic devices within 2-10 kilometers from ground zero. 

The South Korean military also reported that North Korea
maintains 82 IL-28 jet bombers that can carry its nuclear
weapons to South Korea. The bombers are deployed in the western
city of Uiju and an eastern airbase in Jangjin, the report said. 
(davidpooh@heraldm.com) 

By Jin Dae-woong 

2006.10.27
*****************************************************************
 15 Korea Herald: U.S. to explain nuke umbrella   
        
The commander of the U.S. Forces Korea will hold a press
briefing next week to explain Washington's position on its
provision of a nuclear umbrella for Korea, and issues related to
the transfer of wartime operational control. 

During the briefing planned for Oct. 30, Gen. Burwell Bell, will
clarify what order was assigned to him regarding the confirmed
U.S. pledge of the "continuation of the extended deterrence
offered by the U.S. nuclear umbrella." 

The phrase "extended deterrence," which was newly codified in a
joint communique last week after defense ministers' talks, has
prompted clashes between Korean and U.S. officials over its
exact interpretation. 

Korean officials interpreted the term as meaning an upgraded
U.S. nuclear defense commitment with concrete and detailed
contents, while U.S. officials say it is not much different from
the previous wording. 

Bell is also expected to speak about the U.S. position on the
agreed target year for the wartime control transfer. Korea and
the United States agreed last week to transfer wartime control
between 2009 and 2012. 

Korean officials have said that following the agreement, Korea
would take back the operational control by its original target
year of 2012. Seoul had hoped to transfer the control by 2012
while Washington had claimed that 2009 would be more
appropriate. 

(davidpooh@heraldm.com) 

By Jin Dae-woong 

2006.10.27
*****************************************************************
 16 Korea Herald: U.S. to impose 'India-Pakistan sanctions' on N.K.   
        
WASHINGTON - The United States will impose the kind of sanctions
against North Korea that were taken on India and Pakistan after
their nuclear tests in 1998, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
said Wednesday.

 The U.N.-invoked sanctions, in the meantime, should remain in
place even if North Korea returns to nuclear negotiations, until
Pyongyang has made progress in the talks, she said.

 Speaking at the Washington-based think tank Heritage
Foundation, the secretary specifically referred to the Glenn
Amendment of 1994 as steps the U.S. would take in addition to
the U.N. sanctions.

 "As for our part, the United States is now obligated to adopt
additional sanctions on North Korea under national legislation,
including the Glenn Amendment," Rice said.

 The Glenn Amendment allows the U.S. president to apply
sanctions when a non-nuclear weapons state detonates a nuclear
device.

 Rice gently prodded South Korea to show a strong commitment to
international sanctions.

 Rice said the U.S. has no wish to tell Seoul how it should
coexist with its neighbor and noted the vigorous debate in South
Korea over the future of its "sunshine policy" of partial
rapprochement.

 But she said North Korea's test of a nuclear device Oct. 9
"requires a strong response," and said that adherence to a U.N.
resolution banning the sale of weapons material, luxury goods
and more to North Korea is key. The sanctions also seek
interception of ships believed to be carrying suspect materials.

 "It requires a strong commitment by South Korea," she told the
conservative Heritage Foundation. "Any activities need to be
seen in the light of making certain to implement that
resolution."

 The secretary had returned from an extensive trip last week to
Northeast Asia and Russia, where she tried to drum up support
for full implementation of the U.N. resolution.

 Sanctions against India, which conducted the test in May 1998,
included prohibition of activities funded under the foreign
assistance act, U.S. government credit and other financial
assistance by U.S. agencies.

 Foreign military sales and financing were also prohibited,
along with export licenses for certain munitions and dual-use
goods.

 The U.S. also opposed loans and other assistance to India by
international institutions.

 Assistance restrictions were already in force at the time of
Pakistan's nuclear test, also conducted in May 1998, and the
U.S. added new measures to restrict credit and credit
guarantees, limit commercial exports of munitions and dual-use
items, and restrict commercial bank lending to the Pakistani
government.

 A congressional directive prohibited the U.S. from supporting
nonbasic human-needs lending by international financial
institutions.

 China and Russia, two veto-wielding members of the Security
Council with still-strong ties to North Korea, have argued that
U.N. sanctions should be lifted once North Korea returns to the
six-nation nuclear disarmament talks.

 South and North Korea, the U.S., China, Russia and Japan are
members of the talks that have not been held since November last
year due to Pyongyang's boycott.

 Rice, however, said North Korea's return is not enough.

 "We all agreed that if those talks resume, Resolution 1718
would remain in force until North Korea has made progress on
denuclearization," she said.

 Meanwhile, President George W. Bush pledged to keep up efforts
to resolve the North Korea nuclear standoff diplomatically,
despite Pyongyang's warning of the risk of war if South Korea
joins U.S.-led sanctions.

 "The leader of North Korea likes to threaten," Bush told a
White House news conference. "What he's doing is just testing
the will of the five countries that are working together to
convince him there is a better way forward for his people."

 Bush spoke after North Korea warned South Korea its
participation in sanctions would be seen as a serious
provocation leading to a "crisis of war" on the Korean peninsula.

 "Our goal is to continue to remind our partners that when we
work together, we're more likely to be able to achieve the
objective, which is to solve this problem diplomatically," Bush
said when asked about the North Korean threat.

2006.10.27
*****************************************************************
 17 Korea Herald: [NEWS FOCUS]Seoul caving in to pressure over PSI   
        
The South Korean government is widely expected to pledge a
stronger commitment to the Proliferation Security Initiative,
officials said yesterday.

 "It is widely believed that the government will agree to raise
its level of commitment in the antiweapons regime to possibly be
sworn in as a full-time member," said one government official
speaking anonymously. 

The PSI is a voluntary international regime initiated by the
United States in 2003 to help fight the global proliferation of
weapons of mass destruction. 

The government and the Uri Party are likely to reach a decision
on participating in the PSI following parliamentary committee
meetings on North Korean affairs this week. 

South Korea has so far held out from full participation for fear
of sparking intensified naval confrontations with the North. The
PSI calls for members to actively seize and search ships
suspected to be carrying weapons or related materials. 

But pressure from Washington to become an active member has been
unfaltering since the outbreak of North Korea's Oct. 9 nuclear
blast.

 "For Washington, it's all about principle now. It plans to
stick to its principles for fighting weapons of mass destruction
and it has the international backup. Since North Korea is on the
top of its blacklist, Washington is unlikely to ease up on its
demands for Seoul to join as one of its top allies," said Lee
Sang-hyun, director of security studies at the Sejong Institute. 

On Wednesday, North Korea's Committee for the Peaceful
Reunification of the Fatherland said "North Korea would take
relevant countermeasures should South Korea join in the U.S.
oppression against the North," in a statement. 

In a rare tit-for-tat, the Unification Ministry said it would
"rightfully respect and implement the United Nations Security
Council resolution (on North Korea)." The ministry also called
on Pyongyang to "return unconditionally to the six-party talks,"
echoing U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. 

Parliament remains divided over PSI membership. 

The ruling Uri Party, which equally blames Pyongyang and
Washington for North Korea's nuclear test, is opposed, while the
majority opposition Grand National Party sees full membership as
the key to regaining international trust and warding off the
North Korean threat. 

Critics claim that South Korea-U.S. ties lie in tatters due to
the ongoing conflict triggered by the widely varying North
Korean policies undertaken by presidents Roh Moo-hyun and George
W. Bush. Roh's engagement policies are considered far more
lenient compared to Bush's bellicose stance. 

"It's time to show the world and the United States that South
Korea is committed to the denuclearization of the peninsula,"
said the GNP in a recent statement. 

The Foreign Ministry said the government has now begun drafting
a report for the U.N. Security Council on follow-up measures to
its resolution. 

The PSI and key inter-Korean projects - tours to North Korea's
Mount Geumgang and the Gaeseong industrial complex - are
expected to be central topics. 

(jemmie@heraldm.com) 

By Kim Ji-hyun

2006.10.27
*****************************************************************
 18 Korea Herald: [EDITORIAL]Sweeping reshuffle   
        
President Roh Moo-hyun is set to conduct a sweeping reshuffle
involving almost all members of his foreign and security team.
This should provide an opportunity for Roh to establish a new
policy on North Korea and improve relations with the United
States, which have been strained over the communist state's
recent acts of provocation.

 The personnel change was necessitated after the ministers of
foreign affairs, unification, and defense offered to resign from
their posts. Its scope will be expanded if the director of the
National Intelligence Service should also decide to quit.

 At first, a comprehensive change to the foreign and security
team was not being considered. According to a news report, Roh
had intended to limit the personnel change to naming someone to
replace Foreign Minister Ban Kim-moon, who is leaving to take up
his post of U.N. secretary-general. But Roh had to change this
plan when the ministers of unification and defense also offered
to quit.

 This will prove beneficial to Roh, who is required, though
reluctantly, to make a fresh start with a new team. He has no
other option because Pyongyang's recent nuclear test rendered
useless his policy of providing enormous amounts of aid for the
poverty-stricken North, and supposedly using it as leverage in
discouraging the reclusive communist state from rocking the boat.

 The ultimate goal of a North Korea policy is to remove any
threat to the security of the South. Judging by this criterion,
Roh's policy has been discredited to a great extent. Tension has
escalated since North Korea launched ballistic missiles in July
and tested a nuclear device earlier this month, pitting the
communist state against the rest of the world.

 It is time for Roh to acknowledge his policy has failed and
shift its focus from carrots to sticks. But he is hesitating to
make a policy shift befitting the new security environment that
has drastically changed since the nuclear test.

 That misguided attitude is evidenced by the remarks of his
spokesman, who says the president will not make any change in
his basic foreign and security policy, despite the North Korean
nuclear test.

 No less mistaken is Unification Minister Lee Jong-seok, Roh's
point man for his North Korea policy. He says he is resigning
not because he has made any serious mistake in conducting the
North Korea policy, but because a more competent person is
needed to prevent it from becoming an object of endless
political strife.

 In a futile attempt to defend himself, he argues the policy he
has pursued has produced many positive results, such as
inter-Korean reconciliation. But to what use can they be put
when they are overshadowed by the nuclear threat?

 Roh will have to go beyond his narrow pool of talent in
selecting candidates to the ministerial positions of foreign
affairs and national security. He will need the highest level of
expertise and competence that can be found among all potential
candidates if he is to deal effectively with the pressing
foreign policy and security issues.

 A first test of his new team will come when the nation begins
to join the U.N.-mandated international sanctions against North
Korea. South Korea will have to walk a tightrope between the
duty it must discharge as a responsible U.N. member, and the
extra care it should take in order not to provoke the North into
armed conflict.

 The team will also have to ponder the extent to which it will
have to participate in the Proliferation Security Initiative, a
U.S. program to prevent the flow of weapons of mass destruction
to and from suspect states or non-state actors. It will have to
determine, for instance, what to do about suspect North Korean
ships under the PSI.

 
2006.10.27
 
*****************************************************************
 19 Korea Herald: Seoul to bar N.K. arms officials   
        
The South Korean government will block any North Korean
officials suspected of taking part in nuclear weapons programs
from entering, Unification Minister Lee Jong-seok said yesterday.

 The decision is part of South Korea's measures under U.N.
Resolution 1718.

 Seoul's sanctions are likely to consist of four parts: a ban on
supply, sales and transportation of weapons of mass destruction,
conventional weapons and luxury items; freezing of assets and
prevention of assets being used; inspection of all cargo to and
from North Korea; and a ban on entry of personnel and their
families suspected of being linked to nuclear or other weapons
programs.

 "The (government) currently controls the entry of all North
Korean personnel to the South under Clause 9 of the South-North
exchange and cooperation law," Lee said in a parliamentary
audit. Lee announced his resignation Wednesday but will stay on
until the audit is completed and his successor is named. 

Lee said that the South Korean government will be able to
control or prevent North Koreans entering under the same law
when the United Nation's Sanctions Committee draws up a list of
suspects to be subjected to the sanctions.

 It was the first decision to be confirmed since the government
began working on antiproliferation measures after the North's
Oct. 9 nuclear test.

 Each U.N. member country must submit to the U.N. Sanctions
Committee their proposed sanctions in line with the resolution
prohibiting transfer of material, equipment, financial resources
or personnel that can be linked to North Korea's nuclear or
other WMD programs to or from the North.

 Lee also said the South Korean government will be taking
exclusive steps to condemn the North's nuclear test.

 Seoul has so far suspended shipment of relief aid and has
halted additional rice and fertilizer aid since the North's July
missile launches.

 While Seoul remains committed to keeping the two flagship
inter-Korean projects - the Gaeseong industrial park and the
Mount Geumgang tours - the level of government participation in
the operations is likely to be cut down.

 "We plan to review the subjects and boundaries for the
government's subsidies in terms of economic cooperation and
civic-level exchanges in the future," Lee said without
elaborating further.

 South Korea will also remain committed to the five
international treaties on weapons of mass destruction that
"strictly monitor" export of strategic materials, he said.

 Lee added that no luxury goods were being admitted to the North
from the South but said a revision to the relevant regulation
was possible following the Sanction Committee's decision on the
definition of "luxury materials."

 While adding there are no North Korean assets in the South
linked to WMD programs, Lee said his government will control any
trade, investment, financial payments and fund remittances to
North Korean entities designated by the U.N. Sanctions Committee
as dangerous.

 All North Korean vessels using South Korean ports will undergo
customs inspections and the authorities will keep track of North
Korean cargo in South Korean waters under the South-North
maritime agreement, Lee said.

 He did not specify South Korea's position on the growing calls
to expand its participation in the U.S.-led Proliferation
Security Initiative.

 In the meantime, President Roh Moo-hyun's predecessor and
designer of the "Sunshine Policy" Kim Dae-jung urged direct
talks between Washington and Pyongyang to end the nuclear
crisis, in an article printed in Thursday's International Herald
Tribune.

 Kim, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2000 for his epochal
summit meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il, said
military measures "could reduce the peninsula to ashes and lead
to the demise of the 70 million Korean people." 

He disagreed with the effectiveness of economic sanctions,
saying North Koreans were already accustomed to deprivation. He
added that assistance from China and other allies might also
continue regardless.

 Kim cited his own quote to U.S. President George W. Bush in
2002, "that dialogue, when necessary for a country's national
interest, can be pursued even with the evil" and added that
history showed communism was never changed through pressure or
containment.

 (angiely@heraldm.com)

By Lee Joo-hee 

2006.10.27
*****************************************************************
 20 Korea Herald: Russia advocates cautious response to N.K.   
        
Moscow doubts U.N. sanctions can resolve nuclear standoff

 This is the seventh in a series of analytical articles about
the impact of North Korea's nuclear test. - Ed. 

By Andrei P. Tsygankov 

Despite China's success in getting Pyongyang to "apologize" for
North Korea's recent nuclear experiment, the test has challenged
skeptics of the nation's putative nuclear weapons possession.
Some of those who based their skepticism on the absence of the
weapons' field testing and lack of qualified personnel in
nuclear physics by North Korea now admit that the test has paved
a way for future similar developments. Many also acknowledge
that Pyongyang has abundantly demonstrated that previous
policies of enforcing a nuclear nonproliferation regime have
failed. 

There is no coming back to the status quo ante and, short of
some fundamental changes in international politics, the
emergence of new nuclear states in Asia and the rest of the
world is only a matter of time. 

Russia's response to the nuclear crisis has reflected these new
changes. Despite the significance of the East Asian region for
Moscow, the official reactions to North Korea's test have been
quite mute. Most officials condemned it, yet they increasingly
recognize that North Korea has now become a nuclear power and
that the world can no longer be the same. 

Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov, for instance, suggested the
return to the pre-test state of affairs is now impossible.
Moscow also ruled out the use of force and efforts of the other
five parties to isolate North Korea by applying tough sanctions. 

In one of his interview in Germany, President Putin stressed,
"We need to move from talk of ultimatums and sanctions toward
seeing international law prevail in international matters."
After much hesitation, Russia has moved to support U.N.
resolution 1718 imposing sanctions on the Pyongyang regime. Yet
Russia clearly does not believe that sanctions are likely to be
the solution. As with the case of Iran, Moscow favors return to
negotiations and will be the last to give preference to tough
sanctions and military coercion. 

Three considerations help to make sense of Russia's mute
response to the crisis. The first has to do with geographic
proximity and Russia's fear that nuclear instability may produce
immediate dangerous consequences for its own security. East
Asia's long-term security challenges, such as the nuclear
ambitions of North Korea and China's relations with Taiwan,
continue to affect Russia directly. A shared border with North
Korea means, for example, that in case of a nuclear explosion on
the Korean Peninsula, Russia would be confronted by the threat
of a radioactive cloud and a potential influx of up to 100,000
refugees. Add to this a possible future instability of the
Pyongyang regime, and it becomes quite clear what causes Russia
concern. 

In addition to the geographic proximity, the cautious reaction
from Russia can be explained by its economic development needs,
which require cultivation of special ties with China and South
Korea. Both nations have been long-term supporters of engagement
policies toward Pyongyang's regime, and Moscow is hardly in a
position to have a strong independent stance on the issue. 

Russia's key priority remains domestic modernization, and new
realities of growing energy prices, the recovering economy, a
pragmatic leadership, and relative salience of major threats
from outside create favorable conditions for its engagement with
Asia. 

For example, although its energy markets are primarily in Europe
and accounted for about 50 percent of foreign trade, Russia
confirmed its determination to build additional energy pipelines
with Asian nations. Two of them will connect Russia and China
and run through China and South Korea. 

Putin also made clear his plans for trilateral cooperation
between Russia, South Korea and North Korea. Three developments
can serve as a promising avenue in this regard: the link of the
Trans-Siberian Railroad to the Trans-Korean Railroad (the
so-called "iron silk road"); the East Siberian gas pipeline from
Irkutsk's gas-condensate field; and supply of electricity from
the Russian Far East. All three projects potentially tie the
three nations together, thereby diversifying Russia's ties in
the region and preparing the ground for a smoother future
unification of Korea. Such engagement with the region would
hardly be possible were Russia to ignore the positions of the
region's key players. 

The third reason explaining Russia's carefully measured response
to North Korea's test has to do with a balancing policy pursued
by Moscow. The central objective of that policy is to achieve a
unified Korea that would not be controlled by the United States
and instead become Russia's strategic partner in the region. 

A considerably weakened Russia is also wary of Japan and rising
China, and in the words of Chairman of State Duma International
Affairs Committee Konstantin Kosachev, such an independent and
strong Korea "would balance Chinese and Japanese aspirations in
the area of Russia beyond the Urals." The Kremlin understands
that reunification of the two Koreas will take place, but it
wants the process to proceed in a slow, orderly fashion and on
the basis of inter-Korean dialogue. Russia has also sought to
work closely with Seoul in resolving past nuclear stalemates,
and it was ultimately a similar Russia-South Korea-China
position on a denuclearizing North Korea that helped to
negotiate a previous settlement. 

For all these reasons, Russia advocates cautious treatment of
North Korea. Russia's insistence on the development of a
multilateral security framework as a solution to the crisis is
partly a reflection of its own weakness and a way to increase
its role in solving vital security issues in the region. 

Yet it is also a principal policy belief. For years, Russia's
officials have argued for the development of a multilateral
security framework in the region and outside. In the post-Soviet
era, Russia opposed NATO's military intervention in Yugoslavia
and America's war in Iraq as lacking the support of the United
Nations. The Kremlin does not believe in solving security
problems in a unilateral fashion, insisting that they can only
be solved successfully through systematic coordination of state
efforts, and not through use of force by ad hoc coalitions. 

Moscow certainly doesn't have readily available solutions to the
crisis. Yet it becomes increasingly clear that the existing
nuclear nonproliferation regime cannot be sustained by force and
coercion. A more promising way to address the problem of
proliferation is to look closely at all the leading nuclear
powers and their credibility in the world. It is quite clear
that an important reason why so many "dangerous" regimes feel
compelled to develop their own nuclear programs has to do with
the absence of adequate security assurances. 

Such assurance must come from two directions. First, the United
States must exclude any possibility of using nuclear weapons for
any other than political objectives. One can hardly speak of
assurances of security when the U.S. Defense Department implies
that the United States can use nuclear weapons against
nonnuclear states. Last year, more than 470 physicists,
including seven Nobel laureates, signed a petition to contest
the proposal. 

Second, it is critical to recognize that the nonproliferation
regime cannot be sustained if the five original creators of it
in 1968 will continue to ignore their own pledge to reduce and,
ultimately, eliminate their own nuclear weapons. 

Developing a comprehensive plan, which would include steps in
the direction of disarmament by all involved parties, is a far
more productive and responsible way to address the problem than
merely trying to pressure Iran, North Korea, or any future
nuclear contenders. Such pressures are necessary, but they can
only be effective when applied universally, that is to all
members of the nuclear club. So far, this has been far from the
case.

