NucNews - January 22, 2006 -------- NUCLEAR -------- accidents and safety Privatised nuclear clean-up 'will cause accidents' By Rob Edwards, Environment Editor Sunday Herald - 22 January 2006 http://www.sundayherald.com/53688 PLANS to privatise the £56 billion clean-up of Britain's ageing nuclear sites will cause serious accidents, one of the industry's most senior figures has warned. Brian Watson, former director of the UK's largest nuclear site at Sellafield in Cumbria, has accused ministers of pursuing "erroneous dogma" that could result in costly mistakes. His warning comes as Prime Minister Tony Blair prepares to launch his long-awaited energy review this week. The review is widely expected to launch a new programme of nuclear power stations and is set to provoke bitter arguments. Watson thinks that the introduction of competitive tendering for decommissioning nuclear plants, to begin later this year, could be "disastrous". He fears the "loss of control" could be similar to that of Railtrack, the private rail company that collapsed in 2001. Competition is "likely to lead to incidents of a serious nature due to short-termism and lack of experience and knowledge," he argued. "If you get it wrong at Sellafield, there will be no going back." Cost-cutting could cause more accidents like the "near disaster" that closed a Sellafield plutonium plant in 1999, he warned. "There is a real risk of loss of corporate memory ... and a repeat of the mistakes of the 1990s." Watson worked at the Sellafield complex for more than 30 years and was site director from 1999 until he retired in July 2004. He made his comments in response to the strategy being proposed by the government's Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA). "I am seriously worried that it is driven by government dogma, rather than facts, logic or common sense," he said. There was "the potential to seriously threaten all aspects of performance" at nuclear sites. A nuclear fuel reprocessing plant at Sellafield was closed down last April after it was discovered that radioactive liquid had leaked from a broken pipe. Another plant, at Dounreay in Caithness, has been shut since September because of a spillage of radioactive waste. Both sites are among the 20 that the NDA is planning to privatise by bringing in commercial bidders. It has submitted a plan to government ministers, who are expected to give the go-ahead before the end of March. The NDA argues that competitive tendering will make decommissioning safer, not more dangerous. "There is plenty of evidence to suggest that safety is improved by bringing in world-class contractors," said an NDA spokesman. "It is not surprising that some people have concerns, but as far as the NDA is concerned safety is absolutely para mount. And the way safety is regulated will not change." This was disputed by Greenpeace consultant Pete Roche. "Sellafield and Dounreay have hardly been paragons of safety as nationalised companies, but things could well get worse," he said. Blair's energy review, to be announced tomorrow, will trigger a storm of protest. Labour's own green wing, the Socialist Environment and Resources Association (Sera), is this weekend launching a campaign for the party to adopt a sustainable non- nuclear energy policy. Nuclear power was a "dangerous irrelevance", said Sera's Scottish spokes woman, Claudia Beamish. "We do not believe the issue of nuclear waste can be satisfactorily resolved." ---- Worker falsified safety records Fire watch technician has pleaded guilty By SEAN ADKINS Daily Record/Sunday News Jan 22, 2006 http://www.ydr.com/newsfull/ci_3429430 A contracted employee at the Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station pleaded guilty Jan. 9 to the falsification of records used to safely operate the dual-reactor nuclear power plant. Between Jan. 17, 2005, and March 20, 2005, Tracy David, formerly of Bartlett Service Inc., failed to conduct hourly fire watch inspections in multiple sections of the plant including the emergency diesel generator room and the cable spreading room. Contacted by telephone, David - a resident of Quarryville, according to court documents - declined to be interviewed for this story. Based in Plymouth, Mass., Bartlett Services is a subcontractor for the Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station. On 199 occasions, David claimed that she had completed her rounds of fire watch inspections while on duty at the plant, said Neil Sheehan, spokesman for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Last year, both the NRC and plant officials ran independent investigations that uncovered evidence that showed that David had falsified her fire watch inspections and had not completed her rounds. When interviewed by representatives of the NRC's Office of Investigations, David commented that one reason for her accused offense was that she had been disgruntled after being passed over for a promotion, Sheehan said. "There were a significant number of fire watches that were missed," he said. "But (the plant) still had fire suppression systems in place." Regardless of the seriousness of the charges, the commission found that the safety significance was low since no fires were reported and each room on David's route was equipped with automatic fire-detection systems, Sheehan said. A fire watch technician walks a predetermined route, checking sections of the plant for smoke or other signs of fire, said Paul Gunter, director of the reactor watchdog project for the Nuclear Information and Resource Service. The technician keeps= records of hourly checks to ensure that each room has been monitored at a particular time. "The job is pretty monotonous," said April Schilpp, a spokeswoman for the plant. Gunter said his organization has tracked fire protection violations at nuclear power plants since the early 1990s. For many years, Gunter's group has argued for improved fire barriers and other systems rather than rely on fire watches. "(Plants) should put in adequate fire protection features," he said. "You put humans into the picture, there will be an error. Especially with roving fire watches." The manual fire watch checks serve as a compensatory measure as ordered by the NRC. The commission requires that fire watches be conducted for any room inside a plant that has its fire detectors on automatic but its fire suppression system on manual. At times, a plant may switch its fire suppression equipment to manual if the system proves too sensitive, Sheehan said. Should a fire watch patrol worker spot signs of smoke, the worker would immediately notify the on-site firefighting brigade, he said. "It is a very important function," Sheehan said. Along her route, David's duty's took her to the plant's cable spreading room and to the emergency diesel generator room - the site of a small June 2003 fire. Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station is equipped with four emergency diesel generators that kick on when the plant loses power. The generators serve as a source of backup energy. They power the plant's vital equipment including systems used to safely shut down the power station, Sheehan said. In June 2003, NRC inspectors found that plant technicians had not adequately tightened the engine top cover flange joint bolts of an emergency diesel generator during a maintenance procedure. As a result, lube oil leaked from the joint and caused a small fire on the exhaust manifold during a test. While no fires occurred during David's shifts, an internal investigation carried out by Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station officials did raise eyebrows concerning David's actions while on the job. In February, while on duty, David's personal dosimeter sounded when it should not have gone off, Schilpp said. Typically worn around the neck, a dosimeter is a pager-sized piece of equipment that measures and detects radiation. As part of the plant procedure, when a worker's dosimeter sounds, that person must leave the room and locate a plant technician, Schilpp said. A quick check found that David had come from an area of the plant that was not part of her route, Schilpp said. "She was not supposed to anywhere near that area," Schilpp said. "At that point, (the plant) started to question other things." As part of the investigation, plant officials checked previous dosimeter readings and found that, in some cases, David's scans did not match what they should have been for her predetermined route. Plant investigators tracked David by her badge, which is needed as a key to enter specific areas of the site. "The evidence was overwhelming that things were not going right," Schilpp said. "We saw a pattern emerge." At the onset of its own investigation, the plant alerted the NRC to the situation, she said. "We self-identified the problem," Schilpp said. "We want people to be doing the things we ask them to do and to fulfill the obligations of our license." Site officials confronted David with their evidence and conducted an interview to make sure the plant had not been deficient in explaining to the contracted employee what her job had entailed. "She told us that she fully understood the job," Schilpp said, adding, "We don't want this to happen again." Peach Bottom notified Bartlett Services that David had not been doing her job as assigned and had falsified fire watch records. Bartlett Services removed David from her fire watch position at Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station in late March. On April 15, the NRC opened its own investigation that eventually corroborated the plant's initial inquest. Since the commission is not a legal or judicial agency, the NRC notified the U.S. Department of Justice of its investigation. The Department of Justice, in turn, accepted the case for potential action. "If we have findings of a criminal or deliberate nature," Sheehan said, "we refer those to the (U.S. Department of Justice)." At the guilty plea proceedings held earlier this month, David acknowledged that she had falsified her fire watch records, said Martin Carlson, the assistant U.S. attorney assigned to the case. A sentencing date for David has not yet been set. David's offense carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, a fine of $250,000 and a maximum term of supervised release of up to three years. The U.S. Department of Justice has recommended to the court that David be given probation since her crime did not present any immediate public safety concern, Carlson said. "It was noted that nothing in this offense affected the safety significance of this facility," he said. "It was inappropriate conduct by one individual who has acknowledged that conduct." Reach Sean Adkins at 771-2047 or sadkins@ydr.com. -------- britain Sleaze probe into nuclear lobbying at Holyrood By Paul Hutcheon, Scottish Political Editor UK Sunday Herald 22 January 2006 http://www.sundayherald.com/53711 PARLIAMENT bosses have been asked to investigate whether a controversial Holyrood body has flouted anti-sleaze rules. The cross-party group (CPG) on the civil nuclear industry has failed to register a number of trips and dinners financed by organisations that support the controversial energy source. The body, which is supposed to be neutral, has also failed to declare the administrative support it receives from nuclear power firm British Energy. Critics say the group has broken the MSPs’ code of conduct and compromised the forum’s impartiality by accepting financial benefits from outfits that back new reactors. They want parliament to examine the role of commercial lobbyists in arranging meetings between their pro-nuclear clients and politicians. The CPG was set up by MSPs to promote “consideration and discussion” of the civil nuclear industry, including planning issues and decommissioning. But the Sunday Herald can reveal that the group, chaired by pro-nuclear Labour MSP John Home Roberston, may have broken rules by failing to declare the backing it receives from the industry. The CPG didn’t mention on its website that secretarial support is provided by British Energy, the pro-nuclear company that runs eight power stations in the UK. Services include drafting agendas and taking minutes of meetings, none of which is made available to the public. The group’s register also leaves the “financial benefits” section blank, despite Holyrood rules requiring CPGs to register “financial or other benefits” exceeding £250 received from any source. But last August, nuclear plant operator British Nuclear Fuels Limited funded “accommodation” costs for MSPs to visit the reprocessing plant at Sellafield. Weeks later, the CPG and its Westminster equivalent, the all-party group on nuclear energy, attended a dinner paid for them by the nuclear industry. This was preceded months earlier by a trip to Torness, home to one of Scotland’s nuclear plants, part of which was funded by British Energy. Presentations have also been given to the CPG by the Nuclear Decommission Agency (NDA) and radioactive waste body Nirex, which last week briefed MSPs in parliament. Alex Johnstone MSP, co-convener of the CPG, said: “If there is any doubt that the rules have been followed to the letter, it would be appropriate for these events to be