SEN. CORKER EXPRESSES ‘DEEP CONCERNS’ OVER CIVIL NUCLEAR AGREEMENTS

After the recent signing of a new civil nuclear agreement with Vietnam, Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) expressed “deep concerns” regarding provisions for enrichment and reprocessing in such agreements in a letter to Secretary of State John Kerry this week. Corker, the ranking member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, is pushing for the so-called “gold standard” in such deals, which requires countries to forswear the development of domestic enrichment and reprocessing capabilities. “The administration’s acceptance of enrichment and reprocessing capabilities in new agreements with countries where no ENR capability currently exists is inconsistent and confusing, potentially compromising our nation’s non-proliferation policies and goals,” Corker said in the Oct. 28 letter.  

Corker pointed to the inclusion of the “gold standard” in the agreement signed with the United Arab Emirates, but noted it was not included in the deal signed this month with Vietnam and said that the Administration does not plan to include it in an upcoming civil nuclear agreement with Taiwan. The issue is also particularly sensitive in the renewal of a deal being negotiated with South Korea. “The absence of a consistent policy weakens our nuclear nonproliferation efforts, and sends a mixed message to those nations we seek to prevent from gaining or enhancing such capability, and signals to our partners that the ‘gold standard’ is no standard at all,” Corker wrote.