 

Andrei P. Tsygankov is an associate professor at San Francisco
State University and the author of "Russia's Foreign Policy:
Change and Continuity in National Identity (2006)," among many
other works. The views expressed here are his own. He can be
reached at andrei@sfsu.edu - Ed.

2006.10.27
*****************************************************************
 21 Korea Herald: Seoul to deny entry to N. Koreans   
        
The South Korean government will block any North Korean
officials suspected of taking part in nuclear weapons programs
from entering, Unification Minister Lee Jong-seok said yesterday.

 The decision is part of South Korea's measures under U.N.
resolution 1718.

 Seoul's sanctions are likely to consist of four parts: a ban on
supply, sales and transportation of weapons of mass destruction,
conventional weapons and luxury items; freezing of assets and
prevention of assets being used; inspection of all cargo to and
from North Korea; and a ban on entry of personnel and their
families suspected of being linked to nuclear or other weapons
programs.

 "The (government) currently controls the entry of all North
Korean personnel to the South under Clause 9 of the South-North
exchange and cooperation law," Lee said in a parliamentary
audit. Lee announced his resignation Wednesday but will stay on
until the audit is completed and his successor is named. 

Lee said that the South Korean government will be able to
control or prevent North Koreans entering under the same law
when the United Nation's Sanctions Committee draws up a list of
suspects to be subjected to the sanctions.

 It was the first decision to be confirmed since the government
began working on antiproliferation measures after the North's
Oct. 9 nuclear test.

 Each U.N. member country must submit to the U.N. Sanctions
Committee their proposed sanctions in line with the resolution
prohibiting transfer of material, equipment, financial resources
or personnel that can be linked to North Korea's nuclear or
other WMD programs to or from the North.

 Lee also said the South Korean government will be taking
exclusive steps to condemn the North's nuclear test.

 Seoul has so far suspended shipment of relief aid and has
halted additional rice and fertilizer aid since the North's July
missile launches.

 While Seoul remains committed to keeping the two flagship
inter-Korean projects - the Gaeseong industrial park and the
Mount Geumgang tours - the level of government participation in
the operations is likely to be cut down.

 "We plan to review the subjects and boundaries for the
government's subsidies in terms of economic cooperation and
civic-level exchanges in the future," Lee said without
elaborating further.

 South Korea will also remain committed to the five
international treaties on weapons of mass destruction that
"strictly monitor" export of strategic materials, he said.

 Lee added that no luxury goods were being admitted to the North
from the South but said a revision to the relevant regulation
was possible following the Sanction Committee's decision on the
definition of "luxury materials."

 While adding there are no North Korean assets in the South
linked to WMD programs, Lee said his government will control any
trade, investment, financial payments and fund remittances to
North Korean entities designated by the U.N. Sanctions Committee
as dangerous.

 All North Korean vessels using South Korean ports will undergo
customs inspections and the authorities will keep track of North
Korean cargo in South Korean waters under the South-North
maritime agreement, Lee said.

 He did not specify South Korea's position on the growing calls
to expand its participation in the U.S.-led Proliferation
Security Initiative.

 In the meantime, President Roh Moo-hyun's predecessor and
designer of the "Sunshine Policy" Kim Dae-jung urged direct
talks between Washington and Pyongyang to end the nuclear
crisis, in an article printed in Thursday's International Herald
Tribune.

 Kim, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2000 for his epochal
summit meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il, said
military measures "could reduce the peninsula to ashes and lead
to the demise of the 70 million Korean people." 

He disagreed with the effectiveness of economic sanctions,
saying North Koreans were already accustomed to deprivation. He
added that assistance from China and other allies might also
continue regardless.

 Kim cited his own quote to U.S. President George W. Bush in
2002, "that dialogue, when necessary for a country's national
interest, can be pursued even with the evil" and added that
history showed communism was never changed through pressure or
containment.

 (angiely@heraldm.com)

By Lee Joo-hee

2006.10.27

*****************************************************************
 22 INSIDE JoongAng Daily: Politicians held for contacting North's agent

Octorber 27, 2006 KST 13:53 (GMT+9)                                                    
                       
  Democratic Labor Party deputy among 5 persons now in custody   

  October 27, 2006 ¤Ñ Seoul prosecutors and the National
Intelligence Service said yesterday they had arrested a senior
official of the Democratic Labor Party on charges of contacting
a North Korean agent during a visit to China. 

His arrest and that of one other suspect were a significant
enlargement of an investigation into 1980s-era student
activists. So far, at least five people, including incumbent and
former officials of the left-wing political party, are in the
prosecution's sights.

 Sources at the prosecution said the five could eventually be
charged with espionage, but it appears that the authorities do
not yet have sufficient evidence to accuse them formally of that
crime. For the present, those in custody have been charged with
unauthorized contacts with a North Korean.

 Investigators from the Seoul Central District Public
Prosecutors Office and the intelligence agency raided the home
of Lee Jeong-hun, a former central committee member of the
Democratic Labor Party, on Tuesday and detained him for alleged
violations of the National Security Law. Yesterday, the
prosecution said it had applied for warrants to extend his
detention and to keep two other activists arrested at the same
time, Jang Min-ho and Sohn Jong-mok, in custody. Prosecutors
said all three visited China in March for meetings with a North
Korean agent. Mr. Sohn and Mr. Jang also allegedly traveled to
North Korea via China without South Korean government
authorization.

 Yesterday, the investigation widened with the arrest of Choi
Gi-yeong, deputy secretary general of the Democratic Labor
Party, and another activist. They were also charged with
contacting a North Korean agent in China.

 "We obtained the arrest warrants early in the morning and took
Mr. Choi into custody at his home," Ahn Chang-ho, a prosecutor
in charge of the case, said yesterday. "The National
Intelligence Service is currently questioning Mr. Choi."

 The pair allegedly accompanied Mr. Lee when he contacted the
North Korean spy, the prosecution said, adding that the
investigation would focus on the possibility that they had
received instructions from the agent and engaged in
"anti-government activities" after returning to this country.
Such activities would also support an espionage charge.

 Mr. Jang, a 44-year-old game developer and former student
activist, was accused of working under the North's orders for
more than a decade. After dropping out of Sung Kyun Kwan
University in Seoul during his sophomore year, prosecutors said,
he went to the United States and was a pro-North Korean activist
there. Officials added that he is believed to have visited North
Korea three times since the mid-1980s.

 During the raid at Mr. Jang's home, investigators reportedly
seized documents with instructions on how to contact and report
to a North Korean agent. The prosecution said Mr. Jang admitted
to some of the charges and waived his right to a court hearing
on a detention warrant. 

The Seoul Central District Court heard the cases for warrants
yesterday against Mr. Lee and Mr. Sohn. Mr. Lee contended he was
in China on business and had received no instructions from North
Korean agents. "This is a Roh administration conspiracy to
suppress civic movements and to create instability," he
complained. 

Mr. Lee, a history graduate of Korea University, was a
well-known student activist. He was arrested in 1985 for leading
the occupation of American Cultural Center in central Seoul. He
was also convicted in 2000 of trying to enter North Korea by
sea. 

The Democratic Labor Party complained in a statement yesterday
that the arrests were "clear political oppression" of the party.
It demanded the release of all those arrested, accused the spy
agency of fabricating evidence in a conspiracy to maintain its
influence and demanded the repeal of the National Security Law.
 

by Kim Jong-moon, Ser Myo-ja myoja@joongang.co.kr>   
	  
Copyright by Joins.com, Inc.
*****************************************************************
 23 INSIDE JoongAng Daily: Seoul bars some visits from across the DMZ

Octorber 27, 2006 KST 13:53 (GMT+9)                                                    

  October 27, 2006 ¤Ñ Seoul will ban the entry to South Korea of
North Koreans linked to its nuclear program in the first
tangible reaction to the North's Oct. 9 nuclear test and the
United Nations sanctions that followed.

 Unification Minister Lee Jong-seok, appearing at an inspection
hearing at the National Assembly, said that the travel ban was
in line with the terms of the UN sanctions restricting such
travel. In addition to barring the entry of such people, Mr. Lee
said, the government would also bar any financial transfers
linked to them. 

The minister said that Seoul was not considering a ban on
shipments of luxury goods to North Korea but would do so if
specific items were designated by a UN sanctions committee as
falling under the terms of the UN resolution.

 Seoul suspended shipments of rice and fertilizer to North Korea
after the nuclear test but has not announced whether those
shipments will be canceled or merely delayed. 

The minister's remarks came a day after Pyongyang warned of
consequences if Seoul cooperated in enforcing the UN sanctions.
Separately yesterday, the ministry issued a statement pledging
to follow the UN guidelines. 

The ministry has made clear its desire that North-South economic
projects, such as tourism at a resort on North Korea's east
coast and an industrial complex, continue operating. 

The administration is still pondering whether those programs
should go on despite calls from the United States to shut down
at least the tourism program. It is also trying to decide
whether to join the U.S.-led Proliferation Security Initiative,
which seeks to block international trade in missile components
and material for weapons of mass destruction. The warning from
Pyongyang also called that program a military operation to
enforce a blockade of its ports.

 Switzerland announced Wednesday that it would impose sanctions
on North Korea in line with the UN resolution. The federal
economic ministry said luxury goods exports to North Korea,
including watches, would be banned. 
Washington has frozen the U.S. assets of a Swiss company with
alleged links to a North Korean firm involved in mass weapons
development.

 Japan has imposed wide-ranging sanctions on North Korea;
Australia has announced a sanctions regime and pledged to
provide military assets to assist in enforcing the UN sanctions
resolution.
 
by Brian Lee africanu@joongang.co.kr>   
	  
Copyright by Joins.com, Inc. Terms of Use |
*****************************************************************
 24 Korea Times: North Korea Has 50 Kg of Plutonium

Hankooki.com > The Korea Times > Nation   

By Jung Sung-ki Staff Reporter

 The South Korean military believes North Korea possesses about
50 kilograms of plutonium, enough to make six to seven nuclear
bombs, a lawmaker said yesterday. 

The North is proceeding with a nuclear weapon design that would
be small and light enough to mount atop a missile, Rep. Song
Young-sun of the main opposition Grand National Party (GNP)
said. 

Those analyses were made during a hurriedly arranged meeting of
generals on Oct. 10, a day after North Korea detonated a nuclear
device, defying the international community, according to a
Defense Ministry document submitted to the legislator.

 Pyongyang is believed to have been accumulating plutonium for a
bomb since the mid-1980s. It froze the program in 1994 under an
agreement with the United States, but the accord broke down in
late 2002, and North Korea is believed to have ramped up
production after that.

 During the meeting of top military brass, intelligence that
Pyongyang is deploying 82 Russian IL-28 bombers capable of
carrying nuclear weapons in air bases in Uiju and Changjin was
reported to Defense Minister Yoon Kwang-ung, the document said. 

The military leaders stressed the importance of a stronger U.S.
nuclear umbrella to cope with the North¡¯s nuclear threat, it
said. 

They also agreed on the need to revise a joint contingency plan
with the U.S. military in case of instability in North Korea,
such as the collapse of the communist regime and mass defections
or a revolt, the document said. 

gallantjung@koreatimes.co.kr 10-26-2006 17:57         
  
*****************************************************************
 25 Korea Times: Effectiveness of UN Panel on N. Korea Questioned 

Hankooki.com > The Korea Times   

By Kim Sue-young Staff Reporter 

A committee of the United Nations Security Council cannot punish
nations that do not impose sanctions on North Korea as
stipulated in the resolution on the North, a U.S. expert said
yesterday. 

The committee was launched last Monday to monitor whether states
comply with their obligations to sanction the Stalinist state
for its nuclear test on Oct. 9 but some have cast doubt on the
committee's role. 

``The effectiveness of the committee varies from case to case
and really depends on the commitment of the key parties,''
Kimberley Elliott, a senior fellow of the Institute of
International Economics (IIE), a nongovernmental think tank,
said in an interview with Radio Free Asia (RFA). 

There was a committee under the Security Council to sanction a
certain country but it is just used to supervise the fulfillment
of the resolutions rather than make a decision on punishment,
she said. 

``I think it's more symbolic than real,'' the researcher said. 

According to the U.N. resolution adopted on Oct. 14, U.N. member
nations should report to the committee how they have
specifically taken action against the reclusive North Korean
regime. 

The committee has a right to investigate and take measures
against nations that violate the sanctions, she said. 

Violations should be referred to the Security Council to correct
offenses but they are difficult issues to resolve if permanent
members of the council break the rule, Elliott said. 

ksy@koreatimes.co.kr 10-26-2006 17:39         
  
*****************************************************************
 26 Korea Times: USFK Chief to Meet Journalists 

Hankooki.com > The Korea Times > Nation   


SEOUL (Yonhap) _ The top U.S. military commander in South Korea
will hold a press conference next week amid growing
controversies over the agreements at bilateral military talks
earlier this month, his office said Thursday.

 Gen. B. B. Bell, the chief of 30,000 U.S. troops here, is to
meet the media on Monday to explain the results of annual
defense ministerial talks, called the Security Consultative
Meeting (SCM), in Washington on Oct. 20, the office said in a
statement.

 After the talks, South Korea and the United States issued a
joint communique, in which the U.S. pledged the ¡° continuation
of the extended deterrence offered by the U.S. nuclear
umbrella.¡±

 The phrase prompted debate over whether that meant the United
States showed strengthened, concrete resolve to extend its
nuclear umbrella, as North Korea caused a global uproar by
detonating a nuclear device on Oct. 9. 

10-26-2006 22:04         
  
*****************************************************************
 27 Korea Times: [Michael Breen] Ethics of Sunshine 

Hankooki.com > The Korea Times > Opinion   

By Michael Breen

 Five years ago, a Chinese ship called the Chuxing visiting the
port of Pusan was found to be carrying 91 kilograms of
methamphetamine. Customs officials and prosecutors let it go. 

Two years later, officials nabbed 45 kgs of the same drugs from
the same vessel. Again, they let it go.

 In fact, according to customs and prosecution data, the plucky
Chuxing has been caught smuggling drugs and counterfeit
cigarettes no less than 12 times. And I think we may safely
assume that on many occasions its cargo has made it unobserved
into the Korean market.

 The normal explanation for such a limp-wristed approach to law
enforcement would be corruption: the gangsters must have got to
the customs people. Or maybe they had a man on the inside. But
in this case, it¡¯s something else. The Chuxing is distinct
because it plies an unusual route. For many years, it has been
making a weekly run between Pusan and the North Korean port of
Rajin.

 Yes, it¡¯s those North Koreans again. This time, they¡¯re
running drugs and counterfeits into South Korea. But the
authorities here have been turning a blind eye in the greater
interests of the sunshine engagement policy with North Korea.

 You¡¯d think that this story, revealed last week by a national
assemblyman, would have billowed into a national scandal. But it
does not appear to have stirred much interest in the Korean
press and society. That, in this foreign observer¡¯s opinion, is
because it represents a type of moral lapse that typifies this
society: my willingness to subvert the rules for the perceived
greater good of whatever it is that I want to do. 

There are good historical reasons for this. The law was never an
arbiter of justice in Korea. Rather, it was employed by the
powerful to justify their abuse of the weak. But in modern
democratic Korea, the inability to overcome this deep aversion
to the rule of law explains why citizens have such a low level
of trust of one another and of their institutions.

 The Chuxing revelation should have the effect of a grenade
rolled into the church of North-South unification. It¡¯s
certainly timely. Not only, we find, has North Korea¡¯s morally
crippled regime been building nuclear weapons while we¡¯ve been
feeding its people, but it¡¯s also been using our ships (Chuxing
is owned by a Korean) to peddle drugs to gangsters who prey on
our young people. Right now, the international community is
debating whether South Korea should continue its
turn-the-other-cheek engagement policy with North Korea, or
whether it should side with the U.S. in its
squeeze-¡®em-till-the-pips-squeak sanctions approach. Both
policies have moral right on their side and both could produce
results. 

What makes them worthy of equal consideration in the public
debate is that they are policies considered and undertaken by
democracies, proposed in an honorable fashion, guided by law,
and mindful of individual rights and all that. But suddenly
those qualifications seem absent. Such things happen. The most
glaring example in recent years is the American-led invasion of
Iraq, the pre-emptive nature of which in retrospect seems to
have been entirely unjustified. The suggestion that the case for
war was argued with deception puts it, in the minds of tens of
millions of people, up there with rogue acts conducted by
dictatorships. 

It is the biggest global controversy of the decade. America
fortunately is such an open country that it can correct itself.
The debate can continue because that democratic, legal
underpinning remains strong. But can we say the same about Korea?

 Ironically, there is no need for correction for the ship of
government has not even listed. President Roh¡¯s sunshine policy
should have been majorly discredited _ not just because of North
Korea¡¯s behavior, but also because of his own government¡¯s
willingness to allow drug running to go unpunished.

 But, it hasn¡¯t.

 In fact, that ship might already be back in Pusan. 
10-26-2006 19:35         
  
*****************************************************************
 28 AFP: Six-party talks only route for US dialogue with North Korea - Hill - 

 Thu Oct 26, 10:20 AM ET 		 	 

NADI (AFP) - Stalled six-party talks have to restart for the US 
to talk to North Korea" /> North Korea, following the isolated 
regime's nuclear test earlier this month, US Assistant Secretary 
of State Christopher Hill said Thursday. 

"The North Koreans haven't expressed an interest in having a
dialogue with anyone really," Hill told reporters on the
sidelines of a meeting of Pacific Island Forum countries in
Fiji. 

"We've made very clear that if they come back to the (six-party)
process, we're certainly prepared to talk to them directly," he
said. 

Hill was asked about calls for the US to engage in direct
dialogue with Kim Jong-Il's regime following the October 9
declared nuclear test. 

But Hill said the six-party agreement was very important to the
US, because it ensured a united stand by countries in the region
over North Korea's nuclear ambitions. 

North Korea's nuclear test caused a global uproar with the UN
Security Council issuing a resolution imposing economic
sanctions aimed at curbing Pyongyang's weapons program. 

Threats by Pyongyang against South Korea" /> South Koreaover
adopting sanctions imposed after the test flew in the face of
Seoul's clear undertaking to follow the resolution "to the
letter", said Hill, who has responsibility for East Asian and
Pacific affairs. 

North Korea needed to understand UN Security Council resolutions
were binding on everyone, he said. 

"North Korea needs to take some time to think about this, and
get themselves back to the table and back to what the United
Nations" /> United Nationshas demanded that it do," he said. 

North Korea pulled out of the six-nation talks in November last
year in protest at financial sanctions imposed by Washington
against Pyongyang for alleged money-laundering and
counterfeiting. 

Aside from the US and North Korea, the other nations involved in
the talks are China, South Korea, Japan and Russia. 

Returning to the talks is one of the key planks of the UN
Security Council resolution imposed against North Korea for
conducting its nuclear test. 

Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Aso said Wednesday his country
should reopen the debate on whether to develop a nuclear weapon
capability in light of the North Korean programme. 

"We need to discuss once again why Japan came to decide not to
possess nuclear arms," Aso told a parliamentary foreign affairs
committee. 

"On the assumption that North Korea really owns nuclear arms
now, the situation in the Far East has changed drastically. 

"We should discuss if Japan can stay as it is." 

But Hill said Japan's non-nuclear policy remained intact. 

Hill recently travelled with US Secretary of State Condoleeza
Rice to Japan and South Korea, following the North Korean test. 

"We understand from the Japanese that they have had no change in
their policy against developing, importing or using nuclear
weapons, so there is no change in Japan," he said. 

"Proliferation of that kind is something we all need to be
concerned about, it's one of the reasons why Secretary of State
Rice wanted to get out there to assure our allies that the US is
prepared to use all our deterrent capability if South Korea or
Japan is threatened." 	 		 			

Copyright © 2006 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved. The
*****************************************************************
 29 AFP: SKorea makes first move to enforce UN sanctions on North -
     
 Thu Oct 26, 7:33 AM ET 		 	 

SEOUL (AFP) - South Korea" /> South Koreahas announced its first 
moves to enforce UN sanctions against North Korea" /> North 
Koreaas the leaders of China and France expressed serious concern 
over the communist state's landmark nuclear test. 

 Seoul brushed off a threat of retaliation by Pyongyang to ban
the entry of North Koreans linked to nuclear and other weapons
programmes, saying it would faithfully fulfil its duties as a UN
member. 

Lee Jong-Seok, head of the ministry responsible for inter-Korean
relations, said existing laws would allow the government to
control or prevent entry by anyone the UN sanctions committee
names as subject to travel restrictions. 

He said Seoul was also tightening inspection of goods and
materials shipped to North Korea, under the terms of the UN
Security Council resolution imposed after Pyongyang's October 9
first ever atom bomb test. 

"Once the sanctions committee designates persons or
organizations (with links to WMD programmes), the government
will control the country's trade, investment, financial payments
and fund remittances" to those entities, Lee said. 