considered.” Another concern is that commercial lobbyists seem to be helping pro-nuclear groups access MSPs. The NDA, which is stepping up its Scottish activities, relies on public affairs firm Bell Pottinger to liaise with the parliament. The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA), responsible for decommissioning existing facilities, employs lobbyists Grayling Political Strategy to organise events such as the “stakeholder reception” this Wednesday. In addition, Nirex pays US-owned Fleishman Hillard to keep abreast of nuclear issues at Holyrood and to maintain a dialogue with the CPG. After the Sunday Herald started making enquiries about the group last week, the name of a well-known lobbyist mentioned on the website was erased. Green MSP Chris Ballance, who is a member of the CPG, admitted: “I have always been concerned with the pro-nuclear direction of the group, as it is supposed to be impartial.” SSP leader Colin Fox demanded an inquiry and said. “The standards committee should investigate this cross party group as soon as possible. Given the undeclared financial help it has received, it seems it is a front for the nuclear lobby.” -------- iran Iranian athletes shield nuclear facility ISFAHAN, Iran, Jan 22 (AFP) Jan 22, 2006 http://www.spacewar.com/2006/060122141940.7l5l0clk.html Iran on Sunday gave a fresh show of its determination to press on with its disputed nuclear programme, enrolling some 1,000 athletes to form a human shield in front of a key nuclear facility. The demonstration, which took place in front of just a handful of journalists, was held under winter sunshine outside the main gate of a uranium conversion facility near the historic central city of Isfahan. "Since we have reached this technology indigenously and with our own scientists, we will safeguard it at any cost," the director of the facility, Behrouz Samani, said at the event. Around him were some 1,000 sportsmen and women of all ages and from across Iran, who were wearing free T-shirts brandishing the slogan "Nuclear Energy is our Legitmate Right". Work at the Isfahan site, where uranium is converted to gas as a precursor to the sensitive enrichment process, had been suspended as part of a deal with Britain, France and Germany in November 2004. Iran ended the freeze in August 2005, renewing fears it could acquire the technology needed to make nuclear weapons and leading the EU-3 to push for Iran's referral to the UN Security Council. Iran insists it only wants to make reactor fuel, and further backed away from the nuclear suspension earlier this month by resuming enrichment research at another facility in Natanz. "We the athletes will defend our right to research and the activities that lead us to nuclear technology for peaceful purposes," said a statement from the athletes read out at the demonstration. "We consider this to be our legitimate right and will not surrender it before our last breath, and in accordance to the orders of our supreme leader (Ayatollah Ali Khamenei), we will definitely not close down our nuclear activities and this is our red line," said the statement. Also shouted at the gathering were the habitual chants of "Death to America, Death to Britain". Britain, France and Germany have called an urgent meeting of the IAEA's 35-nation board for February 2, with Western diplomats confident the meeting will result in Iran's case being referred to the Security Council despite the reluctance of Russia and China. ---- Iran mocks west over 'N-weapon design' request Published: January 22 2006 21:56 Financial Times http://news.ft.com/cms/s/5006fa0e-8b84-11da-91a1-0000779e2340.html Iraq's top security official on Sunday ridiculed western governments' request for a document said to show a weapons design obtained from the illegal nuclear procurement network of Pakistani scientist A.Q. Khan, and suggested Tehran would not hand it over to UN inspectors. "If you can find anyone in the world who can make a bomb with one and a half pages, we will cover their whole body with gold," Ali Larijani, secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, told the FT. According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN watchdog, in January 2005 Iran showed the agency a document it received in 1987 on casting enriched uranium into "hemispherical forms", a design consistent with weapons production. Iran says the document was offered by the procurement network without Iran requesting it. European diplomats argue the document, which Iran refused to give to UN inspectors, backs up suspicions Tehran has nuclear weapons ambitions - something it has always denied. The request for the document was included in letters sent by the five permanent members of the UN Security Council to Iran earlier this month. But Mr Larijani said the document was "not important" and those seeking it merely wanted to use it as "propaganda" against Tehran. The spat over the document reflects the frustration of IAEA inspectors at the pace of Iranian co-operation. Mr Larijani - who travelled to Vienna last week to meet Mohamed ElBaradei, the IAEA director - said Iran was determined to keep close relations with the agency. But he said "there should be a limit" to demands for access to military sites, particularly as Iran had already allowed inspectors into "more than 20" military installations. Mr Larijani argued Iran was not to blame for the breakdown in talks with the so-called EU3 - France, Germany and the UK. He said the aim of the negotiations had been finding "objective guarantees" Iran could not divert material from its nuclear programme for weapons use, and that Tehran had therefore agreed to suspend all uranium enrichment activities while talks continued. "After two and a half years, the Europeans came up with a proposal that covered everything apart from nuclear fuel production," he said. "At this point, we distrusted them." European officials say the talks' failure and Iran's recent resumption of nuclear research have left them no choice but to report the case to the Security Council, where they want a more authoritative call on Tehran to co-operate with the IAEA and resume the suspension. But Mr Larijani said there was "no international consensus" against Iran, despite European confidence of a majority at the 35-member IAEA board meeting due on February 2-3. He suggested Europe would lose as much as Iran from escalation. While playing down reports Iran was moving financial assets out of European banks - he said such transfers occured all the time - Mr Larijani said Europe could put at risk economic interests in Iran, including in the energy sector. "Isolation is not