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U.S. Senators, Administration Push for Additional Protocol Ratification By Joe Fiorill WASHINGTON — Bush administration representatives told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee today that the administration supports ratification of the Additional Protocol to the U.S. international safeguards agreement as a message to non-nuclear weapon states that the protocol is important to global nonproliferation efforts (see GSN, Nov. 25, 2003). Representatives of the Energy, State, Commerce and Defense departments said the administration expects the International Atomic Energy Agency to invoke the agreement, which permits greater agency activities here, only rarely. They added that a special “national security exclusion” in the U.S. version of the protocol would be invoked as often as deemed necessary to exclude IAEA inspections of specific sites. “The Additional Protocol gives the IAEA the tools it needs to discover undisclosed programs at the early stage. … If we’re going to get the benefits inherent to the Additional Protocol, the United States is going to have to lead the way,” said Linton Brooks, who heads the Energy Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration. “I expect that the IAEA will be very sparing in seeking to exercise its rights,” Brooks added, “since, after all, it already knows that we’re a nuclear weapons state.” Under the national security exclusion, the United States can, unconditionally and without the possibility of IAEA appeal, declare a site to be off-limits for reasons of national security. Committee Chairman Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) called the exclusion clause “crucial” to U.S. acceptance of the protocol, while Brooks cited a need to head off “risks to U.S. security [caused] by additional IAEA presence in the United States.” “Implementation of the USAP [U.S. Additional Protocol],” said Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Nonproliferation Susan Burk, “will be entirely different in both practice and concept than in non-nuclear weapon states. … The United States will not provide to the IAEA information of direct national security significance to the United States or access to activities and locations of direct national security significance to the United States, and will exclude inspector activities that are inconsistent with the national security exclusion at a given location.” Although all panelists indicated the United States would not hesitate to invoke national security, Brooks said the exclusion clause would not be used frivolously. “It’s not a national inconvenience exemption; it’s not a national burden-on-someone-who-has-to-fill-out-a-form exemption; it’s a national security exemption,” Brooks said. The administration officials said the United States can also protect its security through its choice of what items, materials and activities to declare under the Additional Protocol. “If we can’t provide access, we won’t declare the activity,” said Brooks. Deputy Assistant Defense Secretary for Negotiations Policy Mark Esper added that no Defense Department-owned or -operated sites will be declared and that no “location-specific” environmental sampling will be allowed. Lugar and the four panelists stressed the importance of U.S. ratification as an example to other countries. Although the United States insisted on the national security exclusion, it is also the only declared nuclear weapon state to have accepted all provisions of the IAEA’s model Additional Protocol ― a fact the panelists said should help encourage other countries to adopt the protocol. The IAEA currently conducts monthly inspections of three Energy Department nuclear sites. Under the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, declared nuclear weapon states are not required to submit to IAEA inspections, but all have offered the IAEA access to parts of their civilian nuclear activities. Bush submitted the Additional Protocol to the Senate for ratification in May 2002. Lugar expressed hope the measure can make it through the Senate within months.
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