The move came as visiting French President Jacques Chirac" />
President Jacques Chiracand President Hu Jintao" /> Hu Jintaoof
China, Pyongyang's closest ally, voiced "grave concern" at the
test in a joint statement in Beijing. 

"This is contrary to the goal of the denuclearization of the
Korean peninsula and the efforts of the international community
to strengthen the non-proliferation regime," they said. 

Meanwhile a leading think-tank reported a growing crisis of
hunger that it said was being overshadowed by the dispute over
Pyongyang's weapons drive. 

The International Crisis Group warned in a report that hunger
was driving increasing numbers of North Koreans to risk their
lives fleeing over the border to China, and urged Beijing to
halt its policy of repatriating the refugees. 

The humanitarian challenge was "playing out almost invisibly as
the world focuses on North Korea's nuclear programme", the
Brussels-based group said. 

The ICG said China and South Korea were not putting maximum
pressure on the North to scrap its nuclear programme because
they feared a torrent of refugees if the economy collapsed. 

But it warned that even without the UN sanctions, "the perfect
storm may be brewing for a return to famine in the North." 

The October 9 caused a global uproar with the UN Security
Council issuing a resolution imposing economic sanctions aimed
at reining in Pyongyang's weapons programme. 

The North is believed to have secured up to 50 kilograms of
plutonium, enough to make six or seven nuclear weapons,
according to a South Korean defence ministry report leaked to
the media. 

The report, submitted to a meeting of top military commanders on
October 10, a day after North Korea conducted its first nuclear
test, said the communist state was now believed to be
researching how to miniaturise warheads to fit them on missiles. 

Separately, US Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill
said North Korea had given no indication it would return to
stalled six-party talks, one of the key planks of the UN
resolution. 

"The North Koreans haven't expressed an interest in having a
dialogue with anyone really," Hill told reporters on the
sidelines of a regional meeting in Fiji. 

"We've made very clear that if they come back to the (six-party)
process, we're certainly prepared to talk to them directly," he
said, when asked about calls for Washington to engage in direct
dialogue with Kim Jong-Il's regime. 

North Korea pulled out of the six-nation talks in November last
year in protest at financial sanctions imposed by Washington
against Pyongyang for alleged money-laundering and
counterfeiting. 

Japan, meanwhile, said it would not lift its own sanctions on
North Korea until the communist state clearly abandoned its
nuclear programme. 

Simply returning to multi-party negotiations was only a
"starting point," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuhisa Shiozaki, the
government spokesman. 

North Korea "has to halt the nuclear development programmes in
an evident way and respond to the voices of the international
community over issues such as abductions." 	 		 			

Copyright © 2006 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved. The
*****************************************************************
 30 UPI: South Korea updates North's bomb estimate
     
 United Press International - Security &Terrorism - 

	
10/26/2006 1:03:00 PM -0400

SEOUL, Oct. 26 (UPI) -- North Korea possesses enough
weapons-grade plutonium to build as many as seven nuclear bombs,
according to updated South Korean military estimates. 

The report by the Defense Ministry, disclosed by an opposition
lawmaker, also said Pyongyang was trying to make warheads
smaller in size to fit on missiles for delivery. 

According to The Korea Herald Thursday, the assessment is a
result of a meeting between South Korean government and military
officials in the aftermath of a North Korean nuclear test
earlier this month. 

South Korea previously believed the North had about 40 kilograms
(88 pounds) of weapons-grade plutonium obtained through its
nuclear enrichment programs in the 1990s. It is now believed it
has 50 kilograms (110 pounds) of weapons-grade material, the
newspaper said. 

Military officials were said to have told Defense Minister Yoon
Kwang-ung that a 20-kiloton weapon hitting the Seoul area would
result in 1.2 million casualties outright. Also, radiological
contamination would spread 28 miles from Ground Zero within 24
hours. 

North Korea signed an agreement with the administration of U.S.
President Bill Clinton in the early 1990s to stop producing
weapons-grade nuclear materials, but promptly reneged on it.
International efforts to induce Pyongyang to stop its activities
have so far failed. 

Earlier this month it exploded a small nuclear device. In July
it test-fired a number of missiles capable of carrying
miniaturized nuclear warheads. 

The Korea Herald said the military report said North Korea has a
bomber fleet of 82 planes deployed in the areas of Uiju and
Jangjin.


© Copyright 2006 United Press International, Inc. All Rights
Reserved
*****************************************************************
 31 Guardian Unlimited: Tokyo Denies Report It Wants Nuke Meet | 

From the Associated Press        

[UP] 

Thursday October 26, 2006 3:16 AM

AP Photo DCLJ104 

By HANS GREIMEL 

Associated Press Writer 

TOKYO (AP) - Japan's foreign ministry Thursday denied a news
report that the government is planning a meeting with the U.S.
and South Korea as early as next month to solidify a common
stance on the North Korean nuclear standoff. 

The report comes amid growing concerns that South Korea has been
hesitant to join the United States and Japan in punishing North
Korea for conducting its first-ever nuclear test earlier this
month. 

Kyodo News agency, citing unidentified government officials,
said the meeting among the allies will likely be held in Seoul,
the South Korean capital, and include the nations' chief
delegates on the North Korean nuclear crisis. 

The goal is to lay the groundwork for working-level meetings
with the three and Russia and China, on the sidelines of
November's Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Vietnam,
Kyodo said. 

Japan wants the trilateral meeting to reaffirm the demand that
the North Korean nuclear crisis be resolved through six-party
talks that include North Korea, South Korea, the United States,
Japan, China and Russia, according to the report. 

A Foreign Ministry spokeswoman denied the report. She spoke on
condition of anonymity, citing ministry protocol. 

North Korea has rejected the six-party format, saying it first
wants the United States to lift financial restrictions imposed
against the country. It has also been pushing for direct
bilateral talks with Washington, a demand the United States has
refused. 

On Wednesday, South Korea said it formed a task force to look at
how to impose U.N. sanctions on North Korea for its nuclear
test, while the communist nation warned it would take
countermeasures against any such move by the South. 

The U.N. Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution
sanctioning the North for its Oct. 9 nuclear test, but South
Korea - a major aid provider to the impoverished North - has
been reluctant to adopt stern measures against its volatile
neighbor. 

The U.N. resolution calls for all member countries to state how
they plan to implement sanctions on the North within 30 days
from its Oct. 14 adoption. 

Later Wednesday, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice gently
prodded Seoul to show a strong commitment to the sanctions. 	 
		 	 	   
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian News and Media Limited 2006
*****************************************************************
 32 Guardian Unlimited: S. Korea: North Can Make 7 Nuclear Bombs 

From the Associated Press        

[UP] 

Thursday October 26, 2006 9:31 AM

AP Photo SEL101 

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - South Korea estimates North Korea has
enough plutonium to make as many as seven nuclear bombs,
according to a Defense Ministry report disclosed Thursday. 

The communist nation is also working to make a small,
lightweight nuclear warhead that can be mounted atop a ballistic
missile, the ministry said in the internal assessment made
public by Song Young-sun, a lawmaker from the main opposition
Grand National Party. 

The assessment is based on a meeting of top South Korean
military officials a day after the North's Oct. 9 nuclear test. 

The report says the North is believed to have extracted 110
pounds of high-grade plutonium, enough for up to seven nuclear
weapons. The North can use its Russian-made bombers to drop the
bombs, the ministry said, adding that the North has 82 Il-28
bombers at bases in Uiju and Jangjin. 

North Korea also has built a nuclear warhead weighing some two
to three tons. To be mounted on a missile, the warhead would
need to be less than one ton, the ministry said. 

The North stunned the world in 1998 by firing a long-range
ballistic missile over Japan into the Pacific Ocean. It also
test-fired seven missiles in July, including a long-range
missile believed capable of reaching the U.S. that crashed
shortly after launch. 	 
		 	 	   
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian News and Media Limited 2006
*****************************************************************
 33 RIA Novosti: Ex-nuclear head will not ask court for dismissal of his case
 
 26/ 10/ 2006                                  

MOSCOW, October 26 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's ex-nuclear power
minister, charged with embezzlement and abuse of office, said
Thursday he will not ask the court to close his case because the
statute of limitation has expired.

 Yevgeny Adamov, 67, has been accused of leading an organized
criminal group that inflicted damage worth over 3 billion rubles
(about $110 million) on the Russian budget, enterprises and
organizations.

 "I will not use the expiration of the statute of limitations
[to ask for a dismissal], because it would imply an indirect
admission of guilt," Adamov told journalists in the
Zamoskvoretsky District Court, where the retrial of his case was
to start Thursday, but has been delayed until November 8.

 "The hearings have been adjourned because Adamov's lawyers have
not appeared in court, and one of the defendants has been
hospitalized," a source in the courtroom said.

 Adamov was originally arrested in Switzerland in May 2005 at
the request of the United States, where authorities accuse him
of misappropriating $9 million given to Russia for nuclear
safety projects. If convicted in the U.S., Adamov would have
faced 60 years in prison.

 He was extradited to Russia in early 2006 to face charges, but
was released by the Russian Supreme Court July 21, after a total
of 15 months in prison, to await trial.

 Adamov, who served from 1998 to 2001 as Russia's nuclear power
minister, said he will insist on a trial in a U.S. court,
although the U.S. authorities have accused him of a crime they
said was committed in Russia.

 "It is surprising that Russia's jurisdiction has been
transferred to another state," Adamov said. "I think proceedings
in the U.S. will be adjourned until the process is completed
here [in Russia]."

 On October 16, the Moscow City Court canceled the
Zamoskvoretsky District Court's decision to send Adamov's case
back to the Prosecutor General's Office to correct shortcomings
in the investigation and clarify the charges.

 The city court thereby upheld an appeal by prosecutors against
the district court decision. Prosecutors demanded that the case
should instead be sent for retrial in the district court. 

 © 2005 RIA Novosti   
*****************************************************************
 34 AFP: Billion-dollar contracts signed as French, Chinese leaders meet
    
 by Emmanuel Serot Thu Oct 26, 8:03 AM ET 		 	 

BEIJING (AFP) - The leaders of France and China oversaw the 
signing of multi-billion-dollar business deals at talks that 
touched on nuclear crises in North Korea" /> North Koreaand Iran" 
/> Iranand an EU arms embargo on Beijing. 

 French President Jacques Chirac" /> President Jacques Chirac,
on the second, politically most important day of a four-day
visit to China, met Thursday with his Chinese counterpart Hu
Jintao" /> Hu Jintaofor over an hour at the Great Hall of the
People in Beijing. 

Chirac, on his fourth visit since taking power in 1995 -- he
leaves office next year -- is regarded as an old friend by the
Chinese leadership, and his presence triggered another round of
lucrative economic contracts. 

"We have met to strengthen our economic and commercial
cooperation, notably in the areas of energy, aviation, space and
transportation," Hu said after the talks, which he described as
"frank, friendly and fruitful." 

Chirac described his visit as the start of an even stronger
phase in Sino-French relations. 

"In our long history, our relationship has never been so close
and trustful and this visit will enhance our strategic
partnership," Chirac said. 

The two leaders issued a joint statement calling for the
European Union" /> European Union's arms embargo, in place since
the Tiananmen massacre of 1989, to be lifted. 

"The two sides believe that the moment has come for the EU to
make the most of the expanding partnership between the EU and
China, most notably by lifting the arms embargo," the statement
said. 

It also called on the bloc to recognize "as soon as possible
China's market economy status." 

Headlining the deals was China's multi-billion-dollar order of
150 Airbus A320 aircraft, along with an option to buy 20 of the
European aerospace giant's new wide-body A350 planes. 

While no figures were released about the value of the contract,
Airbus officials said the average list price for one A320 was
between 50.5 million and 78 million dollars. 

China placed another order in December last year, when Chinese
Premier Wen Jiabao visited France, for 150 Airbus planes with a
list price of nearly 10 billion dollars. 

As part of Thursday's deal, Airbus gave a final green light to
the building of an A320 assembly plant in the northern Chinese
port city of Tianjin -- the first of its kind outside Europe. 

The new plant, first officially floated during Wen's visit to
France, will complete its first aircraft in 2009 and will
subsequently manufacture four a month, the aircraft maker said. 

Thirteen economic and other cooperation agreements were signed
between the two nations on areas as diverse as nuclear power,
agriculture and preventing infectious diseases, as well as
aviation and rail. 

Aside from bilateral economic cooperation, Chirac and Hu devoted
part of their meeting to discussing international stand-offs
over the North Korean and Iranian nuclear programs. 

The joint statement expressed "grave concern" over North Korea's
October 9 first ever nuclear bomb test, which it said was
"contrary to the goal of the denuclearization of the Korean
peninsula." 

The leaders also urged Tehran to abide by a UN Security Council
resolution that had set an August 31 deadline for Iran to
abandon sensitive nuclear fuel work or face sanctions. 

The meeting between Hu and Chirac was watched closely in
relation to North Korea and Iran as China and France are
permanent members of the UN Security Council. 

Human rights, a highly sensitive issue for China's leaders, was
also discussed after Chirac made rare comments a day earlier
highlighting Beijing's poor record in the area. 

"It is a due necessity of nations to advance and protect all
human rights and fundamental liberties," the joint statement
from Hu and Chirac said. 

Chirac had on Wednesday singled out China's attitude on human
rights as a particular area of concern as the country's leaders
look ahead to hosting the 2008 Olympics. 

The French leader later Thursday spoke to students at Peking
University and met with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao. 

He will travel to Wuhan in central China on Friday to oversee
the start of construction of a second PSA Peugeot-Citroen
factory. The final leg of Chirac's visit on Saturday will be to
the archaeologically rich city of Xian. 	 		 			

Copyright © 2006 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved.
*****************************************************************
 35 Xinhua: China, France ink joint statement, 14 cooperation agreements   
    
  www.chinaview.cn 2006-10-26 13:01:53   

Chinese President Hu Jintao (R) shakes hands with visiting
French President Jacques Chirac during a signing ceremony in
Beijing, Oct. 26, 2006. (Xinhua Photo)

Chinese President Hu Jintao (R) holds talks with visiting French
President Jacques Chirac in Beijing, Oct. 26, 2006. (Xinhua
Photo)
 

    BEIJING, Oct. 26 (Xinhua) -- China and France on Thursday
signed a joint statement and 14 cooperation agreements ranging
from aviation, nuclear power utilization to prevention of
infectious diseases. 

    Chinese President Hu Jintao and visiting French President
Jacques Chirac both agreed that Sino-French relationship has
become "an example" for friendly cooperation among countries
with different historical backgrounds, cultural traditions and
development stages. 

    Chirac, who arrived here on Wednesday afternoon on a
four-day state visit, held talks with Hu for two hours in the
Great Hall of the People before witnessing the signing of a
series of agreements, including an over arching document titled
the Sino-French Joint Statement. 

    The 14 agreements, include a framework agreement and a
letter of intent for 150 Airbus A320 aircraft and a contract
worth 1.2 billion euros (1.5 billion dollars) for the delivery
of 500 freight locomotives from Alstom SA of France to China. 

    The multi-billion-dollar arrangement represents the largest
deal in the history of the Chinese aviation industry. 

    Acknowledging the bilateral economic and trade cooperation
progressed rapidly with trade volume being quadrupled in ten
years, the two presidents expressed their satisfaction with
bilateral relations that are unprecedentedly close and full of
trust. 

    The two sides decided in the joint statement to expand the
strategic exchange and cooperation to seven key fields which are
energy, aerospace and aviation, railway, telecommunication,
financial service, agriculture, food processing and
environmental protection. 

    According to the statement, China and France decide to forge
closer cooperation on the nuclear power utilization which
includes the establishment of the joint ventures in the agreed
fields concerning the nuclear power generation. 

    The two leaders are also satisfied with the increasing
exchanges between Chinese and French businesses, especially
those among the small and medium-sized enterprises (SME),
promising to continue to boost the exchanges between the two
businesses, especially those among the SMEs. 

    Accompanying Chirac is a 30-member French business
delegation keen to boost economic and trade ties between the two
countries in key fields such as aeronautics, nuclear energy,
railway transportation, telecommunications and financial
services. 

    This is Chirac's fourth and probably the last visit to China
as French president as his presidency will come to an end in
2007. He is widely regarded as a friendly policy-maker and
active promoter of ties with China. 

    In the statement, the two leaders also expressed serious
concern in the joint statement over the nuclear test announced
by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Oct. 9,
saying the test goes against the goal of denuclearization of the
Korean Peninsula, as well as efforts of the international
community to strengthen international non-proliferation. 

    The statement said that the two countries support the
Security Council Resolution 1718, and urge the DPRK to abide by
its commitment to denuclearization of the peninsula. 

    The two sides hope all parties will stick to peaceful
resolution of the nuclear issue through dialogue and
consultation, and strive for an early resumption of the
six-party talks, the joint statement said. 

    China and France also urged the European Union (EU) in the
statement to lift its arms embargo against China that has been
in place since 1989 and grant China market economy status. 

    "The two sides believe that the European Union should take
the EU-China expanding partnership into full consideration, most
notably by lifting the arms embargo which is no longer pertinent
to the present situation," said the statement. 

    The two leaders vowed to continue their efforts to deepen
the comprehensive strategic partnership between China and the
European Union, according to the joint statement. 

    They also agreed that, in order to solve the problems that
have emerged in the China-EU trade relations, both China and the
European Union should conduct dialogue and negotiations based on
an equal footing and in accordance with WTO regulations. 

China, France vow to step up partnership 

    BEIJING, Oct. 26 (Xinhua) -- China and France vowed here
Thursday to step up bilateral cooperation in various fields and
promote their all-round strategic partnership. 

    In talks with his visiting French counterpart Jacques
Chirac, Chinese President Hu Jintao said that the last few years
had witnessed a series of successful bilateral exchanges that
had built political mutual trust and understanding. 

    Hu and Chirac expressed their appreciation of the progress
made in bilateral relations, and said that the all-round
strategic partnership had opened broad prospects for Sino-French
relations in the new century. 

    They agreed to push forward the bilateral partnership. Full
story 

Premier Wen: Sino-French relations, a tree full of life 


  [Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao (R) meets with French President
Jacques Chirac in Beijing, Oct. 26, 2006. ]   
  

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao (R) meets with French President
Jacques Chirac in Beijing, Oct. 26, 2006.  (Xinhua Photo)
 

    BEIJING, Oct. 26 (Xinhua) -- The Bilateral relations between
China and France are growing well, like a tree full of life,
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said here Thursday when meeting
visiting French President Jacques Chirac. 

    Wen acknowledged that France was the first Western country
to forge diplomatic relations at ambassadorial level with China,
and the first in the world to establish an all-round strategic
partnership, hold strategic dialogue and host reciprocal culture
years with China. 

    "These are proofs of the French leader's foresight and
sagacity", Wen noted. 

    Wen said China and France have complementary economies with
a huge potential for cooperation, saying that China will promote
cooperation in the fields of nuclear energy, aerospace and
aviation, railways, financial service and environmental
protection. Full story 

French President Jacques Chirac delivers a speech at Peking
University in Beijing, Oct. 26, 2006. (Xinhua Photo)
  
French President Jacques Chirac (front) leaves Peking University
after delivering a speech here in Beijing, Oct. 26, 2006. 
(Xinhua Photo)

China, France to strengthen UNSC co-op 

*****************************************************************
 36 UPI: Analysis: Israel assesses NATO ties
     
United Press International - Intl. Intelligence - 

10/26/2006 7:44:00 AM -0400

 By JOSHUA BRILLIANT UPI Israel Correspondent

HERZLIYA, Israel, Oct. 26 (UPI) -- Slowly and without much
fanfare Israel is tightening its cooperation with NATO. An
Israeli corvette this summer participated in a NATO exercise in
Romania. Infantrymen joined war games in the Ukraine and a NATO
AWACS plane was in Israel demonstrating its capabilities. 

It is a gradual change. Israel used to consider itself an island
surrounded by enemies, a realization of a Biblical prophecy that
it is "A nation that will dwell in solitude." 

It wasn't quite so. Russia, via Czechoslovakia, provided weapons
during the first Arab-Israel war. France armed Israel later on,
and the United States airlifted vital aid during and since the
1973 war. These have all been bilateral ties, and with Russia
and France they ended abruptly. 

Israelis have always thought in bilateral terms but that is
changing. 

The notion that "a rogue state" like Iran that openly hopes
Israel would be liquidated, would have a nuclear bomb is
troubling. It heightened Israel's realization that it needs
partners to stop Iran, a country 82 times bigger than Israel
whose population is 10 times that of theirs. 

"Failed states" that allow terror to mushroom are another source
of concern. It's not Somalia. It's Lebanon that did not prevent
-- let alone try to -- Hezbollah from crossing the border,
kidnapping Israeli soldiers, shelling settlements and thereby
provoking a war the government did not want. 