without problems [for us], but it also makes problems for others," he said. "This is a lose-lose game and we don't recommend it." ---- Transcript of interview with Ali Larijani By Roula Khalaf and Gareth Smyth; translation by Najmeh Bozorgmehr Published: January 22 2006 Financial Times http://www.ft.com/cms/s/976d081c-8b7e-11da-91a1-0000779e2340.html Iran recently announced its intention to resume research work at its Natanz nuclear facility, prompting the European Union to break off talks over Iran's atomic programme. The EU and US now say they want the UN's International Atomic Energy Agency to use its February board meeting to send Iran's case to the UN Security Council for possible punitive action. The following is a transcript of an interview with Ali Larijani, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, in Farsi, at the SNSC offices in Tehran on January 22, 2006 Financial Times: Has the actual nuclear research work at Natanz started? Are the centrifuges [devices used to enrich uranium] working? Ali Larijani: Work at Natanz, meaning industrial production for industrial fuel, has not started. What we are doing now is on a small scale for research. We announced we would resume research, and left the possibility of resuming industrial-scale enrichment for discussion with the Europeans. They had some concerns and wanted to make sure about non-diversion [from civilian to military use]. During talks we can reach a formula for reaching industrial production under the IAEA [supervision] and can reassure [the Europeans] that it cannot be diverted. We still believe such controversial issues can be resolved within the context of negotiations. FT: Has the pilot project, the research, in Natanz actually started? AL: The grounds to start it have been prepared. It takes time. FT: Will industrial production start any time soon? AL: Everything depends on the way we are treated. If the negotiating route is open, we prefer to reach a conclusion through talks. But if this route is closed, we are obliged to follow up our other scenario. FT: Are you talking about resolving the issue through the EU3 [Britain, France and Germany, who have led the EU in talks with Iran since 2003]? AL: Yes. FT: Is Iran ready - under the so-called 'Russian proposal' - to enrich uranium only in Russia? And is there also a Chinese proposal? AL: The Russian proposal has been given to us, and it is one we can study. This proposal, however, has to be completed. There are some points which should be reconsidered in a more comprehensive plan. Generally speaking, we welcome any idea which can help resolve this problem. If the Chinese have any idea, we can consider that as well. But we have not received anything from them. FT: Did you go to Moscow last week? AL: No, this is also a journalistic mistake. We've had one round of talks with Russia in Tehran and the second round of talks will be in February in Moscow. We have to see what potential this idea has for being productive. There are two issues to be considered. One is Iran's right to enrichment, and the other is non-diversion. Any solution should be consistent with these considerations. The scale, extent and timing can all be discussed. FT: You mention timescale? Does this mean Iran's suspension of enrichment could possibly be extended? AL: We have to look at the whole package. FT: So there could be a timescale on industrial enrichment? AL: Yes. We have a plan for resumption. FT: You mean if there are no negotiations? AL: Our preference is for talks. FT: Is there also a timetable for research? AL: There has not been much progress on this issue. There has been suspension of research for two and a half years. Then after two and a half years, the Europeans came up with a proposal that covered everything apart from nuclear fuel production. At this point, we distrusted them. FT: Can we turn to the question of the Security Council. The Europeans say they have enough votes to refer or report Iran [from the IAEA]. But do you expect Russia and China will abstain? AL: Within the IAEA [board] there are no vetoes, there are just votes. In the governing board decisions are based on consensus. There is no consensus over referral to the Security Council. The way Europe is dealing with Iran shows the lack of international consensus. In principle, making the IAEA's professional activities politically motivated is against international peace and security. Putting the IAEA under pressure for the governing board to support referral puts the integrity of the world's professional nuclear body under question. If Mr [Mohamed] ElBaradei [IAEA chief] says he will make a report in March, he should be given the chance. Why put him under pressure? FT: What did you discuss with Mr ElBaradei during your recent meeting in Vienna? AL: We have frequent talks with Mr ElBaradei, and there are inspectors in Iran. FT: But what did you discuss in Vienna? Were you reassured as to his professionalism? AL: We have differences of opinion. The important point is that we help Mr ElBaradei, including in doing his job here in Iran. FT: The IAEA says it is not getting sufficient access, either to sites or documents. AL: All the documents we have, we have given to the IAEA. There are no documents they've asked to see that we won't show them. They see all our atomic sites, indeed they inspect them and have cameras there. They have also some requests to visit military sites. In principle, we cannot open such doors to everyone. We have opened maybe over 20 military sites so far to inspection, including Shaheed Kazemi, Koladuz and Parchin. But there should be a limit to this. Such issues can't be raised daily. Nonetheless, we are determined to have close relations with the IAEA. FT: But there is a document you showed them they want to study, a document referred to in the letter from the members of the Security Council? AL: The SC members have not asked us. The document they say they want to see is one and a half pages. FT: So why not give it them? AL: It's not important. We know they want the document for propaganda purposes. If anyone can make a bomb with one and a half pages, we will cover his whole body with gold. But of course the inspectors can see this document again. FT: Are you expecting to go to the Security Council? AL: Firstly, there is no consensus. Notice president Putin's position against putting Iran under pressure. China has the same view. Some countries want to use force, to bully. If they are doing this, they can't pretend there is consensus. They want to have nuclear bombs themselves but deny Iran the right to have research. Well, such decisions have