How Did an Idealistic President Become a Champion of Nuclear Power and By Default, Weapons Proliferation?

In 1983, Barack Obama, a senior at Columbia University described his visions of a "nuclear free world" in an article titled "Breaking the War Mentality" in the university newsmagazine, Sundial. He described discussions of "first- versus second-strike capabilities'' that "suit the military-industrial interests'' with their "billion-dollar erector sets,'' and called for the abolition of the global arsenals of tens of thousands of deadly warheads. As a candidate he acknowledged that he was worried for the safety of his children who lived in Illinois because it has the highest concentration of nuclear reactors in the US - and opposed further nuclear subsidies. "I am not a nuclear proponent," he said: Few people are so clear about their philosophical approach to life in the nuclear age, but President Obama was clearly a man with the correct instincts when it came to radiation, nuclear weapons and health. However, not only in his State of the Union address did he strongly endorse the false concept of "safe, clean" nuclear power as one of the solutions to global warming - "But to create more of these clean energy jobs, we need more production, more efficiency, more incentives," he said. "That means building a new generation of safe, clean nuclear power plants in this country" - but he has just announced that he will spend $7.4 billion dollars in the next five years for the "security and maintenance" of the current enormous stockpile of nuclear weapons. So what has gone wrong?

Iran says ready to send uranium abroad as UN wants

Iran said on Tuesday it was ready to send its uranium abroad for further enrichment as requested by the U.N. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announced the decision in an interview with state Iranian television. He said Iran will have "no problem" giving the West its low-enriched uranium and taking it back several months later when it is enriched by 20 percent. The decision could signal a major shift in the Iranian position on the issue. Still, it was unclear how much of a concession the Ahmadinejad comments represented, even though he appeared to be saying for the first time that Iran was willing to ship out its enriched uranium and wait for it to be returned in the form of fuel for its Tehran research reactor. But his time frame of four or five months appeared to fall short of the year that Western officials say it would take for Iran's enriched fuel to be turned into fuel rods for the reactor. If that difference cannot be bridged, it could allow Iranian officials to assert that the deal failed due to Western foot-dragging, despite their readiness to accept the proposed formula of shipping out the bulk of their enriched uranium and waiting for it to be converted and returned as fuel.

Nuclear plant eyed for Cebu; Gwen vows to explore option

A Cebuano chemist proposed yesterday the establishment of a nuclear power plant in the province as a long-term solution to the island's power supply problems. Dr. Ramon del Fiero, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences of the University of San Carlos (USC), said nuclear power was the most efficient way of fueling Cebu's growth and development. "As a long-term solution, I recommend the use of nuclear power technology as the ultimate and cheaper source of energy," said del Fiero during a media forum at the Marco Polo Plaza yesterday. Gov. Gwen Garcia said she wanted to encourage businesses to invest in the development of power plants in Cebu even if these include nuclear technology. "If Cebu will give me a third term, I assure you that we will sit down with you and take into consideration the possibility of putting up a nuclear power plant," she said.

Ambassador Cites Global Demand for French Nuclear Engineers Phil Bolton

France's nuclear engineers are in greater demand as nuclear power plants proliferate worldwide, its ambassador to the U.S. told the directors of the local chapter of the French American Chamber of Commerce. "Many are impressed by France's 30 years of experience with nuclear energy," Pierre Vimont, the French ambassador, said at a breakfast meeting at the Metro Atlanta Chamber on Jan. 28. His stay in Atlanta, however, was cut short so that he could join Secretary of State Hillary Clinton when she was in Paris for security talks. Mr. Vimont said at the breakfast meeting that there is a shortage of nuclear engineers worldwide, placing France's nuclear engineers in a good hiring position since his country has continued to make their training a priority. France's expertise already has led to partnerships with U.S. companies. For example, the French company Areva, a major manufacturer of large component parts for nuclear power plants, has joined Northrup Grumman Shipbuilding, a sector of Northrup Grumman Corp., in Newport News, Va., in a joint venture to supply parts for new U.S. nuclear plants.

Russian Activists Protest Import Of French Nuclear Waste

A dozen or so environmental activists in St. Petersburg have protested the arrival of 480 tons of uranium waste to the city, RFE/RL's Russian Service reports. The Russian northern navy's "Kapitan Kuroptev" brought the waste from France to St. Petersburg late on January 31. The waste will be stored in St. Petersburg's port and later transferred to the Siberian chemical plant in Seversk, Tomsk region, for recycling. Rashid Alimov, an activist of the EKOperestroika (Ecological Perestroika) movement, told RFE/RL that international safety regulations ban the storage of uranium waste in open spaces. The protesters gathered in central St. Petersburg on February 1 with signs such as "Import of Waste Means Export of Death!" They later went to the French consulate in St. Petersburg to deliver a petition demanding that France stop sending its nuclear waste to Russia.