263 



BREAKING THE SECRECY BARRIER 



As a result of U.S. actions to inhibit work and publication of in- 

 formation on the centrifugation process, 322 foreign centrifuge research 

 proceeded in secret and little was heard of it until an announcement 

 in 1968 by the Dutch, West Germans, and the British suggesting that 

 a tripartite arrangement to build a centrifuge enrichment plant was 

 under discussion. Notably absent from the initial discussions were the 

 French who had been emphatic in their desire to reduce their de- 



gmdence upon the United States for uranium enrichment services, 

 arenthetically, the French several years earlier had opposed a British 

 proposal that European countries join with Britain in expanding its 

 diffusion plant. 323 



Accordingly, on March 4, 1970, a tripartite agreement of collabora- 

 tion on developement of the gas centrifuge process was concluded 

 by the Netherlands, the Federal Republic of Germany, and the United 

 Kingdom. A few months later, in August, the tripartite members 

 offered associate membership to Belgium and Italy. The three govern- 

 ments claim the centrifuge process can provide cheaper enrichment for 

 Europe than can other processes. 



The British Minister of Technology, Mr. Anthony Wedgwood Benn, 

 at the signing of the tripartite agreement, spoke of the enterprise as 

 a cornerstone of United Kingdom technological collaboration with 

 other countries in Western Europe which, he hoped, could lead to 

 fuller economic and political cooperation of the European Economic 

 Community. 324 



The French Drive for a European Diffusion Plant 



In February 1971 the French Government complicated the diplo- 

 matic aspects of the enrichment market by its decision to promote con- 

 struction of a diffusion plant in Europe. Apparently this action was in 

 part a reaction to the tripartite centrifuge undertaking. Subsequently, 

 on March 11, 1971, the Commissariat a L'Energie Atomique (CEA) 

 announced that it was ready to build a commercial diffusion plant 

 with or without partners. The proposed French plant may also nave 

 been in response to the Algerian decision to take over French oil inter- 

 ests. Later, French President Georges Pompidou anounced that his 

 nation's sixth development plan for the years 1971 to 1975 would in- 

 clude construction of 8,000 megawatts of nuclear electric generating 

 capacity, to be fueled with enriched uranium. This announcement 

 underscored the seriousness of French interest in a European gaseous . 

 diffusion plant. • 



a 23 Centrtfugation separation is defined by AEC regulations (10 CFR 25, Appendix A) 

 to be Secret Restricted Data under the Atomic Energy Act. Under this regulation, no one 

 may have access to this Information unless the applicant fulfills several stringent conditions 

 and also gives the United States an Irrevocable license to use or have used any U.S. patent 

 on an Invention relating to this process made by the access permit holder. In addition, 

 the permittee Is required to grant the AEC the right to use any technical information 

 or data of a proprietary nature developed during the permit and for 1 year thereafter. 

 Finally, the permittee has to make quarterly reports to the AEC on its work, even though 

 the research is funded wholly from private sources. Cf. 10 CFR 25.23. 



328 Of this omission, a British nuclear journal commented : 



... It will no doubt interest the political commentators to speculate on the reasons 

 for leaving out of the initial discussions other countries who have been particularly 

 active in this field, notably France and Japan. From the technical point of view, it is a 

 pity that greater efforts were not made to overcome the present political high temperatures 

 to include France. . . . Cf. "Centrifugal Feelers," Nuclear Engineering International, 

 vol. 14 (January 1969). p. 5. 



324 "Gas Centrifuge Agreement Signed," Atom, No. 162 ( April 1970) , p. 62. 