consequences, and we advise them against such radical behaviour. Is this double standard justifiable? The US has external relations with countries who have nuclear bombs but behaves like this towards Iran because it wants nuclear research. Such a double standard damages international relations and is behind the lack of success of the NPT. FT: How confident are you about Russia's and China's support for Iran's position? AL: We are focused on our own national capabilities. Go to the streets; ask people - university professors, labourers, government employees - their opinion about Iran's rights to nuclear technology. There is a national will over this. The west is making a mistake by putting itself against the national will. Europe could have lots of relations here. They currently, for example, have gas shortages in their cold weather and we could help them over this. Europe can also have investment in our oil sector. The west made a historical mistake in 1953 when it stood against the nationalisation of oil - at that time the west stood against the national will. They should consider this historical experience. If they think any government in Iran could give up nuclear technology, they are mistaken. Look at the government of Mohammad Khatami - many of these nuclear activities began when he was president [1997-2005]. FT: Are you saying the West needs Iran more than Iran needs the West? AL: Iran's geopolitical position is outstanding. We are a historical civilisation, not a small country. We are influential across the region. We have good human resources. All these factors can create a win-win situation, and this applies to our relations with the west. Shi'ism is a religion of logic. Westerners should stop following the advice of orientalists, who are mainly Zionists. Iran is not like al-Qaeda. To make such a comparison is seriously misleading. I have studied western philosophy but people in the west can be ignorant about Islam - look at Mr Bush's comments about launching a crusade. Such behaviour can only develop terrorism in the region. FT: Is the nuclear issue important enough to upset relations with Europe? AL: It's not like this. During the time of Mr Khatami, there were close relations with Europe. He raised the dialogue of civilisations. But the west's behaviour has been the same. The question is why the west is so sensitive over the nuclear issue - if the worry is diversion, then we can find a formula. We talked to Europe for two and a half years to reach guarantees over non-diversion. The Europeans have now told us we cannot have the technology - is this a solution? If this is accepted, then no-one should have peaceful nuclear technology. So why do we have the NPT? In Iran's case, this is not just a denial of nuclear technology. We are denied ICT [information and communication technology], nanotechnology and biotechnology. The west won't give us any advanced technology. It seems there are masters and slaves under globalisation. Some countries are first-grade and can have such technology, and others are only second-grade. FT: But, right or wrong, isn't that how the world works? AL: Superpowers should not behave like this. It damages their interests, it creates terrorist currents. No-one can make a bomb through research. We can't tell our scientists they don't have the right to think. Iran is not a small country like some in the Persian Gulf, our weight should be considered. FT: Are you not concerned about sanctions and being isolated? AL: It is not without problems. But it will also make problems for others. This is a lose-lose game and we don't recommend it. If they want to use pressure to make us give up nuclear technology, they should reconsider. We won't do this because of fear of sanctions. FT: Is leaving the NPT an option for Iran? AL: The NPT is still alive and can survive. Iran will stay in the NPT. If the treaty is implemented well, it can help international order. FT: You've said that if you're referred to the Security Council, you will not apply the Additional Protocol. Is that the limit of your reaction to referral? AL: The Additional Protocol and the suspension were approved by the Majlis (Iran's parliament). If we are referred to the Security Council, the government is obliged by the Majlis to lift all voluntary measures including the AP. FT: Does this mean you would resume fuel production, industrial enrichment? AL: Yes. FT: What consequences would referral have elsewhere in the region, for example for the US in Iraq? AL: There is no necessity to make a link. The US has enough problems in Iraq. Both the US and the British know Iran helped the formation of new government in Iraq and Afghanistan. We were the only country in the region to welcome the formation of a popular government in Iraq, and we have good relations with all parties in Afghanistan. After all the co-operation in Afghanistan, the US called us part of an 'axis of evil'. FT: Is Iran talking to Mr [Zilmay] Khalilzad [the US ambassador in Baghdad]? AL: No. This question of talks depends on US behaviour. On the one hand they mention talks, but then [Condoleezza] Rice [US secretary of state] says they don't want this to confer legitimacy [on Iran]. So why should we go ahead? The Americans are very confused. FT: Arab press reports suggest US may be talking to Arab governments about sending troops to Iraq. Would you welcome this? AL: The Iraqi government should decide. The Americans may want to reduce their presence, but the reason Iraqis have the attitude they do to US troops is their behaviour. In one village, Balad, after one attack against US troops, a US commander lined up all the young men and broke their legs and pressed cigarettes into their eyes. The disaster in Iraq comes from such behaviour. FT: What changes have you made since becoming secretary of the SNSC [in August]? Previously you said your predecessor, Hassan Rowhani, had 'swapped a pearl for a candy' in negotiations with the EU3. AL: I have great respect for Mr Rowhani. He is my friend. The nuclear issue is clear - we want nuclear technology and this cannot be weighed against promises like not blocking Iran's entry to the WTO or supplying wings for aircraft. FT: So what have you changed? AL: I don't want to say there have been no changes. But the nuclear programme goes back to the time of Mr Hashemi [Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, president between 1989 and 1997]. FT: Are you taking measures against the possibility of US or Israeli attacks? AL: Yes, we have taken measures. The Israelis have a little bit of wisdom not to make such a mistake. The US also has a little bit of wisdom