Here, too, Israel discovered the advantages of multilateralism.
Following the war UNIFIL is being enlarged from a modest force
of some 2,000 soldiers to 15,000. Eleven countries are
contributing troops to UNIFIL. Six of them are NATO members. 

Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni Tuesday addressed the opening
session of a conference that NATO, the Israeli Atlantic Forum
and the Institute for Policy and Strategy held in Herzliya. 

"Israel's traditional long-term policy has been one of
self-reliance," she said. However, "the current threats
necessitate international cooperation and multilateralism." 

NATO is "most essential" to meet these strategic threats because
it has a just value system, a special ability to rapidly adapt
to current strategic threats, and a unique approach that
combines diplomacy with the use of military force when
necessary, she said. 

NATO, too, is changing. Al-Qaida's Sept. 11 attacks in the
United States demonstrated that the major threat and challenges
come from outside Europe, that terrorism is globalized, noted
Patrick Hardouin, a deputy assistant secretary-general at NATO's
Political Affairs and Security Policy Division. 

NATO decided to upgrade its dialogue with Mediterranean states.
It launched Operation Active Endeavor in which its ships,
submarines and aircraft carry out naval anti-terrorist patrols. 

Israel contributes to Active Endeavor. It will post an officer
at NATO's headquarters in Naples to help with intelligence
gathering so that the units at sea can be more effective. The
Karin A, which tried to smuggle arms to the Palestinians, was an
innocent-looking vessel, noted Capt. Yair Zilberman, who heads
the Israel Navy's Planning and Strategy Department. 

Israel has been one of the "most enthusiastic" partners in the
Mediterranean Dialogue which includes Algeria, Morocco and
Tunisia. These are countries with which Israel has no, or
partial, diplomatic ties. 

Recently, Israel became the first country to conclude an
Individual Cooperation Program with NATO. It covers 27 areas,
including the fight against terrorism and joint military
exercises, and goes beyond cooperation through the Mediterranean
Dialogue. 

The Israelis seemed very eager to upgrade relations, and the
Defense Ministry's Coordinator for NATO and European Defense
Organizations, Uri Naaman, complained of "some obstacles we
didn't expect." 

Israeli officials said these were minor technical issues and a
NATO spokesman, Nicola de Santis, suggested Israel be patient.
The ICP agreement was just concluded, the agenda is far reaching
and "to discuss the results before even implementing it is a bit
too much," he told United Press International. 

Anyway, Israel itself hasn't decided how far it wants to go with
NATO. 

Livni advocated "a system of cooperation," and a senior official
sought the kind of relationship NATO has with Finland and
Sweden. It allows for 2,000 joint activities -- thrice the
volume open to the countries involved in the Mediterranean
Dialogue, he told UPI. It is a high level of coordination
without membership, noted retired intelligence Col. Eran Lerman. 

Israelis realize their country cannot join NATO before it
concludes peace with the Arabs. Some NATO members would oppose
its candidacy. 

Israelis are not sure their country should become a full member.
Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty provides that an attack
on one member would be considered an attack on all. Lerman said
that article might restrict Israel's freedom to retaliate,
initiate military action and would reduce its independent
deterrence. 

There are so many other possibilities that would serve Israel's
and NATO's interests, he suggested. 

For Israel's chief representative at NATO headquarters,
Ambassador Odded Eran, the important thing was to have "a
multilateral umbrella. ... We don't necessarily need article 5.
The very fact we're members of such an organization gives ... a
sort of guarantee," he said. 

The Foreign Ministry's former Director General Yoav Biran seemed
to put things in perspective. The Mediterranean Dialogue is "of
tremendous political psychological importance to Israel because
of our paranoia" over security. The direct cooperation with NATO
has tremendous potential importance, but its practical scope "is
limited because of NATO political sensitivities," he said. 

Perhaps Israel should take "a more relaxed attitude in trying to
pursue this cooperation," he suggested.

© Copyright 2006 United Press International, Inc. All Rights
Reserved
*****************************************************************
 37 UPI: Walker's World: Chirac's Chinese detour
     
United Press International - Intl. Intelligence - 

        10/26/2006 11:31:00 AM -0400

 By MARTIN WALKER UPI Editor Emeritus

WASHINGTON, Oct. 26 (UPI) -- President Jacques Chirac may be a
lame duck as France's political classes prepare for the battle
to succeed him in next year's elections, but he retains a clever
sense of timing. His trip to China was planned to keep him out
of the country for the anniversary of the riots that swept
across France last year. 

Predictably enough, trouble has broken out again, but this time
instead of setting fire to over 10,000 cars, which was last
year's tally, the rioters have been targeting buses. Four were
attacked over Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, two by armed
gangs, who ordered the drivers and passengers out before setting
fire to the vehicles. 

Drivers on one of the main Paris bus routes have now gone on
strike, and the RATP urban transit authority is planning new
routes to avoid "les zones sensibles," or sensitive areas, which
means in effect stopping public transport from serving the grim
suburbs where black and North African immigrants are
concentrated. 

Nothing much has changed in these quarters since the immigrant
youth launched what some of them called "our intifada" a year
ago. The French police thought in similar terms. Interviews in
le Figaro this week, police commissioner Frederic Aureal said
that many of his officers "believed they were facing urban
guerilla war" in last year's riots. 

Unemployment remains desperately high, even though the French
economy has shown a modest recovery with the jobless totals
falling into single figures --but not for the young. And the
latest drop in French consumer purchases, announced this week,
suggests that the economy looks like sagging back into
recession. 

Despite more police and a strengthened CRS (specialist riot
police), France is living on its nerves as it faces the
challenge of the highest proportion of immigrants in Europe. The
best estimates suggest that some five million North African
Muslims and another two million blacks, many of them also
Muslim, now account for over ten percent of the country's
population of 60 million. The proportion is much higher among
the young, thanks to an elevated birth rates among immigrants,
who number over a quarter of France's population under the age
of 25. 

Some cosmetic measures have been taken. France now has a black
news reader on the main TV channel. The schools and maternity
and community centers that were burned out in last year's riots
have been replaced. There is a new program that is meant to stop
employers from discriminating against young immigrants making
job applications, who have found that their names or addresses,
their accents over the phone or their appearance when they turn
up for interview, usually sinks their chances of being hired. 

Amid promises to ensure that "no zones of lawlessness will be
permitted in France," Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin
claimed Tuesday that government job creation measures had
created 4,000 new jobs in "les zones sensibles." But the
conditions that bred lawlessness could not be resolved in a day,
he went on, stressing that the government had earmarked a
massive 35 billion euros, $42 billion, for rebuilding and
renovation of the sullen and ugly high-rise zones over the next
eight years. 

The problem is that most of this money was scheduled to be spent
anyway, just as the Chinese orders for 150 new Airbuses that
President Chirac announced with fanfare in China Tuesday were
already known. And the Airbus employees are less than happy that
the Chinese deal means a great deal of technology sharing with
China's fast-growing new aircraft industry, which will assemble
the new Airbus fleet in a new factory at Tianjin, the first such
Airbus plant outside Europe. 

"If you want to implant yourself in China commercially, you must
also implant yourself industrially," said Airbus CEO Louis
Gallois, who carefully declined to say who would finance the new
factory. The European Union, which has overtaken the United
States as China's biggest export market, had a massive $133
billion trade deficit with China last year. 

Although the televised signing ceremony was held in Beijing's
Great Hall of the People, neither the name of the purchaser of
this Airbus fleet nor the contract price has been released. On
paper the deal, which also includes an option for China to buy
20 much larger Airbus 350 passenger jets, should be worth of $10
billion at the Airbus list price. But China's business press is
reporting that they drove a hard bargain and won a sizeable
discount. 

The Airbus 350, supposed to challenge Boeing's new 787
Dreamliner, may not even be built. A firm decision has yet to be
taken, after the bruising controversies that have battered
Airbus and its EADS Franco-German parent in recent months. There
has been an extraordinary write-off of over $5 billion because
of construction delays hitting the giant Airbus jumbo jet,
top-level resignations and a row between France and Germany over
the future structure of the joint company. 

The French government, understandably, is spinning the news to
put the Airbus deals, and the slum reconstruction programs, into
the best light. More spinning may be expected from Chirac's
attempt to sign a further deal in China over nuclear power
contracts. Although France was China's first supplier of modern
nuclear power technology, and France's Framatome built China's
first new power stations at Daya Bay in the 1990s, China has
since demanded technology transfer from Russian, Japanese and
French suppliers and is now determined to design and construct
its own new plants. 

The government's attempt to spin the news has aroused
considerable cynicism in France, as it has in the United States,
Britain and elsewhere, once voters start to suspect they are
being misled. And this cynicism was in marked contrast to the
genuinely touching scene in Paris Tuesday, where hundreds of
young black and Arab demonstrators marched through Paris to
present a petition of grievances to the National Assembly, and
then sang the Marseillaise and shouted "Vive la France."
Marching past ranks of riot police in body armor, the young
marchers proclaimed their allegiance to a country which has not
made them feel at home.

© Copyright 2006 United Press International, Inc. All Rights
Reserved
*****************************************************************
 38 Guardian Unlimited: Time running out fast for oldest nuclear plants, warn inspectors

John Vidal, environment editor

Thursday October 26, 2006

The Guardian        
     
The future of some of Britain's ageing nuclear power stations was 
yesterday thrown into doubt as government inspectors claimed 
cracks in the graphite cores of the oldest plants were so serious 
that a safety case for the stations operating much longer could 
not be made.

An assessment report on the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate 
website stated yesterday that there were expectations that most 
of the graphite bricks in the core of the 1976 Hinkley Point 
station, and its twin station, Hunterston, in Ayrshire, would 
crack in the near future, jeopardising the safe running of the 
reactors.

"British Energy predict that during the period covered [by the 
safety review] the majority of fuel moderator bricks will develop 
a single through-thickness crack from a keyway root," the report 
says. "Some of these may develop a second keyway root crack such 
that the brick may be in halves ... therefore brick cracking 
could affect channel straightness and the ability of the graphite 
core to meet its fundamental nuclear safety requirements."

It adds that the safety review "recognises that core lifetime is
probably the dominant station life-limiting feature and that it
is currently not possible to make a safety case for the graphite
core to ...]". The date has been deleted.

The problem of the deteriorating graphite cores follows last
week's disclosure by British Energy that it had encountered
serious cracking problems in the boiler tubes at Hinkley. While
the company declined to give a date on how long it would take to
fix them, that period is thought to be at least six months. Both
stations have been closed indefinitely.

According to John Large, an independent nuclear analyst, the
combination of the graphite core and the boiler tube problems
means it may not be economic or safe for British Energy to
reopen the four reactors at the two stations. The company and
the government are counting on both being granted 10-year
extensions to their 30-year life-times.

Together the plants provide 6% of Britain's electricity at a
time when demand is rising and when no new large-scale stations
are expected to open soon.

The stations' closure is expected to seriously affect British
Energy's income and electricity supplies this winter. Together
the stations earn 25% of British Energy's income, roughly £2m a
week. Last week the company said that only one of its eight
nuclear power stations was operating fully, and its share price
fell dramatically. Yesterday, four of its eight stations were
working. "The old stations are the base load of the nuclear
electricity system in Britain. It is very serious indeed for
Britain's future electricity supplies and the company's
survival," said Dr Large.

British Energy yesterday said there was no doubt that both
stations would reopen, but declined to estimate when or to say
when their safety operating licences would expire. "We are
investigating the graphite core problem. It is a known-about
phenomenon in old stations. The boiler tube problem is purely an
engineering problem ... the problems are entirely solvable. This
is not life-limiting."

In a separate development, the government yesterday announced
that it was looking for a site for a deep bunker to store
Britain's mountain of high-level nuclear waste. The environment
secretary, David Miliband, said he had accepted the
recommendation of the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management
that the waste from Britain's nuclear reactors be buried in a
deep repository.

In a Commons statement, he said the government would not impose
the repository on an unwilling community, but held out the
inducement of lucrative "community packages" for councils
prepared to offer a suitable location. The new
470,000-cubic-metre bunker, which would take "several decades"
to build, will be sunk from 200 metres to 1,000 metres
underground. It is widely expected to be sited near Sellafield
in Cumbria. Mr Miliband also said the government intended to
build interim storage facilities to hold waste for up to 100
years while the bunker was being built.

	
Guardian Newspapers Limited
*****************************************************************
 39 Times of India: The world has failed on N-tech transfer - Rahul

[ 26 Oct, 2006 1124hrs ISTIANS ]

UNITED NATIONS: India seeks a fresh assessment of nuclear energy
as a clean and safe source of energy to give developing
countries the freedom to choose policies that best suit their
energy needs, Indian delegate Rahul Gandhi said here. 

"Developing countries must have the policy space to address
their energy needs in light of their individual circumstances,"
Gandhi said, participating in a UN committee debate on
Sustainable Development on Wednesday. 

All significant energy sources - whether conventional or
advanced fossil fuels based, or renewable, or civilian nuclear
power - must remain in policy reckoning to address energy needs
for sustainable development, he said, "In particular, there
needs to be a fresh assessment of nuclear energy, as a clean and
safe source of energy." 

Many developing countries, including India, still rely on
traditional sources of energy for a significant part of their
energy needs. However, traditional technologies are inefficient,
insufficiently versatile and have major health, gender, and
environmental impacts, Gandhi said. 

"Energy is critical to development. In developing countries, a
rapid increase in energy use per capita is imperative to
realising national development goals and Millennium Development
Goals," he said. 

Noting that at the Johannesburg Summit, the international
community had collectively agreed to significantly reduce the
current loss of biological diversity by 2010, Gandhi stressed
the importance of an international regime to protect and
safeguard the equitable sharing of benefits arising from the use
of genetic resources and traditional knowledge. 

The international community has not lived up to its commitments
for technology transfer he said putting critical technologies
beyond the reach of developing countries because of prohibitive
costs under the existing Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs)
regime. 

"We need to revisit the IPRs regime to ensure that technologies
necessary for pursuing the global imperative of sustainable
development are placed in the limited public domain and made
accessible to developing countries," Gandhi said asserting that
these regimes must represent the tradeoffs between innovator
incentives and wider human societal imperatives. 

The international community should also explore the possibility
of establishing a Clean Technology Acquisition Fund to enable
developing countries to access critical technologies, he said as
it would encourage the use of clean technologies, and
significantly impact the realisation of sustainable development
goals. 

As a result of globalisation, external factors contribute to the
success or failure of developing countries to a greater extent
than before, Gandhi said noting that developing countries are
caught between intellectual property rights and trade regimes,
as well as the conditionalities imposed by the World Bank and
IMF, all of which erode their autonomy and flexibility. 

However, these countries need that autonomy and flexibility to
evolve policies and strategies for economic growth and
sustainable development, which is so critical to eradicating
poverty and achieving Millennium Development Goals, he said. 

Expressing concern at the current impasse in the Doha round of
trade negotiations, Gandhi noted that when agriculture was
brought into multilateral trade negotiations, developing
countries had clearly been given to understand that trade
distorting agriculture subsidies would be phased out in a
definite timeframe. 

However, gains expected from agricultural reform by developed
countries continue to elude developing countries, he said. 

"Minimizing the vulnerability of poor farmers must be our
collective priority. Reducing agricultural tariffs and subsidies
is not enough: there must be exceptions to allow developing
countries more space to pursue their pro-development strategies
and policies aimed at protecting their poor," Gandhi said. 

Special and differential treatment for developing countries, to
enable them to meet food security, livelihood security and rural
development needs, remains a categorical imperative, he said. 
  
  
Copyright ©2006Times Internet Limited. All rights reserved. For
*****************************************************************
 40 Telugu Portal: India seeks review of nuclear energy policies -
               
Posted by on 2006/10/26 2:28:08
 			  
United Nations, Oct 26 (IANS) India seeks a fresh assessment of
nuclear energy as a clean and safe source of energy to give
developing countries the freedom to choose policies that best
suit their energy needs, Indian delegate Rahul Gandhi said here.

"Developing countries must have the policy space to address
their energy needs in light of their individual circumstances,"
Gandhi said participating in a UN committee debate on
Sustainable Development Wednesday.

All significant energy sources - whether conventional or
advanced fossil fuels based, or renewables, or civilian nuclear
power - must remain in policy reckoning to address energy needs
for sustainable development, he said, "In particular, there
needs to be a fresh assessment of nuclear energy, as a clean and
safe source of energy."

Many developing countries, including India, still rely on
traditional sources of energy for a significant part of their
energy needs. However, traditional technologies are inefficient,
insufficiently versatile and have major health, gender, and
environmental impacts, Gandhi said.

"Energy is critical to development. In developing countries, a
rapid increase in energy use per capita is imperative to
realising national development goals and Millennium Development
Goals," he said.

Noting that at the Johannesburg Summit, the international
community had collectively agreed to significantly reduce the
current loss of biological diversity by 2010, Gandhi stressed
the importance of an international regime to protect and
safeguard the equitable sharing of benefits arising from the use
of genetic resources and traditional knowledge.

The international community has not lived up to its commitments
for technology transfer he said putting critical technologies
beyond the reach of developing countries because of prohibitive
costs under the existing Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs)
regime.

"We need to revisit the IPRs regime to ensure that technologies
necessary for pursuing the global imperative of sustainable
development are placed in the limited public domain and made
accessible to developing countries," Gandhi said asserting that
these regimes must represent the tradeoffs between innovator
incentives and wider human societal imperatives.

The international community should also explore the possibility
of establishing a Clean Technology Acquisition Fund to enable
developing countries to access critical technologies, he said as
it would encourage the use of clean technologies, and
significantly impact the realisation of sustainable development
goals.

As a result of globalisation, external factors contribute to the
success or failure of developing countries to a greater extent
than before, Gandhi said noting that developing countries are
caught between intellectual property rights and trade regimes,
as well as the conditionalities imposed by the World Bank and
IMF, all of which erode their autonomy and flexibility.

However, these countries need that autonomy and flexibility to
evolve policies and strategies for economic growth and
sustainable development, which is so critical to eradicating
poverty and achieving Millennium Development Goals, he said.

Expressing concern at the current impasse in the Doha round of
trade negotiations, Gandhi noted that when agriculture was
brought into multilateral trade negotiations, developing
countries had clearly been given to understand that trade
distorting agriculture subsidies would be phased out in a
definite timeframe.

However, gains expected from agricultural reform by developed
countries continue to elude developing countries, he said.

"Minimizing the vulnerability of poor farmers must be our
collective priority. Reducing agricultural tariffs and subsidies
is not enough: there must be exceptions to allow developing
countries more space to pursue their pro-development strategies
and policies aimed at protecting their poor," Gandhi said.

Special and differential treatment for developing countries, to
enable them to meet food security, livelihood security and rural
development needs, remains a categorical imperative, he said.  
		 		
© 2006 TeluguPortal.Net | | | | 
*****************************************************************
 41 NRC: Nuclear Management Company, LLC; Palisades Plant Exemption
 
                        FR Doc E6-17937 
[Federal Register: October 26, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 207)] 
[Notices] [Page 62628-62630] From the Federal Register Online via 
GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr26oc06-72]                         
 
1.0 Background Nuclear Management Company, LLC (NMC), is the 
holder of Facility Operating License No. DPR-20, which authorizes 
operation of the Palisades Nuclear Plant (Palisades). The license 
provides, among other things, that the facility is subject to all 
rules, regulations, and orders of the Nuclear
 
[[Page 62629]] Regulatory Commission (NRC, the Commission) now or 
hereafter in effect.
 
The facility consists of a pressurized-water reactor located in 
VanBuren County, Michigan.
 
2.0 Request/Action Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations 
(10 CFR), part 50.46, ``Acceptance criteria for emergency core 
cooling systems for light- water nuclear power reactors,'' 
requires that the calculated emergency core cooling system (ECCS) 
performance for reactors with zircaloy or ZIRLO fuel cladding 
meet certain criteria. Appendix K to 10 CFR part 50, ``ECCS 
Evaluation Models,'' presumes the use of zircaloy or ZIRLO fuel 
cladding when doing calculations for energy release, cladding 
oxidation, and hydrogen generation after a postulated 
loss-of-coolant accident.
 
Framatome ANP developed M5 advanced fuel rod cladding and fuel 
assembly structural material for high-burnup fuel applications.
 
M5 is an alloy comprised primarily of zirconium (~99 percent) and 
niobium (~1 percent). The NRC staff approved the use of M5 
material in topical report BAW-10227P-A, Revision 1, ``Evaluation 
of Advanced Cladding and Structural Material (M5) in PWR Reactor 
Fuel,'' dated June 18, 2003. The M5 cladding is a proprietary, 
zirconium-based alloy that is chemically different from zircaloy 
or ZIRLO cladding materials, which are approved for use in the 
previously-mentioned NRC regulations. Therefore, a plant-specific 
exemption from these regulations is necessary to allow the use of 
M5 cladding. Accordingly, NMC's application of October 4, 2005, 
as supplemented June 14, 2006, requested an exemption from the 
requirements of 10 CFR 50.46 and Appendix K to 10 CFR part 50 to 
allow the use of M5 fuel cladding at Palisades.
 