to realise this would change the regional situation in ways that will not benefit the US. FT: There has been confusion over Iran's transfer of money from Europe. Has Iran been taking measures in advance of a possible referral to the Security Council? Does the SNSC have any responsibility over this? AL: This is incorrect. Such a decision has not been made. I'm surprised at the media coverage. Iran is pursuing our national interests. Iran will put its foreign exchange reserves wherever is most beneficial. FT: But this is what Ebrahim Sheibani [governor of the central bank] said? AL: Mr Sheibani didn't put it like this. We usually hold our foreign exchange reserves in different places. Now, we have our foreign exchange reserves in both European and non-European countries. This is not new. The idea there are new transfers is not correct. -------- terrorism Afghanistan cautions on Chirac nuclear threat DOHA, Jan 22 (AFP) Jan 22, 2006 http://www.spacewar.com/2006/060122205632.wrr6uo91.html Afghan Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah on Sunday cautioned against the use of nuclear arms against terrorism, after French President Jacques Chirac's threat of a nuclear response to terror strikes. "Fighting against terrorism may be in military ways, but can also be done through consolidating dialogue between civilisations and through education," Abdullah said during a visit in Qatar. "I do not wish to see a nuclear war in the world," he told reporters. Abdullah also said "we do not accept that our territories be used to strike terrorists with nuclear arms." Under the Taliban fundamentalist regime, Afghanistan hosted the Al-Qaeda terror network of Osama bin Laden, which was responsible for the September 11, 2001, devastating terror attacks on the United States. Weeks after the September 11 attacks, the Taliban regime was ousted from power by a US-led military offensive. Bin Laden and other militants are believed to be on the run on the borders between Pakistan and Afghanistan where Taliban remnants still lead an insurgency. Abdullah said Afghan President Hamid Karzai was expected to visit Qatar in the near future, following an invitation by the emir of the energy-rich Arab Gulf country, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani. He hailed Qatari funding of educational projects in Afghanistan and plans to start Qatari Airways flights to Kabul. On Thursday, Chirac for the first time raised the threat of a nuclear strike on any state that launches "terrorist" attacks against France. -------- ukraine Russia, Ukraine Reach Agreement on Nuclear Sector Cooperation Created: 22.01.2006 MosNews http://www.mosnews.com/news/2006/01/22/russiaukraine.shtml Ukraine and Russia have reached a number of agreements on cooperation in the nuclear sector for the coming years, the Ukrainian Fuel and Energy Ministry's press service quoted by Interfax has said. At a meeting in Kiev on Saturday, Ukrainian Fuel and Energy Minister Ivan Plachkov, the head of the Russian Federal Atomic Energy Agency, Sergey Kiriyenko, and the chairman of the State Committee for Nuclear Regulation of Ukraine, Olena Mykolaychuk, exchanged information on the development of the nuclear energy sector for the next 10 years, the progress of and plans for creating new projects for nuclear power plants, BBC News reported. The meeting participants discussed cooperation and ties between Ukrainian and Russian companies in nuclear fuel production, including the development of a raw material base by raising the extraction and production of uranium in Ukraine. The sides said that the joint use of scientific, technical and production potential, and also of the raw material base enables the two countries to develop the nuclear energy sector. The sides said that one of the main areas for developing cooperation and ties in the nuclear energy sector between Russia and Ukraine is stepping up the safety of nuclear power plants currently operating in Russia and Ukraine, their upgrading and extending their service life. Following the meeting, the Enerhoatom Ukrainian national energy company and the Russian TVEL company approved methods of pricing fresh nuclear fuel for 2006 and the following years. The sides agreed to set up a high-level group within the framework of the subcommission for nuclear energy and nuclear materials by 1 February 2006 to coordinate their activities in boosting cooperation and ties in the nuclear energy sector between Russia and Ukraine. The meeting participants also agreed to help create economically beneficial conditions for companies and scientific and design organizations which will promote the development of Russian- Ukrainian relations in the nuclear energy sector. The sides agreed to hold a conference in Crimea in June 2006 to present Russian and Ukrainian nuclear complexes. Agreement was also reached to hold a meeting in Moscow on 10 February to set prospects and draft plans for cooperation in mastering uranium extraction techniques. A protocol was signed following the meeting. -------- MILITARY -------- iran UBS ceases business with Iran ZURICH, Jan 22 (AFP) Jan 22, 2006 http://www.spacewar.com/2006/060122151756.cg0cp74i.html The Swiss banking group UBS said Sunday that it had ceased business activities with Iran earlier this month, in part because of growing tensions over Tehran's nuclear program, Swiss media reported. The bank's decision was essentially an economic one based on a reevaluation of the markets, UBS spokesman Serge Steiner told the Swiss news agency ATS. He admitted, however, that the standoff between Iran and Western powers over Tehran's nuclear activities was another factor in ending business in the Islamic republic, confirming a report Sunday in the SonntagsZeitung. UBS did not indicate the volume of business it had in Iran, which involved both businesses and individuals. Iranians in exile will not be affected. UBS also terminated some of its business activities with Syria, but the company spokesman declined to give details about that decision. Credit Suisse, another major Swiss banking group, said it too was following "with growing concern" the Iranian nuclear crisis. A spokesman, Georg Soentgerath, said Credit Suisse could not easily withdraw from the country due to its financing of Swiss companies involved in import-export activities with Iran. Also, the Swiss government always provides a guarantee against the risks of exporting to Iran, he said. The UBS announcement came as Iran's central bank and foreign ministry on Sunday repeated denials that Tehran was moving its foreign currency reserves out of Europe. The international crisis over Iran's nuclear program escalated when the Islamic republic resumed sensitive uranium enrichment research on January 10. Britain, France and Germany have called an emergency meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for February 2, as Western countries aim to gather support for referring Iran to the UN Security Council for possible sanctions. -------- ENERGY -------- alternative energy Micro power saves money By James Hamilton Sunday Herald - 22 January 2006 http://www.sundayherald.com/53689 DOMESTIC micro-renewable power schemes are saving households more than £30,000 annually in energy bills. A total of 215 micro-renewable home projects, including solar water heating and ground source heat pumps, were supported by the Scottish Community and Householder Renewables Initiative in 2004-2005. Nearly £2.5 million has been made available for the current financial year after ministers topped up the fund by £250,000 in September ahead of a new round of allocations from April. The Scottish Executive has estimated that household projects funded during 2004-2005 to replace traditional fossil fuel-run equipment have delivered annual savings worth £31,706 and an estimated total saving of £408,311 over the lifetime of the various technologies. A total of 106 solar water heating systems were installed with grant aid, and 80 ground source heat pumps. The initiative also assisted the construction of 17 wind turbines, 11 biomass systems and one solar space project. Enterprise minister Nicol Stephen released the figures - which exclude community projects - following a parliamentary question by Scottish Green co-convener and energy spokeswoman Shiona Baird. Baird is proposing a Holyrood bill to give householders and businesses council tax breaks and business rates rebates in return for installing renewable energy devices such as solar panels and mini wind turbines. It would also require all new buildings to be installed with solar panels on their roofs, and would set targets for expanding micro-generation across Scotland's local authority areas. An Executive spokesman said: "We recognise the important role micro-generation of renewable energy should play in the drive to meet climate change targets ." -------- ACTIVISTS Vanunu facing new jail threat January 22, 2006 The Sunday Times http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2089-2003778,00.html THE long battle fought by Mordechai Vanunu, the former nuclear whistleblower, with Israel’s authorities is due to resume on Wednesday. He will appear in court charged with violating restrictions that prevent him leaving the country and ban him from speaking to foreigners, writes Peter Hounam. If found guilty he could be jailed for nine months on a total of 21 criminal counts. Vanunu left jail in April 2004 after serving an 18-year sentence for revealing details of his country’s nuclear weapons production facility in the Negev desert to The Sunday Times. He is since alleged to have met foreign journalists from newspapers, including The Sunday Times, and broadcasting organisations from as far afield as America and Japan. Michael Sfard, one of his lawyers, said Vanunu was in good spirits. “He says he has no more secrets to reveal and everything he might have said to the press since leaving jail has not harmed Israeli security,” said Sfard. “We are confident the court will vindicate him.” Vanunu has continued giving press interviews since the justice ministry decided to prosecute him. Earlier this month his lawyers failed to get the restrictions lifted by the Supreme Court. Since leaving jail Vanunu has lived at the pilgrims’ hostel of the Anglican cathedral in Jerusalem. Last week in a message to supporters he wrote: “I want to thank you for your personal support and encouragement and for continuing to follow my case and struggle for freedom.” ---- Self-described 'nobody' is state's most vocal political activist By Michael Race, Harrisburg Bureau Chief The Citizens Voice 01/22/2006 http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=15977216&BRD=2259&PAG=461&dept_id=455154&rfi=6 HARRISBURG - One of the most potent political voices in the Capitol these days isn't a legislative leader, a well-connected lobbyist or a skilled spin doctor. It's an unassuming, soft-spoken Wilkes-Barre native - a self-described "nobody" - named Gene Stilp. You might not know the name, but you've likely heard of his handiwork. He's the guy behind the giant inflatable pig used to protest last year's legislative pay raise. He has single-handedly filed lawsuits, which are still pending, over the pay raise and the perks lawmakers receive. He has publicly teased Gov. Ed Rendell about his infamously poor diet and mounted a tongue-in-cheek campaign for lieutenant governor on the platform that it's a useless, costly job that should be abolished. While humor is his weapon of choice, his aim is quite serious. "This stuff can be extremely boring," Stilp said of politics. "It's very hard to keep people interested in what goes on here. You have to make it fun for people." Such political activism wasn't on his mind when Stilp was growing up with three sisters and a brother in the Rolling Mill Hills neighborhood in Wilkes-Barre, where his 90-year-old father and 85-year-old mother still reside. After graduating from St. Nicholas High School, he enrolled in King's College as a sociology major in the late 1960s, later moving to Washington, D.C., and earning a law degree from George Mason University in Arlington, Va. By a chance encounter, he ended up working as an audiotape librarian for National Public Radio, with plans to practice law. Those plans shifted following one of Pennsylvania's most harrowing experiences - the March 28, 1979, nuclear accident at Three Mile Island. On that day, Stilp was living in the Washington, D.C., area and hosting a yard sale to sell his possessions and move to Colorado, partly to work, but mostly to ski. He saw and heard the news reports about a near-meltdown in his home state. "I just couldn't imagine that something like that could possibly destroy what I held sacred - the lands of Pennsylvania, the beauty of Pennsylvania," he recalled. The event lured him back to Pennsylvania and into a meandering career as a political consultant and activist. In the years since TMI, the 55-year-old has worked for the government, protested against it (and has the arrest record to prove it), had a hand in political campaigns, consulted grassroots groups and rarely had a dull moment doing any of it. He is a hired guy for political causes, particularly environmental and consumer advocacy issues, but he said there are