3.0 Discussion Pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12, the Commission may, upon 
application by any interested person or upon its own initiative, 
grant exemptions from the requirements of 10 CFR part 50.46 and 
Appendix K to 10 CFR part 50 when (1) the exemptions are 
authorized by law, will not present an undue risk to public 
health or safety, and are consistent with the common defense and 
security; and (2) when special circumstances are present.
 
Authorized by Law This exemption would allow the use of M5 
advanced alloy, in lieu of zircaloy or ZIRLO, for fuel rod 
cladding in fuel assemblies at Palisades. As stated above, 10 CFR 
50.12 allows the NRC to grant exemptions from the requirements of 
10 CFR part 50.46 and Appendix K to 10 CFR part 50. Therefore, 
the exemption is authorized by law. No Undue Risk to Public 
Health and Safety The staff has previously reviewed exemption 
requests for use of the M5 advanced alloy material for other 
pressurized-water reactors. Exemptions from 10 CFR 50.46 and 10 
CFR part 50, Appendix K, have been issued at Crystal River Unit 3 
Nuclear Generating Plant and Arkansas Nuclear One, Unit 1.
 
In the approved topical report BAW-10227P-A, Revision 1, 
``Evaluation of Advanced Cladding and Structural Material (M5) in 
PWR Reactor Fuel,'' dated June 18, 2003, Framatome ANP 
demonstrated that the effectiveness of the ECCS will not be 
affected by a change from zircaloy fuel rod cladding to M5 fuel 
rod cladding. The analysis described in the topical report also 
demonstrated that the ECCS acceptance criteria applied to 
reactors fueled with zircaloy clad fuel are also applicable to 
reactors fueled with M5 fuel rod cladding.
 
Appendix K, paragraph I.A.5, of 10 CFR part 50 ensures that 
cladding oxidation and hydrogen generation are appropriately 
limited during a loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA), and 
conservatively accounted for in the ECCS evaluation model. 
Appendix K requires that the Baker- Just equation be used in the 
ECCS evaluation model to determine the rate of energy release, 
cladding oxidation, and hydrogen generation. In the approved 
topical report BAW-10227P-A, Revision 1, Framatome ANP 
demonstrated that the Baker-Just model is conservative in all 
post-LOCA scenarios with respect to the use of the M5 advanced 
alloy as a fuel rod cladding material, and that the amount of 
hydrogen generated in an M5-clad core during a LOCA will remain 
within the Palisades design basis.
 
The NRC staff has reviewed the advanced cladding and structural 
material, M5, for pressurized-water reactor fuel mechanical 
designs as described in BAW-10227P-A, Revision 1. In its safety 
evaluation for this topical report, the NRC staff concluded that, 
to the extent and limitations specified in the staff's 
evaluation, the M5 properties and mechanical design methodology 
are acceptable for referencing in fuel reload licensing 
applications.
 
Based on the above, no new accident precursors are created by the 
use of M5 fuel cladding at Palisades; thus, the probability of 
postulated accidents is not increased. Also, based on the above, 
the consequences of postulated accidents are not increased.
 
Therefore, there is no undue risk to public health and safety.
 
Consistent With Common Defense and Security The proposed 
exemption would allow the use of M5 advanced alloy for fuel rod 
cladding in fuel assemblies at Palisades. This change to the 
plant has no relation to security issues. Therefore, the common 
defense and security is not impacted by this exemption.
 
Special Circumstances Special circumstances, in accordance with 
10 CFR 50.12, are present whenever application of the regulation 
in the particular circumstances would not serve the underlying 
purpose of the rule, or is not necessary to achieve the 
underlying purpose of the rule.
 
The underlying purpose of 10 CFR, part 50.46, is to ensure that 
facilities have adequate acceptance criteria for ECCS. As 
discussed above, topical report BAW-10227P-A, Revision 1, 
demonstrated that the effectiveness of the ECCS will not be 
affected by a change from zircaloy fuel rod cladding to M5 fuel 
rod cladding. It also demonstrated that the ECCS acceptance 
criteria applied to reactors fueled with zircaloy clad fuel are 
applicable to reactors fueled with M5 fuel rod cladding.
 
The underlying purpose of 10 CFR, part 50, Appendix K, paragraph 
I.A.5, is to ensure that cladding oxidation and hydrogen 
generation are appropriately limited during a LOCA and 
conservatively accounted for in the ECCS evaluation model. As 
mentioned above, topical report BAW- 10227P-A, Revision 1, 
demonstrated that the Baker-Just model is conservative in all 
post-LOCA scenarios with respect to the use of the M5 advanced 
alloy as a fuel rod cladding material, and the staff concludes 
that the amount of hydrogen generated in an M5-clad core during a 
LOCA would remain within the Palisades design basis.
 
As previously mentioned, the NRC staff's review of the M5 
material for pressurized-water reactor fuel mechanical designs 
concluded that, to the extent and limitations specified in the 
staff's evaluation, the M5 properties and mechanical design 
methodology are acceptable for referencing in fuel reload 
licensing applications.
 
Therefore, since the underlying purposes of 10 CFR 50.46 and 10 
CFR part 50, Appendix K, are achieved, the special circumstances 
required by these regulations for the granting of an
 
[[Page 62630]] exemption from 10 CFR 50.46 and 10 CFR part 50 
exist. 4.0 Conclusion Accordingly, the Commission has determined 
that, pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12, the exemption is authorized by 
law, will not present an undue risk to the public health and 
safety, and is consistent with the common defense and security. 
Also, special circumstances are present. Therefore, the 
Commission hereby grants NMC an exemption from the requirements 
of 10 CFR 50.46 and 10 CFR part 50, Appendix K, for Palisades.
 
Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.32, the Commission has determined that the 
granting of this exemption will not have a significant effect on 
the quality of the human environment (71 FR 58442).
 
This exemption is effective upon issuance.
 
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 16th day of October 2006.
 
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
 
Catherine Haney, Director, Division of Operating Reactor 
Licensing, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
 
[FR Doc. E6-17937 Filed 10-25-06; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590-01-P

 
*****************************************************************
 42 Boston Globe: U.S. tries to reassure India over nuclear deal - 

Boston.com
 
October 26, 2006 

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - The United States has reassured India it
would try its best to get a landmark nuclear deal approved by a
"lame duck" session of Congress next month amid fears the
agreement could be slipping away.

The assurance was given by U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza
Rice when she called India's new foreign minister, Pranab
Mukherjee, late on Wednesday to congratulate him on being named
to the position, an Indian official said on Thursday.

"She said the administration was talking to senators and would
do its best to get their approval in this session," the official
said.

The deal, which aims to overturn a three-decade U.S. ban on
supply of nuclear fuel and equipment to energy-hungry India, has
been stuck in the U.S. Senate after the chamber failed to vote
on it in September due to disputes between the Republicans and
the Democrats.

Congress is due to sit for a "lame duck" session early next
month after elections to both chambers. If the Senate does not
pass it then, the deal will have to start a long and winding
approval process in both chambers from scratch.

Although Washington has said the deal, symbolic of the new
friendship between the once-estranged democracies, enjoys
bipartisan support, analysts are skeptical.

They say if the Democrats win control of Congress as expected,
they are unlikely to allow the passage of any significant
legislation in a "lame duck" session.

The deal has been dogged by controversy since it was first
agreed in principal between Bush and Indian Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh in July 2005.

The non-proliferation lobby in the United States says it gives
away too much to India, which has not signed the
Non-Proliferation Treaty and has conducted nuclear tests.

Indian communists, the Hindu nationalist opposition party and
some nuclear experts have also criticized it, saying Washington
was seeking to curb India's nuclear program by imposing
restrictions as part of the deal.

Anil Kakodkar, head of India's Department of Atomic Energy, who
initially opposed the deal but now supports it, said New Delhi
would be forced to pursue alternative energy sources that may
not be eco-friendly if the deal did not go through.

His comments were made in Mumbai on Wednesday to the Press Trust
of India.[ /]  © Copyright 2006 Reuters. Reuters content is the
intellectual property of Reuters or its third-party content
providers. Any copying, republication, or redistribution of
Reuters content, including by caching, framing or similar means,
is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of
Reuters. More: 

*****************************************************************
 43 Bayshore Broadcasting Corporation: Bruce B plans being reviewed

News for Thursday, October 26th, 2006

Written by Ken Hashizume

Bruce Power held an environmental assessment workshop Wednesday
on its proposed update of nuclear reactors.

A small group attended the information session to catch up and
provide input on Bruce Power's plan to update its nuclear
reactors.

Consultant Duncan Moffatt of Golder Associates says the workshop
is to explain Bruce Power's plan as part of the environmental
assessment.

Moffatt says the group is recommending that the reactors have
the most up-to-date equipment.

Bruce Power President and CEO Duncan Hawthorne says the purpose
of the workshop is to get suggestions from the community.

Hawthorne says Bruce is considering either refurbishing Bruce B
reactors, replacing the reactors, or a combination of both.

Municipal officials, business leaders, environmental and health
groups were among key stakeholders in attendance.

Many wanted to know about the socio-ecomonic impact of the
project.

The public will be able to view a copy of the project
description at their public libraries hopefully by next week.

    © 2006 Bayshore Broadcasting Corp. All Rights Reserved.
*****************************************************************
 44 GRACE Energy Initiative: Is Nuclear Power the Solution to Climate Change 
& Future Energy Demand?
 
BURLINGTON, Vt., Oct. 25 /PRNewswire/ -- 

WHY: After decades of decline and near-oblivion, the question of
a nuclear power "renaissance" is being brought to the fore as a
miracle answer to combat climate change and charge up a new
energy regime free from foreign dependence. Few images elicit
more impassioned responses than that of a nuclear reactor --
some of horror and others of hope. This pressing debate, now
raging in every media medium and outlet, has been universally
one-sided. With questions as crucial to the planet as climate
change and energy, we cannot afford to let statements go
unchallenged. The sharply differing views on the proposed
"nuclear renaissance" promises to provide an action-filled
exchange of the contentious issues at hand at the annual
conference of the Society of Environmental Journalists, a
"nonpartisan, non-advocacy membership organization of
professional journalists and academics." WHO: Panelists: Peter
Bradford, Former NRC Commissioner, Vice-Chair, Board of
Directors, Union of Concerned Scientists, Nuclear Energy
Advisor, GRACE Energy Initiative;

http://www.graceenergyinitiative.org/ Patrick Moore, Clean and
Safe Energy Coalition (CASE) spokesperson, Chair/Chief
Scientist, Greenspirit Strategies; Jim Riccio, Nuclear Policy
Analyst, Greenpeace http://www.greenpeace.org/usa Moderator:
Judy Fahys, Environment Reporter, The Salt Lake Tribune WHEN:
Friday October 27th @ 11:15 AM-12:30 PM WHERE: The Conference of
the Society of Environmental Journalists, in Burlington, Vermont 

Live Web-cast with interactive online polling pre-register one
hour ahead of the debate at:
http://www.graceenergyinitiative.org/nuclearexpertdebate.php 
  WHAT:  GRACE WEBCAST of a panel discussion from the SEJ
Conference called
         -- "Cradle to Grave: New Nukes and Old Radioactive 
Waste" The promise of greenhouse gas-free electricity has some 
people predicting a nuclear power Renaissance. The Bush 
administration is pledging billions of dollars in incentives to 
fast-track the construction of new nuclear reactors and the 
reprocessing of waste, yet nuclear terrorism and proliferation of 
nuclear weapons abetted by nuclear power programs remain chilling 
threats. These thorny issues have further polarized the debate: 
some former nuclear opponents support nuclear as the world's best 
energy solution, while some former regulators have doubts about a 
revival, and other environmental groups continue to warn of new 
nuclear risks. The GRACE Energy Initiative will release a new 
report in advance of the debate called -- "FALSE PROMISES: 
DEBUNKING NUCLEAR INDUSTRY PROPAGANDA."
 

To get an advance copy of the report, or for more information
please, Contact: GRACE Sr. Media Director, Denise Hughes at
212-726-0121, or by cell at 845-401-5300, Denise@gracelinks.org
  
Issuers of news releases and not PR Newswire are solely 
responsible for the accuracy of the content. Terms and 
conditions, including restrictions on redistribution, apply. 

Copyright © 1996-2003 PR Newswire Association LLC. All Rights 
Reserved. A United Business Media company. 
*****************************************************************
 45 Public Citizen: Public Citizen Defends Environmental Nonprofit 
from Texas Energy Company’s Trademark Lawsuit Threat
 
Oct. 24, 2006 

Downwinders at Risk Challenges TXUs Use of Trademark
Infringement to Stifle Political Free Speech 

WASHINGTON, D.C.  In a letter sent today to TXU Corp., Public
Citizen defended the free speech rights of a Texas environmental
nonprofit organization against trademark infringement lawsuit
threats by the energy giant. 

TXU objected to the group Downwinders at Risks use of the TXU
logo, along with the logos of other pollution-causing
corporations, on a float depicting Gov. Rick Perry kissing a
dirty smokestack. The float was part of a protest to represent
the close political and financial relationship between the
governors office and the energy industry. TXU threatened to sue
the organization for trademark infringement and dilution unless
it removes the logo from its float and any published materials. 

To prove trademark infringement, companies must show that use of
their logo was commercial in nature and caused consumer
confusion. In this case, the logo was part of a political
protest by a nonprofit organization not involved in commercial
activities and clearly not affiliated with the company it
criticized. 

TXUs claim that this grassroots group must ask the company for
permission to depict and criticize it is patently absurd, said
Paul Levy, an attorney for Public Citizen defending Downwinders
at Risk. The companys real motive is to use the threat of
costly and intimidating lawsuits to stifle the political
participation and free speech of citizens who are legitimately
concerned about the effects of TXU-caused pollution.   

Downwinders float, titled Rick Perrys Smoke Stack Love World
Tour, will continue to appear at Perry campaign events
beginning Wednesday, Oct. 25 in Dallas. 

Public Citizen has a strong record of defending the First
Amendment rights of ordinary citizens against trademark threats
made by large corporations. Dallas civil liberties litigator
Michael Linz serves as co-counsel for Downwinders at Risk. 

To read TXUs demand letter, click here. To read Downwinders
response, click here, and to view Public Citizens
response, click here. 

### 
*****************************************************************
 46 NRC: NRC Approves Final Rule on National Source Tracking System for Radioactive Materials of
Concern

News Release - 2006-13 U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Office 
of Public Affairs     Telephone: 301/415-8200 Washington, DC 
20555-0001     E-mail: opa@nrc.gov No. 06-134     October 25, 
2006   

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has approved a final rule 
implementing a National Source Tracking System (NSTS) to enhance 
controls for certain radioactive materials used in industry, 
academia and medicine. 

The tracking system has been developed through close cooperation 
with other federal and state agencies as part of the NRCs efforts 
to enhance controls over radioactive materials following the 
terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. The final rule closely 
follows recommendations of a joint NRC-Department of Energy 
report on radiological dispersion devices (RDDs, or dirty bombs) 
published in May 2003 and is based upon an interim database of 
radiological sources initiated in 2004 and currently in use by 
the NRC. The rule also implements provisions of the Energy Policy 
Act of 2005. 

The final rule, to be published shortly in the Federal Register, 
will require licensees to report to the NSTS the manufacture, 
transfer, receipt, disassembly, and disposal of nationally 
tracked sources. Basic information to be collected will include 
the manufacturer, model number, serial number, radioactive 
material, activity and manufacture date of each source. 
Information on the facilities involved in any transaction will 
also be included. 

The National Source Tracking System will be an important 
component of the NRCs broad and comprehensive effort to enhance 
the control of radioactive material and prevent its use by our 
adversaries, NRC Chairman Dale E. Klein said. This system is 
appropriate for a post-9/11 environment and consistent with 
recommendations of the international community, other federal 
agencies and the Congress. 

The NSTS will apply to radioactive sources that fall in Category 
1 or Category 2 of the International Atomic Energy Agencys Code 
of Conduct for the Safety and Security of Radioactive Materials. 
There are an estimated 44,000 sources in these categories 
(considered to be of the greatest concern from a security 
standpoint) in approximately 16,000 devices in use in the United 
States. They are typically used in devices such as irradiators, 
radiography cameras, well-logging devices, Gamma Knife® surgical 
devices, and radioisotope thermoelectric generators, among 
others. 

Licensees will be required to report their inventories and 
transactions regarding Category 1 sources by Nov. 15, 2007, and 
of Category 2 sources by Nov. 30, 2007. Inventories must be 
updated and reconciled annually with information in the database. 

Once fully operational, the NSTS will enhance the accountability 
of radioactive sources by helping the NRC and Agreement States 
(the 34 states that have been given authority by the NRC to 
regulate the medical, industrial and academic uses of radioactive 
material) conduct inspections and investigations, communicate 
nationally tracked source information to other government 
agencies, and verify legitimate ownership and use of nationally 
tracked sources. 

Radioactive materials provide critical capabilities in the oil 
and gas, electrical power, construction and food industries; are 
used to treat millions of patients each year in diagnostic and 
therapeutic medical procedures; and are used in technology 
research and development. In developing its requirements, the NRC 
aims to provide appropriate safety and security for the materials 
without discouraging their beneficial use. 

A proposed rule on the NSTS was published July 28, 2005, in the 
Federal Register. The agency received 33 comment letters on the 
proposed rule. In addition, the NRC held public meetings in 
Rockville, Md., and Houston, Texas, to explain the proposed rule 
and solicit comment. An additional 17 individuals provided 
comments at these meetings. The NRCs responses to the comments 
are included in the upcoming Federal Register notice.   
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------


NRC news releases are available through a free list serve 
subscription at the following Web address: 
http://www.nrc.gov/public-involve/listserver.html. The NRC 
homepage at www.nrc.gov also offers a SUBSCRIBE link. E-mail 
notifications are sent to subscribers when news releases are 
posted to NRC's Web site.   

 	Last revised Thursday, October 26, 2006 	   
*****************************************************************
 47 NRC: NRC Seeks Public Comment on Revisions and Additions to Physical Security Requirements
 
News Release - 2006-13 U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Office 
of Public Affairs     Telephone: 301/415-8200 Washington, DC 
20555-0001     E-mail: opa@nrc.gov No. 06-135     October 26, 
2006   

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission is seeking public comment
on a proposed rule amending its security regulations related to
the physical protection of nuclear power reactors. This proposed
rulemaking also includes a limited number of new security
requirements for certain facilities that manufacture uranium
fuel. 

The proposed rulemaking supplements requirements for access
controls, event reporting, security personnel training,
coordination between safety and security activities, contingency
planning and protection against radiological sabotage. The
proposed rule also adds requirements related to background
checks for firearms users and authorization for enhanced weapons
to fulfill certain provisions in the Energy Policy Act of 2005. 

This proposed rulemaking incorporates requirements that had been
previously imposed by the Commission through Orders issued after
the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Additionally, the
proposed requirements for safety/security interface address in
part, a Petition for Rulemaking (PRM 50-80), which requested
regulations for governing proposed changes to facilities that
could adversely affect the licensees ability to protect against
radiological sabotage. 

This proposed rule supplements the security requirements deemed
necessary by the NRC to protect against the Design Basis Threat
(DBT). In November 2005, the NRC issued a proposed rule on the
supplemented DBT for public comment. A final DBT rule is still
under development by staff. 

Comments must be received within 75 days of publication in the
Federal Register to guarantee consideration by the NRC. Comments
submitted later than this date may be considered if practical.
They can be mailed to: Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission, Washington, D.C., 20555-0001, ATTN: Rulemaking and
Adjudications Staff. Comments can be hand-carried to 11555
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Md., between 7:30 a.m. and 4:15 p.m.
on federal work days, or they can be faxed to 301-415-1101.
E-mail comments can also be sent to SECY@nrc.gov. In addition,
comments can also be submitted through the NRCs eRulemaking
Portal at http://www.regulations.gov[exit icon] . The entire
proposed rule will also be available at that Web location. 

More information about security requirements for NRC licensees
can be found on the NRCs Web site,
http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/fact-sheets/safety-
security.html.   
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------


NRC news releases are available through a free list serve
subscription at the following Web address:
http://www.nrc.gov/public-involve/listserver.html. The NRC
homepage at www.nrc.gov also offers a SUBSCRIBE link. E-mail
notifications are sent to subscribers when news releases are
posted to NRC's Web site.   



  


 	Last revised Thursday, October 26, 2006 	   
*****************************************************************
 48 UPI: NNSA upgrades Russian navy nuke security
     
United Press International - Security &Terrorism - 

10/26/2006 1:27:00 PM -0400

WASHINGTON, Oct. 26 (UPI) -- The U.S. National Nuclear Security
Administration has completed security upgrades against theft or
terror attacks at 50 Russian navy nuclear sites. 

The NNSA, an agency of the U.S. Department of Energy, said in a
statement Tuesday that it had completed the security
enhancements two years ahead of schedule. 

"This achievement signifies the completion of nuclear material
protection, control and accounting upgrades at all
Navy-affiliated sites in the Russian Federation that contain
nuclear materials or warheads," the agency said. 

"Denying terrorists access to nuclear material is our top
priority. These upgrades to Russian navy sites make it that much
harder for terrorists to get their hands on dangerous nuclear
material," said NNSA Administrator Linton F. Brooks. "The fact
that we have done this a full two years ahead of schedule shows
the importance the administration places on securing nuclear
weapons and material at the source and for non-proliferation
work in general." 

The NNSA said the project was carried out under NNSA's
International Materials Protection and Cooperation program in
cooperation with the Moscow-based Kurchatov Institute and the
Russian Ministry of Defense. 

NNSA personnel, including technical experts from NNSA's Sandia
and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories, designed and
oversaw the upgrades, the agency said. "Examples of security
upgrades include the installation of physical protection
systems, such as intrusion detection sensors, access controls
and hardened defensive position," it said. 

The NNSA said it was also working with Russia's Strategic Rocket
Forces to upgrade security at 25 nuclear sites. The agency said
that program was scheduled to be completed by the end of 2007. 

The agency said it had also recently "begun upgrades at the
Russian military storage sites assigned to it" by U.S. President
George W. Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin when they
met at Bratislava in Slovakia in 2005.

© Copyright 2006 United Press International, Inc. All Rights
Reserved
*****************************************************************
 49 News & Star: Evacuation after nuclear train breaks down at station
 						
Published on 26/10/2006                                                                                                                                                                                              
                                                        

A RAILWAY station was evacuated yesterday afternoon after a train 
carrying radioactive fuel to Sellafield broke down.
 
The freight train, run by Carlisle-based Direct Rail Services, 
broke down at Sunderland Central Station when an axle overheated.
 
The station was evacuated after smoke was seen coming from the 
train, which was carrying two flasks of radioactive material from 
Hartlepool nuclear power station.
 
It was travelling along a line that passes through Carlisle and 
on to west Cumbria.
 
British Transport Police and Direct Rail said at no time was 
there any danger. Officers said the station was evacuated because 
of diesel fumes.


 
*****************************************************************
 50 Gallup Independent: Waste to be moved through Gallup
 
Date: Thu, 26 Oct 2006 17:00:23 -0700

X-Nohoney: yes white-hard - relay H=adsl-63-203-231-61.dsl.snfc21.pacbell.net (borg.energy-net.org) [63.203.231.61]
X-Sender-Host-Address: 63.203.231.61
X-Sender-Host-Name: adsl-63-203-231-61.dsl.snfc21.pacbell.net
X-Spam-Class: HAM-VERY-WHITELIST

<x-flowed>

>Waste to be moved through Gallup
>
>By Kathy Helms
>Diné Bureau
>
>WINDOW ROCK 9 The Navajo Nation is preparing to give consent to the U.S.
>Department of Energy to move trucks of radioactive waste so "hot" that it
>has to be handled by machines rather than humans down Interstate 40 through
>10 Navajo chapters.
>
>In exchange for signing the cooperative agreement with DOE's Carlsbad Field
>Office, shipments of remote-handled transuranic waste would be allowed to
>pass through the reservation and the Gallup area on their way to the Waste
>Isolation Pilot Project in Carlsbad, N.M.
>
>The Navajo Nation would receive a financial assistance award of $50,000,
>which would go to Navajo Division of Public Safety Executive Director Samson
>Cowboy to fund the position of Emergency Services Liaison under the
>Department of Emergency Management.
>
>Total cost of the project is estimated at $250,000, though there is no
>guarantee the Nation would receive that amount, according to DOE.
>
>The budget documents contained in the legislation introduced by Delegate
>Lorenzo Curley (Houck/Lupton/Nahata dziil) during Monday's meeting of the
>Intergovernmental Relations Committee and approved 8-0, were signed by
>Cowboy and Johnny Johnson, DEM program manager.
>
>Transuranic waste, or TRU, is waste material contaminated with Uranium-233
>and its daughter products, plutonium and other nuclides. It is produced
>primarily from reprocessing spent fuel and from the use of plutonium in the
>fabrication of nuclear weapons.
>
>The liaison is to be hired to educate local community members on the effects
>of the transuranic waste materials being transported through 20 miles of
>Navajo Nation trust lands along I-40. The liaison also will develop a
>hazardous materials emergency preparedness and response plan in the event of
>a radioactive waste spill on I-40.
>
>SACRIFICE ZONE
>The 10 Navajo chapter communities are located within a four-mile buffer zone
>along I-40, running west and east, in Apache and McKinley counties. A
>combined population of 10,894 persons would be impacted, according to the
>Statement of Work.
>
>This does not include the thousands who potentially could be impacted in the
>areas of Gallup and Grants.
>
>Hiring of the Navajo WIPP liaison is justified by I-40's close proximity to
>Navajo families and livestock living within two to three miles of the
>interstate, according to the document.
>
>The radioactive waste would pass through Nahata dziil, where the Nation
>plans to develop its first full-scale casino, as well as the chapters of
>Houck, Lupton, Manuelito, Tsayatoh, Red Rock, Church Rock, Iyanbito, Thoreau
>and Baca.
>
>Delegate Curley said the affected Navajo communities and chapters "will
>benefit from the education grant from the Department of Energy," which will
>pay for publishing articles in tribal newspapers or public information
>bulletins.
>
>"The shipments that have been going through historically, you could walk up
>to it and be around it without it having any adverse affect on your health.
>But it's going to be changed," Curley said.
>
>"The type of waste that's going to come through in trucks along I-40, you
>cannot come around that. The type of stuff that we're talking about here may
>be dangerous to those people that live along these communities.
>
>"We need to move forward, get these monies and train these people" in how to
>handle potential radioactive waste spills, he said.
>
>IN DOE WE TRUST
>According to the Statement of Work, the DOE, and thus Carlsbad Field Office,
>as an agent of the federal government, has a trust responsibility to the
>Navajo Nation. "This responsibility includes involving and assisting the
>Navajos in necessary preparations for the safe transport of transuranic
>radioactive waste from DOE Site to the WIPP."
>
>Public Law 102-579, the WIPP Land Withdrawal Act, as amended, states that
>DOE shall "provide technical assistance and funds for the purpose of
>training public safety officials, and other emergency responders in any
>state or Indian tribe through whose jurisdiction DOE plans to transport
>transuranic waste to or from the WIPP."
>
>The cooperative agreement between Navajo and DOE satisfies the federal trust
>responsibility and provides funding for support in accident prevention,
>emergency preparedness, public information and participation in large-scale
>WIPP exercises, the document states.
>
>The Carlsbad office will provide the Navajo WIPP Emergency Services Liaison
>with advance notification of shipments and the liaison will inform emergency
>response personnel. The liaison also will identify traffic problems on the
>route used for WIPP shipments.
>
>Under the conditions of acceptance of the award, the Department of Energy
>assumes no responsibility with respect to any damages or loss arising out of
>any activities undertaken with the financial support of this award.
>
>DOE reserves the right to cancel any awards made under the cooperative
>agreement if the Navajo Nation fails to meet its obligations.
>
>Tuesday
>October 24, 2006
>Waste to be moved through Gallup

>All contents property of the Gallup Independent.
>Any duplication or republication requires consent of the Gallup Independent.
>Please send the Gallup Independent feedback on this website and the paper in
>general.
>Send questions or comments to gallpind@cia-g.com

</x-flowed>
*****************************************************************
 51 Deseret News: Goshute leader backs N-storage
 
[deseretnews.com] 

Thursday, October 26, 2006                               
		
By Deborah Bulkeley

Deseret Morning News                                          

GRANTSVILLE — Lawrence Bear has little to say about his recent 
election as chairman of the Skull Valley Band of Goshute Indians, 
but he did make it clear he supports a plan to store nuclear 
waste on the Tooele County reservation.

       "I support PFS," said Bear, who according to preliminary
results was elected, the Bureau of Indian Affairs said Wednesday.

       The election likely means the end of a decade of
leadership by Chairman Leon Bear, whose leadership has been in
dispute with some band members and the state for years, largely
because of a deal he spearheaded with Private Fuel Storage, a
consortium of nuclear utilities, to build a temporary storage
facility on tribal land about 50 miles from Salt Lake City.

       Those plans appear in serious jeopardy since the
Department of Interior denied the facility's lease last month.
PFS has not said publicly what it will do next.

       PFS spokeswoman Sue Martin said the consortium had not
heard the official results yet so could not comment on a
specific winner.

       "We will work with whoever the tribe elects," she said,
adding that the contract to store nuclear waste on a portion of
the reservation is not with particular people but with the whole
tribe.

       Margene Bullcreek, a band member who has long opposed the
proposal, said Wednesday she was disappointed another supporter
of PFS was elected chairman, but she saw hope in the other two
officials elected. Marlinda Moon was elected vice chair, and
Lena Knight was elected secretary, both are apparently political
newcomers.

       "Mr. (Leon) Bear had relied more on PFS and didn't
develop anything," Bullcreek said.

       Bullcreek was among those who have called into question
Leon Bear's leadership, claiming his opponents were cut off from
the band's coffers.

       The outgoing chairman has called seven elections then
canceled them since his term expired in 2004, citing a lack of a
quorum of 44 voting members of the band. In 2001, three band
members claimed to replace Bear in a special recall election.
The BIA didn't recognize the recall and continued to recognize
Leon Bear as chairman.

       Leon Bear is on federal probation after pleading guilty
to federal charges. He has been ordered to repay the Internal
Revenue Service $13,101 in unpaid taxes and to repay his tribe
$31,500 for duplicate stipends he billed the band.

       This month's election was conducted via mail by the
Bureau of Indian Affairs. Ballots were sent to some 88 eligible
voters and 49 people voted. The results were provided by
certified mail Wednesday to those who voted.

       BIA officials said it's now up to the band members to
make the change in leadership happen. Lawrence Bear said there
would probably be a meeting, but he didn't know when.

       Such BIA intervention is rare. However, the federal
agency stepped in at the request of band members last month
after the three-member executive committee was effectively
dissolved when vice chairwoman Lori Bear resigned. The secretary
position was already vacant. The lack of an executive committee
had effectively shut down the band's government.

       On Wednesday, Leon Bear said he accepts the election
results.

       "I've served the tribe for 10 years," Bear said. "I did
my thing, and I think I served them well."

       Lawrence Bear, 72, is retired from the Utah Department of
Transportation. He is Leon Bear's uncle and has served in the
past as chair and vice chair.

       For now, he said his priority is simply "getting things
together." He said he'll confer with the two other newly elected
members of the executive council and work on getting the band's
Salt Lake office up and running. While he said he'd work on
issues such as building band unity and economic development, he
didn't discuss specifics.

       Bullcreek said the band's government should also either
develop a constitution and bylaws or strengthen its traditional
form of government. She added that it's possible the elections
could be contested, noting the official change of leadership
still needs to take place. Still, she seemed optimistic.
       "I'm glad we have gotten to this stage," Bullcreek said.
"I feel satisfied with the people who got into these positions."

Contributing: Suzanne Struglinksi

 
© 2006 Deseret News Publishing Company
*****************************************************************
 52 RIA Novosti: Russian-Kazakh JV to mine first ton of uranium in early Dec.
 
26/ 10/ 2006

MOSCOW, October 26 (RIA Novosti) - A Russian-Kazakh joint
venture will mine its first metric ton of uranium in Kazakhstan
in the first week of December, Russia's nuclear chief said
Thursday. 

The joint venture was set up in 2004 and is exploring a uranium
ore deposit with estimated reserves of 19,000 metric tons of
uranium in Zarechnoye, near the border with Central Asian
neighbors Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. 

"In early December, we are going to celebrate the production of
the first ton of uranium at the Zarechnoye JV," said Sergei
Kiriyenko, head of the Federal Atomic Energy Agency.

 Techsnabexport, Russia's state-controlled uranium supplier and
a provider of uranium enrichment services, holds a 49.33% stake
in the joint venture. 

Kiriyenko said earlier that Russia, which accounts for 8% of the
world's uranium output, should replace its non-renewable gas
resources with nuclear energy. 

Russia's reserves of coal and natural gas will be depleted in 50
years, and in response Russia is planning to expand its nuclear
energy sector and meet 60-70% of its uranium demand domestically
by 2015. 

He said that uranium production was not profitable earlier in
Russia, when the average price for one kilogram was $40.
However, with the price now at $100 per kilogram, production has
become profitable. 

Kiriyenko said Russia intends to extend its cooperation with all
uranium-producing countries. 

He said that in Soviet times, Russia produced a considerable
amount of uranium for military purposes, which could last the
country for many decades. 

But he added that the current increase in uranium production was
necessary for the full-scale development of Russia's nuclear
sector. 

© 2005 RIA Novosti   
*****************************************************************
 53 Salt Lake Tribune: Skull Valley: Former leader out as Goshutes elect a new slate

Leon Bear defeated, but his uncle is elected in mail ballot; 
results must still be verified

By Patty Henetz 

The Salt Lake TribuneArticle Last Updated:10/26/2006 12:40:26 AM
MDT

Leon Bear, the most ardent supporter of a nuclear waste disposal
site in Skull Valley, has been shut out in the Goshute tribal
leadership election, the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA)
announced Wednesday. 

   The preliminary count of 49 mail-in votes showed the new
tribal chairman is Lawrence Bear, a former tribal chairman and
Leon Bear's uncle. Marlinda Moon defeated Leon Bear to become
vice-chair; and Lena Knight has been elected committee
secretary, according to a memo from Phoenix-based BIA spokesman
Wendell Peacock. 

   The BIA and the tribe still must verify the results for them
to be official. Even if the results stand, it was uncertain
Wednesday how the leadership change might affect Private Fuel
Storage's plans to build an open-air project to store 44,000
tons of spent nuclear fuel rods on the reservation 45 miles
southwest of Salt Lake City. 

   The lease the tribe signed with PFS is still in effect, said
PFS spokeswoman Sue Martin. "The election is for tribal
officers. The lease is between PFS and the entire band, not a
particular set of officers," she said. "We are eager to work
with whomever they elect." 

   Martin noted that Lawrence Bear has been part of the PFS
negotiations since the 1990s. "He's certainly no stranger to
this project," she said. 

   Last month, however, the Interior Department blocked 
transportation of waste to the site and invalidated the 
previously approved lease between the tribe and its 
utility-company partners. And since last fall, seven of the eight 
remaining nuclear utility members of the consortium have pulled 
out of the partnership. 

   Neither Lawrence Bear nor Leon Bear could be reached for
comment, nor could Lena Knight. Moon declined during a telephone
call to comment because the results haven't been verified. 

   Margene Bullcreek, who has fought Leon Bear and other members
of the tribe who supported high-level nuclear waste storage on
the reservation 45 miles southwest of Salt Lake City, welcomed
new leadership. 

   "I'm satisfied with the results," she said, adding she hoped
Moon and Knight would help stabilize tribal governance. 

   The 124-member tribe has been in turmoil for years under Leon
Bear's chairmanship, largely over how the money PFS paid the
tribe has been spent, but also in failed attempts to wrest
control from him. 

   Last year, Bear pleaded guilty to filing a false federal tax
return and agreed to pay $13,000 in back taxes and repay the
tribe $25,242 in various duplicate stipends he received, plus an
additional $6,300. In exchange, the federal government dropped
five charges of embezzlement and fraud based on charges he had
stolen $160,952 from tribal programs. 

   Moon and two others who claimed they were the tribe's
legitimate leaders were charged in 2003 with using bogus legal
documents to take control of nearly $1.4 million in tribal funds
that were held at Zions Bank, Brighton Bank and Bank One. Moon
pleaded guilty last year and is making reparations. 

   Some tribal members are complaining about the way the BIA
conducted the election because it was done with mail-in ballots
instead of at a meeting of the tribal General Council, which
consists of all the adult members. Chester Mills, superintendent
of the Uintah-Ouray Agency BIA office in Duchesne County, made
the arrangements. 

   "The BIA didn't do it how we do our tribal business," said
Mary Allen, a former tribal secretary and signatory to the PFS
lease who continues to support the project. "I would like to
know how many people received ballots," Allen added, saying her
sister and a nephew had not. 

   BIA Regional Director Allen Anspach said Wednesday that 88
ballots were sent out via certified mail; 45 ballots were
returned by last Friday, the deadline. 

   Bear held power longer than his elective term because he
repeatedly canceled elections, claiming the council meetings
lacked a proper quorum. 

   That's why the tribe asked the BIA to intervene, Bullcreek
said, adding now it's time for the tribe to rebuild itself. "The
big job is, we need to strengthen our tribal government," she
said. "We need to start having programs for employment and
housing on the reservation. We are an indigenous people. We have
our sovereignty. We need to build on that." 

Privacy Policy  |  MNG Corporate Site Map  
*****************************************************************
 54 ITAR-TASS: Russian-Kazakh uranium enrichment JV in Angarsk to be co-financed

26.10.2006, 12.18

    [ borde
MOSCOW, October 26 (Itar-Tass) - Russian-Kazakh nuclear power
joint ventures acquire visible shape, Kazakh Prime Minister
Danial Akhmetov said at a meeting with the Russian Federal
Atomic Energy chief, Sergei Kiriyenko, on Thursday. 

“Earlier, we’ve agreed to create three uranium enrichment joint
ventures and design low capacity reactors. Now we are going to
study these agreements in detail,” he said. 

“A uranium enrichment joint venture in Angarsk will operate on
the conditions of co-financing,” Akhmetov said. 

A first-ever international centre for providing nuclear cycle
services, including uranium enrichment, will be also built in
Angarsk, the Irkutsk region. 

Rosatom chief Sergei Kiriyenko said “the centre will allow new
countries to get low-enriched uranium for nuclear power
generation, but will guarantee non-proliferation.” 

The agreement on creating the centre was reached at a meeting
with Russian and U.S. presidents within the framework of the G8
summit in St. Petersburg last July. 

The Angarsk-based centre will become operational in early 2007
and will be controlled by the International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA). 

© ITAR-TASS. All rights reserved. You undertake not to copy,
*****************************************************************
 55 FOE Scotland: NUCLEAR WASTE - BRIBERY NO SOLUTION TO DEADLY LEGACY

Friends of the Earth Scotland - 

Press Releases
 
25 October 2006 

 Ministers told to close door on new nuclear 

Ministers have announced plans to offer communities inducements
to host dumps for the UK's deadly radioactive waste legacy. [1] 

Friends of the Earth Scotland reacted to the news by calling on
ministers to
 immediately halt all plans to build new nuclear power plants
and to ensure that any consultation about potential sites went
much wider than just 'host' communities. 

In June 2005, the names of all 537 locations once identified as
potential sites for disposing radioactive waste were published.
Of the 537 locations initially considered, 159 were in Scotland.
[2] 

Friends of the Earth Scotland's Chief Executive, Duncan McLaren,
said: 

"Dumping nuclear waste in holes in the ground, whether in
Scotland or England, is no solution to the problem of dealing
with this country's deadly radioactive waste legacy. Solving the
problem, should not begin with bribes, but should instead start
with a pledge not to create any more waste. 

"Nuclear power is a white elephant technology with so many
unwanted problems
 during and after its operation. This latest part in the waste
saga is further evidence that creating further waste from new
nuclear power stations should not be countenanced. 

"No sites have been identified for a nuclear dump, nor are there
proven designs, accurate costs or willing host communities.
Currently anywhere in the country remains a potential dump site. 

"Even if a community were to accept inducements to host a dump,
it is vital that each and every affected community is properly
consulted. After all, an escape of radiation from a
transportation accident or from a leaking dump site will not
respect artificial town or county boundaries." 

ENDS 

NOTES TO EDITORS: 

[1] Today's statement: 

July's statement: 

[2] Thanks to the Freedom of Information Act, in June 2005,
Nirex was forced
 to publish the names of all 537 locations once identified as
potential sites
 for disposing of the UK's dangerous radioactive waste. 

Of the 537 locations initially considered, 159 were in Scotland: 

Highlands - 45
 Strathclyde - 41
 Western Isles - 21
 Shetland - 17
 Orkney - 15
 Grampian - 8
 Lothian - 4
 Dumfries & Galloway - 4
 Fife - 3
 Tayside - 1 

*****************************************************************
 56 Mos News: Russian-Kazakh Uranium Enrichment Center to Start Work Soon -
         
MOSNEWS.COM
 
Created: 26.10.2006 17:47 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 17:47 MSK 	
 	
MosNews
 	 	 	 	 
The head of the Russian Federal Nuclear Power Agency Sergei
Kiriyenko said on Thursday, Oct. 26, that a joint Russian-Kazakh
uranium enrichment center would soon start working. The venture
will mine its first of uranium in Kazakhstan in the first week
of December.