some people whose money he wouldn't consider taking, including the nuclear industry and landfill operators. "They've never asked me, though," he noted. "Maybe they already know I'd turn 'em down." Though he is a Democrat - "the party of the working person," he calls it - Stilp doesn't let party affiliation affect his aim. He has taken both Democratic and Republican politicos to task over the years, including former President Jimmy Carter, whose views on nuclear power clashed with Stilp's. His tactics are as varied as his causes. When former Gov. Tom Ridge proposed selling off the state-run liquor stores to private interests, Stilp wrote and recorded the mocking "Tom Ridge Liquor Plan Polka" to protest the idea. He illustrated his contempt for the lieutenant governor's post by passing out wooden nickels, arguing the faux coins were equivalent to the worth of the office. He also has used the courts to air his grievances. When the Legislature voted itself a pay raise in 1995, Stilp sued unsuccessfully to have it overturned. A couple years later, he sued again - and lost again - over plans to site a low-level nuclear waste repository in the state. He has three other suits pending: one over lawmakers' receipt of "unvouchered expenses" under the now-repealed pay raise law enacted last July; another calling for a state audit of legislative leadership accounts; and one challenging the legality of various perks lawmakers receive. Stilp sees his efforts as standing up for the taxpayer. Some critics question whether he's hurting those whom he claims to help. Drew Crompton, an aide to Senate President Pro Tem Robert Jubelirer, R-Blair, said the state spends "an extraordinarily high amount of tax dollars" to defend itself against "frivolous" suits like those brought by Stilp. "He files a lawsuit a week it seems, and to date he hasn't been successful in any of them," Crompton said. "This is the same guy who claims that he wants to save taxpayer money, but is forcing us to spend tens of thousands of dollars to defend against his suits." Stilp said even if his latest spate of lawsuits is unsuccessful, he has succeeded in drawing public attention to questionable spending by lawmakers. Taxpayers like him pressured lawmakers to repeal their short-lived raises, he said. "In the final equation, haven't we saved tens of millions of dollars in lawmakers' salaries and pension benefits?" Stilp said. That outlook is what motivates him. Stilp said his activism isn't so much an effort for self-fulfillment as it is a need to step up and show others what can be done through citizen involvement. "Citizens have to step forward," he said. "You can't just go into a voting booth twice a year and vote for two minutes and say, 'My civic duty is over.' You have to do your civic duty every day. "I didn't really want to do this," he said of his pay raise lawsuit, "but when something like this occurs, somebody has to step forward to say that it's wrong. I guess I'm that guy." His forte in such efforts is props - usually oversized and often inflatable - that he uses to both garner media attention and help convey often complex and serious concepts to a public that often seems to have a short attention span. Over the years, he has used a giant ear of corn, an oversized bed and an inflatable slot machine to make his point. Then there's that pig - a 25-foot porker meant to symbolize the greed of lawmakers who voted themselves a pay raise in the early morning hours of July 7, 2005. The pig was featured in newspapers and broadcasts from Erie to Philadelphia and helped galvanize the public sentiment that prompted lawmakers to scrap the raise just four months after passing it. "He certainly has a flair for capturing publicity," said Russ Diamond, a fellow pay-raise protester who co-founded an anti-incumbent group called PACleanSweep. Eric Epstein, who first met Stilp in the early 1980s while working on anti-nuclear issues, credits Stilp for bringing a unique sense of "creative engagement" to efforts like the pay raise protest. "He's clearly a very effective political provocateur," Epstein said. "He's able to distill an issue through images - and that's challenging. It's a lost art." Not always a high art, either. One of Stilp's favorite targets is Rendell's waistline. He has often joked that Lt. Gov. Catherine Baker Knoll is "one cheesesteak away from being governor." When Rendell paid a visit to Punxsutawney for Groundhog's Day, Stilp printed up bumper stickers that urged the governor to "please ... don't eat the groundhog." Though it might sound juvenile, Stilp insists the governor's diet can be viewed as a metaphor for state spending. "A fitter Ed could mean a leaner state," he said with a grin. He also has used his attention-getting skills for more meaningful and apolitical endeavors. For the Statute of Liberty centennial in 1986, he built a 17.5-foot replica of the Statue of Liberty out of plywood and Venetian blinds. and perched atop an abandoned railroad piling in the Susquehanna River just north of Harrisburg. After the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, Stilp crafted an American flag to pay tribute to the passengers of Flight 93, which crashed in a field in western Pennsylvania near Shanksville. His flag has the number "93" in the blue field and the phrase "Our nation will eternally honor the heroes of Flight 93." The Shanksville Fire Co., of which he is an honorary member, still sells the flags to raise money. Though he has a law degree, Stilp is not a practicing lawyer and, despite his career path decades ago, bristles at the notion of becoming one. Instead, he earns a living as a consultant for various political causes and by building props or advising others on how to build them. He and his wife, a health care worker, live in suburban Harrisburg. His passion, he said, is "first responder" issues, including his volunteer job as a firefighter and EMT for a fire company in Dauphin County's Middle Paxton Township, where he lives. "I'm really proud of that," he said of his volunteer work. Stilp downplays his legal background, but his allies in the anti-pay raise efforts say it was a key weapon in their fight. "That (pay raise) lawsuit wouldn't have been filed by a regular guy like me," Diamond noted. For his part, Stilp isn't daunted by the mystique of the courtroom, noting lawsuits are just "a restating of facts." Such a plainspoken outlook is a direct reflection of his Wilkes-Barre upbringing, he said. "Northeastern Pennsylvania is the kind of place where there's no airs about anybody," he said. "People still talk to each other. They have concern for each other."