“We will complete the preparatory procedure before the end of
the year and will be able to announce the start of its work,”
Kiriyenko said, quoted by the Interfax agency.

Earlier this year the Russian official said that uranium
enrichment center, which could produce nuclear fuel for nations
wanting to develop civilian atomic energy, could start operating
next year. The new center is to be built at the Angarsk
Electrolysis Chemical Plant in Eastern Siberia, which produces
uranium fuel for nuclear power plants.

The Angarsk center will enrich Kazakh uranium, Kiriyenko said
adding that the first ton of uranium for the venture will be
mined in the first week of December. Kazakhstan has 30 percent
of the world’s uranium reserves and is currently the fourth
biggest uranium producer, according to the KazAtomProm state
nuclear company. KazAtomProm plans to boost production more than
fourfold by 2010 to 15,000 metric tons (16,500 short tons) and
become the world’s largest uranium producer. 	 	 	 

  Write us: <b>info@mosnews.com</b>
Copyright © 2004 MOSNEWS.COM
*****************************************************************
 57 DOE: DOE Announces Over $8 Million to Increase Use and 
Availability of Alternative Fuels
 
  October 25, 2006
 
WASHINGTON, DC Today, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary
Samuel W. Bodman announced $8.6 million for 16 projects to
expand the use of alternative transportation fuels.  Combined
with funding from the participants, more than $25 million will
be invested in the nations alternative fuel infrastructure. 
The grants are part of the Clean Cities program and were
selected under three topic areas including Refueling
Infrastructure for E85 and Alternative Fuels; Incremental Cost
for Alternative Fuel Vehicles; and Idle Reduction Training and
Awareness for School Districts. 

This public-private partnership helps bring diversity of supply
to our transportation fuel market, Secretary Bodman said.  We
need to integrate a diversity of supplies and a diversity of
suppliers in order to reduce our reliance on any one particular
type of fuel, or particular supplier.  By building our energy
infrastructure we create an environment in which American
consumers have more choices in the transportation fuel they
use. 

The selected projects represent significant diversity among the
recipients and geographic location.  They include pioneering
efforts to bring alternative fuel infrastructure to regions of
the country in which it does not currently exist. 

The Refueling Infrastructure topic area considered projects that
include new dispensing facilities, or additional equipment or
upgrades and improvements to existing refueling sites for
alternative fuel vehicles (AFV).  The 13 projects selected under
this topic include the installation of alternative fuel blending
and refueling infrastructure at over 180 locations in 25 states
and the District of Columbia.  This includes the installation of
infrastructure to dispense E85 at both converted and new
stations.  Additional projects involve the installation of
biodiesel blending capabilities at existing petroleum facilities
for improving the availability and distribution of low-level
biodiesel blends.  Two projects are focused on infrastructure
for compressed natural gas (CNG) and liquefied natural gas
(LNG).  Successful implementation of the planned infrastructure
projects is expected to result in reducing the consumption of
petroleum-based fuels by up to 30 million gallons per year. 

The Incremental Cost for Alternative Fuel Vehicles topic area
provides support for projects for the incremental cost of
placing new or converted highway-certified vehicles in service. 
A single project for propane-powered vehicles was selected under
this topic area that is expected to result in the reduction of
diesel fuel by over 100,000 gallons per year. 

The Idle Reduction Training and Awareness for School Districts
topic area considered the development and implementation of
comprehensive school bus driver, student, faculty, and parent
education and awareness programs to eliminate or reduce idling
in school districts.  Two projects were selected under this
topic. 

A complete list of the projects selected for negotiation is
provided below: 
REFUELING INFRASTRUCTURE FOR E85 AND OTHER ALTERNATIVE FUELS 

WestStart-CALSTART in Pasadena, CA, will install 15 publicly
accessible E85 refueling stations along interstate highways in
the Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, and the San Joaquin Valley
areas.  Additionally, five of these locations will potentially
also have biodiesel fueling capability.  Team members include
CleanFuel USA, United Oil, Pacific Ethanol, State of California,
and General Motors.  Clean Cities partners include Southern
California, San Joaquin Valley, and Central Coast.
DOE Share:  $495,000 Proposed Total Project Cost: $2,371,363 

National Biodiesel Board in Jefferson City, MO, will install six
biodiesel blending terminals at existing petroleum facilities in
five states including Arizona, Florida, Indiana, New York, and
Pennsylvania.  The primary approach of the project is to market
biodiesel in relatively low blending ratios with conventional
diesel.  Team members include Sustainable Energy Strategies,
HWRT Oil Company, Independence Biofuels, Inc., Sprague Energy,
TransMontaigne, and West Central.  Clean Cities partners include
Greater Long Island, Greater Philadelphia, Tucson, and Florida
Gold Coast.
DOE Share:  $494,998 Proposed Total Project Cost: $3,539,101 

World Energy Alternatives, LLC in Chelsea, MA, will expand the
availability of biodiesel by installing rack-injection, in-line
blending capabilities at four diesel terminals including Tacoma,
Washington; Champaign, Illinois; Robinson, Illinois; and Toledo,
Ohio.  The proposed in-line blending is expected to
significantly improve quality control of the final product. 
Team Members include Marathon Petroleum Co, Sound Refining Inc,
and the City of Toledo.  Clean Cities partners include Puget
Sound and Central Ohio.
DOE Share:  $707,700 Proposed Total Project Cost: $3,165,360 

Commonwealth of Virginia in Richmond, VA, will install up to 12
publicly accessible E85 fuel dispensing stations along the I-95,
I-64 Crescent Corridor that passes through Virginia, Maryland,
and the District of Columbia.  This project will make E85
available to an estimated 15,000 public and private flex fuel
vehicles.  Team members include the State of Maryland, the DC
Energy Office, the General Services Administration, and General
Motors.  Clean Cities partners include Virginia Hampton Roads,
Maryland, and Metro Washington.
DOE Share:  $284,000 Proposed Total Project Cost: $767,000 

New York State Energy Research and Development Authority in
Albany, NY, will install up to about 30 publicly accessible E85
refueling stations across the state of New York and will
leverage the New York State Thruway Authoritys activities in
developing E85 along state thruways. Team members include the NY
Department of Transportation, NY Department of Motor Vehicles,
NY Thruway Authority, and NY Dept of Agriculture and Markets. 
Clean Cities partners include Western New York, Genesee Region,
New York City, Greater Long Island, and Capital District.
DOE Share:  $500,000 Proposed Total Project Cost: $1,170,000 

Prometheus Energy Company in Seattle, WA, will install a
liquefied natural gas (LNG) refueling station at the Kiefer
Landfill, located in Sacramento, California.  The station will
serve the County of Sacramentos fleet of garbage trucks that
currently run on LNG and other LNG-capable waste hauling fleets
that use the landfill.  Team members include NorthStar Inc., and
the City of Sacramento.
DOE Share:  $600,000 Proposed Total Project: $1,200,000 

The Triangle J Council of Governments in Research Triangle Park,
NC, will install E85 refueling infrastructure at 21 stations and
B20 infrastructure at 14 stations along heavily traveled
interstates in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and
Tennessee.  Team members include United Energy, Osage, and
Georgia Power.  Clean Cities partners include Triangle, Palmetto
State, East Tennessee, Middle Georgia, and Centralina.
DOE Share:  $586,000 Proposed Total Project: $1,353,080 

State of Colorado in Denver, CO, will install publicly
accessible E85 and biodiesel refueling stations at five
locations throughout Colorado. Work will also include educating
car dealers and the general public about the benefits of
alternative fuels.  Team members include Great Western Ethanol,
General Motors, and numerous state and county agencies.  Clean
Cities partners include Colorado Springs, Northern Colorado, and
Denver Metro.
DOE Share:  $350,000 Proposed Total Project: $1,047,000 

State of Indiana in Indianapolis, IN, will establish a network
of E85 and Biodiesel refueling stations spanning from Lake
Michigan to the Gulf of Mexico.  The project will coordinate the
placement of 31 public access alternative fuel refueling
stations along 886 miles of the I-65 corridor from Gary, Indiana
to Mobile, Alabama including 19 stations in Indiana, three in
Kentucky, three in Tennessee, and six in Alabama.  Team members
include the Indiana Soybean Board, the Indiana Department of
Transportation, the Kentucky Energy Office, the Tennessee Energy
Office, and various retailer outlets.  Clean Cities partners
include Central Indiana, South Shore, Middle Tennessee, Central
Alabama, and Kentucky.
DOE Share:  $1,332,288          Proposed Total Project:
$2,874,689 

Salt Lake City Clean Cities Utah Clean Cities Coalition in Salt
Lake City, UT, will expand the compressed natural gas (CNG)
public refueling structure with two additional stations and
assist three CNG customers in adding refueling facilities for
expanded fleet usage.  The two public CNG facilities will be
along I-15.  Team members include Questar Gas Co, Qwest
Communications, Diamond Parking, and Durrent's Bakery.
DOE Share:  $370,000 Proposed Total Project: $1,259,600 

Lane Regional Air Pollution Authority in Springfield, OR, will
establish one wholesale E85 rack in a centralized location and
install a minimum of 15 E85 retail refueling stations in the
Pacific Northwest along the I-5 corridor.  Team members include
the Oregon Department of Energy, Tyree Oil, Sequential Biofuels,
and Star Oil.  Clean Cities partners include Puget Sound and
Columbia-Williamette.
DOE Share:  $662,425 Proposed Total Project: $1,487,325 

Kum & Go, L.C. in West Des Moines, IA, will install E85
refueling infrastructure at 24 of their existing retail
stations.  Nineteen sites are in Iowa and the rest are in South
Dakota and Minnesota.  General Motors is a team member.
DOE Share:  $1,500,000          Proposed Total Project:
$3,500,000 

Greater Philadelphia Clean Cities, Inc. in Philadelphia, PA,
will convert 14 existing refueling infrastructure locations to
have E85 dispensing capability.  These stations will be located
along a 200-mile corridor from State College, Pennsylvania to
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.   Team members include General
Motors, Independence BioFuel Inc., and various retailers
including Worley & Obetz, and Shipley.
DOE Share:  $280,380 Proposed Total Project: $914,880 
INCREMENTAL COST OF ALTERNATIVE FUEL VEHICLES (AFVs)            
            

Paramount Scaffold, Inc. of Carson, CA, will receive cost share
funding for the incremental cost of replacing 44 existing
diesel-powered, medium-duty flat-bed trucks with 44
liquid-propane-powered trucks for the companys service area of
Los Angeles, San Diego, and Las Vegas.  Team members include
CleanFuel USA and Expo Propane Inc.  Clean Cities partners
include Southern California.
Requested DOE Share:  $267,410        Proposed Total Project:
$631,820 
IDLE REDUCTION TRAINING AND AWARENESS FOR SCHOOL DISTRICTS 

Salt Lake City Clean Cities Utah Clean Cities Coalition in Salt
Lake City, UT, will create and disseminate a model
idle-reduction program that can be easily replicated by school
districts across the country to help them reduce petroleum
consumption, save on fuel costs, minimize harmful emissions, and
protect childrens health.  This project includes the
development of an idle-reduction curriculum, training in six
partnership school districts in Utah and Nevada, and the
dissemination of the school bus idling reduction model to
schools nationwide.  The current idling baseline will be
established to determine the effectiveness of the program.  Team
members include the National Energy Foundation, the Nevada
Office of Energy, the Environmental and Energy Study Institute,
the National School Board Association, the Cache County School
District, the Washington County School District, and the Salt
Lake School District.
DOE Share:  $100,000 Proposed Total Project: $115,000 

Association of Central Oklahoma Governments in Oklahoma, City,
OK, will conduct idle reduction training and awareness for
school districts in central Oklahoma.  The project will include
the development and demonstration of techniques to reduce fuel
usage and harmful emissions, demonstration of the benefits of
idling policies, publishing and presentation of project results
including best practices and fuel savings realized, training of
transportation directors, bus drivers and key communicators, and
dissemination of results to all Oklahoma school districts and
school districts nationwide.  Team members include the Oklahoma
Department of Environmental Quality and the Choctaw Nicoma Park
Public Schools.   Clean Cities partners include Central Oklahoma.
Requested DOE Share:  $50,242          Proposed Total Project:
$50,242 

The Clean Cities Program was created in 1993 as a result of the
Energy Policy Act of 1992 to provide technical, informational,
and financial resources to both regulated fleets and voluntary
adopters of alternative fuels and is focused on advancing the
economic, environmental, and energy security of the United
States by supporting local decisions to adopt practices that
contribute to the reduction of petroleum consumption in the
transportation sector. 

Since its inception in 1993, Clean Cities has grown to over 80
coalitions and 4,800 stakeholders across the country, put close
to 1 million AFVs on the road, and displaced over 1 billion
gallons of gasoline.  In 2004 alone, Clean Cities displaced 237
million gallons of gasoline through the use of alternative
fuels, AFVs, idle reduction technologies, fuel economy measures,
and hybrid vehicles. 

Media contact(s): Craig Stevens, (202) 586-4940     [ ]   

  U.S. Department of Energy | 1000 Independence Ave., SW | 
Washington, DC 20585 1-800-dial-DOE | f/202-586-4403
*****************************************************************
 58 Tri-City Herald: Worker complaints draw changes 

Published Thursday, October 26th, 2006 

By Annette Cary, Herald staff writer 

Washington Closure Hanford is making changes after an
independent review found some workers were leery of raising
safety issues or slowing work to correct safety problems. 

The Department of Energy hired a consultant to interview workers
about the Hanford contractor's safety culture after it received
about 50 worker complaints during the contractor's first 13
months of work to clean up the Columbia River corridor. More
than half of the complaints were made anonymously. 

"We're troubled by what the investigation turned up, but we're
encouraged Washington Closure has acknowledged the problems and
is taking corrective actions," said Colleen French, spokeswoman
for DOE at Hanford. "There is no project, no deadline, no
milestone out here that is more important than the safety of the
work force." 

The DOE review found the contractor needed to make improvements
in its Employee Concerns Program, its work safety planning, its
safety oversight for nuclear and other hazards and its program
that allows any worker to stop a job if it appears work would be
unsafe. 

"We are taking it seriously," said Todd Nelson, Washington
Closure spokesman. "There are a lot of things under way." 

The contractor has about 775 employees and another 300 workers
through subcontractors, with about a third of them represented
by organized labor. 

Washington Closure received the draft findings of the DOE review
Friday and Washington Closure President Pat Pettiette told
employees in a memo Wednesday about the findings and planned
changes. 

"Indications are that there exists a 'chilling effect' and even
a hostile work environment in some areas of the project which
may be prohibiting some employees from bringing issues forward,"
Pettiette said in the memo. 

This week Washington Closure assigned a full-time manager to the
Employee Concerns Program and will add one to two more
professionals to the program, Pettiette said. It had been
staffed halftime. 

The program will report directly to Pettiette to ensure
confidentiality and a direct and speedy response from top
management, he said. 

The contractor also is starting a work control process with the
goal of getting workers more closely involved and involved
earlier in planning jobs to predict, then avoid safety hazards.
It also will seek feedback after jobs are completed. 

A task force is being assigned this week to assure consistency
and discipline in the program, Pettiette told employees. 

Statistics seem to indicate the contractor has an excellent
safety program, Nelson said. 

But Washington Closure learned from the investigation that
concerns remain about the way work is conducted, worker
involvement and questions that for some employees have not been
answered to their satisfaction, Pettiette said. 

"Thus, our commitment is to listen better to your concerns and
be sure that they are answered before work proceeds," he told
employees. 

Pettiette said one meeting has been held with managers and
another was planned Wednesday with supervisors to convey his
expectations that the contractor will treat workers with respect
and engage them in addressing safety concerns and planning. An
outside expert is helping to improve management response and
resolution to work place issues. 

Despite the contractor's good employee safety record, it has had
four electrical "near misses" in recent months that could have
injured workers. In one case a worker was shocked, but not
injured, when he used a portable saw in a wet area. DOE plans to
deduct $100,000 from its payment to Washington Closure because
of the problem. 

The review also found some employees have been reluctant to use
a standard Hanford safety tool -- the authority of any worker to
stop a job if he believes work would be unsafe. 

Some employees of subcontractors on the project are not paid
during work stoppages and that may make some employees hesitant
to call for a stop. 

Other options also are available, such as a program that
encourages employees to take a few minutes before a job starts
to ensure conditions are safe. 

Officials will be visiting job sites to talk with employees and
identify barriers to safety time-outs and stop-work processes,
Pettiette said. 

More changes will be made as the contractor receives more input
from employees, he said. 

"You have every right to expect to continue with your good work
in a safe, collaborative and engaged environment and I am
committed to seeing that you have it," he told employees. 

DOE will be working closely with Washington Closure to build the
kind of safety environment it considers critical to the type of
work done at Hanford, French said. 

© 2006 Tri-City Herald, Associated Press &Other Wire Services
*****************************************************************
 59 Tri-City Herald: Ex-official Grumbly speaks on vit, DOE 

Published Thursday, October 26th, 2006 

By Annette Cary, Herald staff writer 

A former top-level Department of Energy official predicted more
struggles ahead for Hanford's $12.2 billion vitrification plant
at a Wednesday lecture at Washington State University
Tri-Cities. 

Tom Grumbly, who was DOE assistant secretary for environmental
management and then undersecretary in the '90s, returned to the
Tri-Cities to speak before a crowd of about 130 people at the
20th Anniversary Public Lecture of the Herbert M. Parker
Foundation. 

Washington's senators have done a good job of persuading
Congress to keep paying for construction of the plant to treat
World War II and Cold War radioactive waste, but the job will
only get tougher, Grumbly said. 

People outside the Northwest don't have a clue about the
radioactive and chemical stew left from processing fuel to
produce plutonium for the nation's nuclear weapons program, he
said. And they question how the cost of treating those 53
million gallons of waste in Hanford's underground tanks could
possibly be justified, he said. 

Political support will shrink as DOE completes cleanup of other
sites around the nation contaminated by Cold War nuclear weapons
production and fewer states have a direct interest in the issue,
he said. 

Just as DOE has pulled together teams of the best and brightest
experts it can find to review technical, schedule and budget
issues at the vit plant, it needs to pull together a team to
look at how it will be paid for long term, he said. 

He recommended authorizing payment upfront, then finding a
payment schedule that makes more sense than the current plan of
asking Congress for the same amount of money -- $690 million --
each year. 

Break the work up into doable pieces, Grumbly said. Then find
ways to get some of the work done sooner rather than later,
because Congress tends to have a short attention span, he said. 

He warned that the estimated cost of the vitrification plant,
which already has more than doubled since 2003, likely will go
up again. 

He and Mike Lawrence, a former DOE Hanford manager, agreed that
much of the reason the plant will be so expensive is because the
Hanford waste contains the most complex mix of radionuclides and
hazardous chemicals in the DOE complex. 

When the plant does start to treat waste, changes are likely to
be needed, so the plant needs to be built for flexibility,
Lawrence said. 

Part of Hanford's cleanup troubles may be traced to the nation's
changing attitudes after the end of the Cold War that continue
to influence public attitudes about cleanup, Grumbly said. 

With the start of the Atomic Age, a new set of values emerged.
As nuclear weapons were developed the nation saw the need for
keeping science secret. Physics, engineering and chemistry
emerged as the most important disciplines mankind had created;
they had been used to end a terrible war. 

With the future of the nation at stake, all that mattered were
results. Cost was secondary. 

But with the end of the Cold War, the public began to question
the culture of secrecy, Grumbly said. They feared that
results-oriented work resulted in accidents, he said. 

They questioned whether disciplines such as chemistry and
physics needed to be reined in. And they feared money was being
wasted at Hanford and elsewhere, he said. 

Grumbly also predicted what Hanford might look like in the
future. Even as cleanup is being completed, the site will be
left with the vitrification plant, a very large, highly
contaminated facility, he said. It also may be left with many of
the glass logs of immobilized waste the plant is being built to
produce. 

Although the waste is supposed to go to a national repository at
Yucca Mountain, Nev., that project also is mired in controversy. 

Expect far more people to live near the site, he said. And
expect the state to eventually tell DOE it's time to move out
and let the state manage the site, he said. 

Grumbly is vice president for civil programs for Lockheed Martin
Information Technology. Lawrence is deputy director at Pacific
Northwest National Laboratory. 

© 2006 Tri-City Herald, Associated Press &Other Wire Services
*****************************************************************
 60 washingtonpost.com: Security Officials Sent to Los Alamos - 

By DEBORAH BAKERThe Associated Press

Thursday, October 26, 2006; 12:03 PM


-- Federal security officials and computer experts have been
sent to Los Alamos National Laboratory to ensure directives at
the nation's premier nuclear weapons lab are being followed in
the wake of a possible security breach.

The FBI was called in last week after police in northern New
Mexico stumbled onto what appeared to be classified information
from the lab while arresting a man at a mobile home for
possession of drug paraphrenalia.

The information was discovered on computer during a search for
evidence of a drug business, said Los Alamos Police Sgt. Chuck
Ney. He said police alerted the FBI to the documents, which
appeared to contain classified material.

The mobile home's owner, who wasn't home at the time, was listed
as a former employee of one of the lab's subcontractors.

Linton Brooks, head of the Energy Department's National Nuclear
Security Administration, said Wednesday he was sending NNSA's
chief of defense nuclear security to investigate, along with a
team of computer specialists to ensure compliance with
department directives at the lab.

He said investigators want to find out how the latest possible
security breach could occur despite "extraordinary efforts in
the last three years to put strong security procedures in place"
at Los Alamos and other weapons facilities.

Los Alamos has a history of high-profile problems that have
highlighted sloppy inventory control and security failures at
the nuclear weapons lab.

In 2000, nuclear scientist Wen Ho Lee pleaded guilty to one
count of mishandling computer files. In 2004, the lab was
temporarily shut down after two computer disks were reported
missing; it turned out they never existed and it was an
inventory error. The lab was put under new management and the
Energy Department began moving toward creating a diskless
environment to prevent classified material from being carried
out.

"We intend to do everything possible to guard against any
criminal activity, particularly where a breach of security may
be involved," Lab Director Michael Anastasio said.

Gov. Bill Richardson, a former energy secretary in the Clinton
administration, noted the lab had made efforts to improve
security but apparently not enough.

"We need to plug the leaks, we need to beef up security," the
governor said Wednesday. "This can't keep happening."

FBI spokesman Bill Elwell in Albuquerque said the investigation
is continuing and that he couldn't talk about the evidence
seized from the home or the individuals connected to the case.

The woman who owned the mobile home had worked for lab
subcontractor Information Assets Management until about two
weeks ago. A spokeswoman at Information Assets Management would
say only that the woman "is not currently employed with us." The
company helps organizations shift from paper-based files to
electronic systems.

The federal charge of unauthorized removal and retention of
classified material is a misdemeanor that carries a maximum
sentence of a year in prison and up to a $100,000 fine.
 	 
»  © 2006 The Associated Press 
+ 
The Washington Post: | | | | | | | 
*****************************************************************
 61 DenverPost.com: Tepee finds new home in Cold War museum
 
By Ann Schrader 

Denver Post Staff Writer

Article Last Updated:10/26/2006 01:39:55
AM MDT

 "A POWERFUL AND CONTROVERSIAL SYMBOL" | In the late 1970s, a 
revolving group of activists, inlcuding Beat poet Allen Ginsberg, 
camped near the nuclear-trigger factory. (Post file / Ernie 
Leyba)

For nine months, a tepee pitched on railroad tracks leading into 
Rocky Flats was a rallying symbol to those seeking to close the 
nuclear-weapons facility. 

The tepee also was home from April 1978 to January 1979 to a 
revolving group of activists, including Denver native Patrick 
Malone. 

"It was a car-stopper," said Malone, a member of the Rocky Flats 
Truth Force who now lives in Atlanta. The tepee idea "wasn't the 
result of pre-planning as much as simply adjusting as needed." 

Malone figures he lived in the tepee for 180 of its 270-day 
existence, sometimes with people like Beat poet Allen Ginsberg, 
who wrote "Plutonium Ode" about the Rocky Flats protests. 

The tepee was "a powerful and controversial symbol, and we hope
to re-create that," said Kim Grant, president of the Rocky Flats
Cold War Museum board. 

On Saturday, Malone will present the tepee to the museum during
an event that will feature talks by Malone and other activists
who protested Rocky Flats' role in the Cold War. 

The museum aims to document facets of Rocky Flats from the
perspectives of employees, protesters and government agencies. 

Many artifacts come from more than 100 buildings that were
decontaminated and destroyed as part of the $7 billion Superfund
cleanup completed in late 2005. 

About 6,000 acres of the 6,500-acre Rocky Flats site will become
a wildlife refuge next year. 

In March 2006, local developer Charles Church McKay, whose
family owned the land that the federal government bought to
build the plant, donated 1.4 acres for the museum. The donation
is contingent on the museum's being financed and ready for
groundbreaking by Jan. 1, 2008. 

Since it was incorporated in 2001, the museum has raised more
than $300,000 from Kaiser-Hill, which performed the cleanup; the
Colorado State Historical Fund; and private individuals. 

It's expected to cost $13 million. 

"I never thought they'd close the plant, not in my lifetime,"
said Malone. As for the tepee ending up in a museum, he said,
"I'm excited as heck, personally." 

Staff writer Ann Schrader can be reached at 303-278-3217 or
aschrader@denverpost.com. 


What Rocky Flats was 


The Rocky Flats plant, located about 16 miles northwest of
downtown Denver, produced about 70,000 plutonium triggers for
nuclear weapons from 1952 until 1989. 

Presentation: Saturday's free event will begin at 2 p.m. at the
former plant's west gate on Colorado 93 near Colorado 72. 

Mementos sought: Contributions and artifacts may be sent to
Rocky Flats Cold War Museum, P.O. Box 871, Arvada, CO 80001.


All contents Copyright 2006 The Denver Post or other copyright
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 62 Federal Times: Another possible data security breach at Los Alamos

October 26, 2006

Another possible breach at Los Alamos National Laboratory
in New Mexico is raising new questions about data security at
the troubled nuclear weapons facility. 						
																														 							Los Alamos police
responding to a domestic violence call on Oct. 17 at the home of
former laboratory subcontractor Jessica Quintana found three
thumb drives with markings indicating they came from the lab,
according to Jessica Blea, an office specialist for the police
department. Police also found glass pipes with methamphetamine
residue in Quintana’s home, Blea told Federal Times on Oct. 26.
						 																														 							The FBI searched
Quintana’s home on Oct. 20 and seized more evidence, said FBI
spokesman Bill Elwell. Elwell said the report has been sealed
and he would not discuss what the FBI found. 						
																														 							Los Alamos spokesman Kevin
Roark would not say what kind of information was on the thumb
drives. 						 																														 							 [ class=] 
						 						 							Laboratory director Michael Anastasio
issued a statement Oct. 26 confirming the breach. Anastasio said
Los Alamos is working with the FBI to decide what immediate and
long-term actions need to be taken in response to the discovery
of the drives in Quintana’s home. 						
																														 							“We have already taken a
number of steps to address potential security risks,” Anastasio
said. “Some actions may have an impact on daily routines at the
laboratory. This matter is a reminder that constant vigilance by
everyone is necessary to ensure a safe and secure laboratory.”
						 																														 							Los Alamos
television station KRQE reported that Quintana was an archivist
whose contract with the lab expired three weeks ago. She has not
been charged with any crime, Blea said. But critics of the lab
say the latest data breach shows little has improved. 						
																														 							“This appears to be a new
low,” said Danielle Brian, executive director of the Project on
Government Oversight. 						 																														
							In July 2004, former director Peter Nanos stopped all
work and suspended 15 employees after two computer disks
containing weapons information disappeared. Nanos held an
all-hands meeting that month urging employees to confront
co-workers who ignore safety or security procedures. 						
																														 							And in 1999, former Los
Alamos scientist Wen Ho Lee was accused of spying for China and
charged with 59 counts of mishandling classified information and
violating the Atomic Energy Act. Spying charges against Lee
collapsed after the FBI acknowledged it had bungled the case.
Lee, who had spent nine months in jail awaiting trial, pleaded
guilty in September 2000 to improper handling of restricted data
and was freed. 						 																														
                                                        
Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham said in May 2004 that all Energy 
facilities will use diskless workstations for classified 
information by 2009. Abraham hopes this will eliminate the 
problem of security breaches caused by lost or stolen disks or 
hard drives.                                            
																														 							 						
slosey@federaltimes.com 						 																														
							 						 																		 [Email this story to a friend]
*****************************************************************
 63 lamonitor.com: Police discover suspected classified data 

The Online News Source for Los Alamos
 

CAROL A. CLARK Monitor Senior Reporter

Three computer jump drives confiscated by police on Oct. 17
during an arrest at 2025 East Jemez Road #250 are suspected of
containing classified information. 
"We recognized that some of the items we seized under our search
warrant were possibly property of the laboratory and turned it
over to them for analysis and verification," Los Alamos Police
Chief Wayne Torpy said. "Once the laboratory confirmed that this
was a federal jurisdictional issue - the FBI was called in."

The FBI responded to the case to the Monitor this morning. 

"Evidence obtained as a result of the police investigation was
brought to our attention and from there probable cause lead to
our obtaining a search warrant," FBI Special Agent Bill Elwell
said. "We can't make any comments at this time because the court
ordered sealing of the search warrant."

Elwell did say there have been no charges filed or arrests made
as of this morning. 
Los Alamos National Laboratory Director Michael Anastasio said
in a statement this morning that on Tuesday the FBI publicly
confirmed its ongoing investigation of a potential breach of
security by a former LANL subcontractor employee.

"Unfortunately, my ability to discuss the details of this matter
is constrained due to the nature of the situation," Anastasio
said. "What I can say is that this is a serious matter and we
are taking immediate steps to address it." 
Police report that Justin Stone, 20, of 2125 33rd St., was
arrested at the mobile home on an outstanding warrant for a
probation violation. He also was charged with possession of drug
paraphernalia after police discovered components of a possible
meth lab in the home.

Jessica Quintana, a woman in her early 20s, has resided in the
mobile home for a couple of months and according to reports is
in the process of purchasing it.

Reports also indicate that Quintana was employed as a data entry
clerk at Information Assets Management, a LANL subcontractor,
before being laid off. She most recently worked for a two-week
period at the YMCA before her suspension last Wednesday
following Stone's arrest at her home, executive director Linda
Daly said this morning, adding that Quintana was officially
dismissed on Monday.

Magistrate Court Judge Pat Casados sentenced Stone on Oct. 18 to
two years in jail for violating his probation. She sentenced him
to an additional six months for his Oct. 17 drug paraphernalia
possession charge. Stone will serve those sentences
concurrently, Casados said.

Stone's initial probation violation stems from a July 14 arrest
in which he was charged with possession of stolen property,
possession of a stolen credit card and possession of drug
paraphernalia, Casados said. She charged him on April 11 to 30
months of supervised probation that included community service
and fee repayment.

"His outstanding warrant included failure to report, failure to
make monthly probation fees and failure to complete monthly
community service hours," Casados said.

Stone was initially arrested after Goldie, Sgt. Chuck Ney, Cpl.
Jon Gonzales and Cpl. Doug Johnson responded to a 4:16 p.m. call
from a neighbor alerting them to a loud argument taking place
inside the home.

"While making the arrest, we saw pipes and other paraphernalia,"
Goldie said. "We secured the premises and obtained a search
warrant, then removed all the items."

Goldie described the items, including glass drug pipes, jars, a
digital scale, marijuana seeds, acetone, hydrogen peroxide and
the propane and torches. There also was a processing filter
packed with kitty litter and cotton found at the scene," he said
at the time.

"A lot of this was inside a backpack that was stuffed into a
duffel bag," Goldie said. "This shows how compact and mobile
meth labs can be."

Police were extremely concerned with a number of chemical burns
found inside the backpack along with broken beaker containers,
which indicate a lack of caution in handling the volatile
chemicals.

"What's scary to me is there were families living within 30 feet
of this dangerous stuff," Johnson said.

Johnson praised Royal Crest Mobile Home managers for their
efforts to remove people involved in drug activity from their
park. "They have done a fantastic job and this incident is a
holdout that we are glad we have identified and removed from the
community."

This is the third time in less than two weeks that the LAPD has
removed a drug operation from the community.

On Oct. 4, police responded to a report of shots fired and
uncovered a stash of meth lab equipment, narcotics and weapons
at 3483 Questa Drive.

On Friday they removed 31 bags of marijuana, controlled
substances and drug paraphernalia from 1027 Iris St. after
following up on an anonymous tip.

Anastasio stated in a press release this morning that in
conjunction with the FBI, the lab began and will continue to
pursue the facts surrounding the incident.

"We have already taken a number of steps to address potential
security risks," he said. "Some actions may have an impact on
daily routines at the laboratory. We ask that everyone become an
active participant in this process to assure a positive outcome."

Anastasio reiterated how seriously he regards this matter as one
of utmost concern and said as has been their management
practice, they will take immediate and decisive action to
address any safety and security issues.

This morning Royal Crest Manager Steve Gianes addressed the
heightened interest surrounding the home located in his park.

"We're learning about all this from the news media just like
everybody else," Gianes said. "We spoke with an FBI official
here Monday night who did say that this wasn't something that
would put anyone in any kind of danger."   


  © 2003 Los Alamos Monitor All Rights Reserved.   
*****************************************************************
 64 lamonitor.com: Big magnet ready for new tests at LANL 

ROGER SNODGRASS Monitor Assistant Editor

A major new research facility for high magnetic field science at
Los Alamos National Laboratory is set to open for national and
international researchers. 
The laboratory announced Tuesday that after 10 years of
preparation, the world's most powerful pulsed, non-destructive
magnet has been commissioned for user operation at 85 tesla.

A tesla is a measuring unit for magnetic fields and gets its
name from Nikola Tesla, a Serb-American, whose inventions formed
the foundation of our alternating current system. 

The laboratory's magnet, which has achieved 87.8 tesla and is
expected to reach 100 tesla in time, is the most powerful of its
kind in the world, said Alex Lacerda, who leads the National
High Magnetic Field (NHMFL) -Los Alamos Center.

At 100 tesla the magnet would be 200,000 times stronger than the
earth's magnetic field. 
"It's a tremendous scientific and engineering accomplishment,"
he said in a telephone interview this morning. "It's like a very
powerful microscope that allows you to zoom into any material."

The lab says the generator supplies 1.4 billion watts of power
and is itself the largest magnetic power source, with enough
power to supply the entire state of New Mexico for a couple of
minutes. The generator was rescued from an abandoned nuclear
power project in Tennessee and holds the record as the heaviest
object ever to move on New Mexico highways. 
The generator produces power that is stored and then pulsed to
create the powerful magnetic fields. Only magnets created by
destructive explosions are more powerful.

Combining very low temperatures with a powerful magnetic field,
researchers can examine materials at a nanometer scale, a
billionth of a meter.

Among anticipated applications are investigations of large
organic molecules, such as drugs.

Lacerda said researchers are lined up to use the equipment, but
most of the current work is being done internally.

"It's like a new car. You want to drive it around a little bit
before driving it to California," he said.

The supermagnet is located at Technical Area 35 in the NHMFL's
Pulsed Field Facility, a designated international user facility.
  

  © 2003 Los Alamos Monitor All Rights Reserved.   
*****************************************************************
 65 AFP: FBI investigating possible security breach at Los Alamos lab -
    
 Thu Oct 26, 2:42 PM ET 		 	 

LOS ANGELES (AFP) - FBI" /> agents are investigating a possible 
breach of security at the Los Alamos National Laboratory that 
followed a drug bust in New Mexico, US officials said. 

Agent William Elwell of the FBI field office in Albuquerque said
no arrests had yet been made but investigations were ongoing
after the seizure of material from a home at a trailer park. 

"We are still analysing the material and at the moment all I can
say is that we believe there are grounds for the investigation
to continue," Elwell told AFP by telephone. "I can't comment on
what we have discovered so far." 

The possible security breach at the nuclear weapons research
centre came to light after Los Alamos police were called to a
domestic disturbance on October 17 and found evidence of drug
use. 

That led to execution of a search warrant which discovered
materials believed to have come from the Los Alamos lab, where
the atomic bomb was first developed by scientists during WWII. 

"During the course of the search, officers realized that some of
the items seized appeared to belong to the Los Alamos National
Laboratory," the Los Alamos County Police Department said in a
statement. 

Local media reported the suspicious materials belonged to a data
clerk at the lab, and said police unearthed three computer
memory sticks in the raid. 

A separate FBI search warrant was carried out on October 20 but
Elwell would not disclose what material federal investigators
were looking at. 

Los Alamos officials quote by local media stressed that the
search related to a former employee whose contract expired
several weeks ago. 

A spokesman for the laboratory appeared to play down the
significance of the employee's job in comments to The New
Mexican newspaper. 

"It's clear this person was not a scientist," spokesman Kevin
Roark said, declining to elaborate on the data or materials that
may have been found. 

"I can't speak to the nature of the information or the
materials. It's a matter of security." 

Los Alamos National Laboratory Director Michael Anastasio said
in a statement Wednesday "we will take immediate and decisive
action to address any safety and security issues. This matter is
a reminder that constant vigilance by everyone is necessary to
ensure a safe and secure Laboratory." 

It is not the first time that Los Alamos has been at the centre
of a security alert. 

The most notorious recent case involved Taiwanese-American
scientist Wen Ho-Lee, who was accused of stealing nuclear
secrets for China. 

Investigators later dropped the original charges but Lee pleaded
guilty to improperly handling classified data as part of a plea
deal. 

Two years ago another security alert was sparked when it emerged
that two computer disks containing sensitive information had
gone missing. 

Copyright © 2006 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved.
*****************************************************************
 66 UPI: U.S. nuclear secrets feared on stolen disk
     
United Press International - NewsTrack - 

10/26/2006 7:33:00 AM -0400

LOS ALAMOS, N.M., Oct. 26 (UPI) -- The discovery of computer
disks that may contain nuclear secrets at a home has triggered a
security review at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. 

Authorities who asked not to be identified told the Washington
Post three disks seized last week appear to contain classified
material from the nation's top nuclear research facility.
However, the FBI search warrant has been sealed, the report
said. 

The disks were found by Los Alamos police last week, and first
reported Tuesday. Officers responded to a domestic violence call
at a trailer home where they found drug paraphernalia and other
evidence of methamphetamine trafficking. After a full warrant
was issued, the computer disks were discovered, and the FBI was
notified. 

Investigators said a woman living at the trailer is a Los Alamos
contract lab technician with high-level security clearance, the
Post said. 

The National Nuclear Security Administration announced it has
begun its own investigation and has sent a "cyber security team"
to Los Alamos to review procedures, the report said.

© Copyright 2006 United Press International, Inc. All Rights
Reserved
*****************************************************************
 67 Guardian Unlimited: Security Officials Sent to Los Alamos

From the Associated Press        

[UP] 

Thursday October 26, 2006 5:16 PM

By DEBORAH BAKER 

Associated Press Writer 

Federal security officials and computer experts have been sent
to Los Alamos National Laboratory to ensure directives at the
nation's premier nuclear weapons lab are being followed in the
wake of a possible security breach. 

The FBI was called in last week after police in northern New
Mexico stumbled onto what appeared to be classified information
from the lab while arresting a man at a mobile home for
possession of drug paraphrenalia. 

The information was discovered on computer during a search for
evidence of a drug business, said Los Alamos Police Sgt. Chuck
Ney. He said police alerted the FBI to the documents, which
appeared to contain classified material. 

The mobile home's owner, who wasn't home at the time, was listed
as a former employee of one of the lab's subcontractors. 

Linton Brooks, head of the Energy Department's National Nuclear
Security Administration, said Wednesday he was sending NNSA's
chief of defense nuclear security to investigate, along with a
team of computer specialists to ensure compliance with
department directives at the lab. 

He said investigators want to find out how the latest possible
security breach could occur despite ``extraordinary efforts in
the last three years to put strong security procedures in
place'' at Los Alamos and other weapons facilities. 

Los Alamos has a history of high-profile problems that have
highlighted sloppy inventory control and security failures at
the nuclear weapons lab. 

In 2000, nuclear scientist Wen Ho Lee pleaded guilty to one
count of mishandling computer files. In 2004, the lab was
temporarily shut down after two computer disks were reported
missing; it turned out they never existed and it was an
inventory error. The lab was put under new management and the
Energy Department began moving toward creating a diskless
environment to prevent classified material from being carried
out. 

``We intend to do everything possible to guard against any
criminal activity, particularly where a breach of security may
be involved,'' Lab Director Michael Anastasio said. 

Gov. Bill Richardson, a former energy secretary in the Clinton
administration, noted the lab had made efforts to improve
security but apparently not enough. 

``We need to plug the leaks, we need to beef up security,'' the
governor said Wednesday. ``This can't keep happening.'' 

FBI spokesman Bill Elwell in Albuquerque said the investigation
is continuing and that he couldn't talk about the evidence
seized from the home or the individuals connected to the case. 

The woman who owned the mobile home had worked for lab
subcontractor Information Assets Management until about two
weeks ago. A spokeswoman at Information Assets Management would
say only that the woman ``is not currently employed with us.''
The company helps organizations shift from paper-based files to
electronic systems. 

The federal charge of unauthorized removal and retention of
classified material is a misdemeanor that carries a maximum
sentence of a year in prison and up to a $100,000 fine. 
		 	 	   
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian News and Media Limited 2006
    
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