195 



More niff Icult 



1. Eventual commercialization 



2. Differing objectives of national programs 



3. Fluctuations in national policies 



4. Some examples of unsuccessful cooperation 



5. National pride 



6. "Needs" of estabi isfied national institutions 



What factors either (a) facilitate or (b) Inhibit International cooperation 

 In magnetic fusion energy? 



Factors which facilitate international cooperation include promise of en- 

 hancement of needed technical progress, potential expansion of long-term 

 economic benefits for each participant, possibility of saving cumulative 

 development cost over the long term, achievement of worthwhile political 

 objectives, and broadening of fusion constituencies. 



Factors which inhibit International cooperation are imposed by policies to 

 preserve the strengths of the various national programs and to seek 

 national prestige through technical leadership in fusion. Taking into 

 account the views of the groups who would be affected by expanded 

 cooperation, the weight of the "pros" prevails over the "cons". Thus, on 

 balance, there are substantial potential benefits of large-scale 

 international collaboration In the development of fusion. 



What does "world leadership" In magnetic fusion energy mean? What parti- 

 cular benefits accrue to the "world leader" versus "number two"? Why 

 should national policy makers care whether or not the nation Is first, 

 second or third In magnetic fusion energy research? 



"World Leadership" In magnetic fusion energy implies the potential for dev- 

 eloping an export market; or as a minimum, the avoidance of dependence on 

 importing the technology. Two examples come to mind: 



First, the U.S. has enjoyed a leadership in commercial air transport in 

 design and development since the 1950's. While we tend to take it for 

 granted, this leadership has provided a very substantial, favorable incre- 

 ment to our balance of payments. The fact that the world's airports are 

 populated by aircraft designed and built in the U.S. Is a matter of very 

 considerable prestige. 



The second example is the development of the breeder reactor. In this in- 

 stance, the U.S. has failed to maintain leadership and is now in an infer- 

 ior competitive position. The net result is that France has established 

 leadership and has attracted commitments from a number of other nations. 



It seems to be fundamentally necessary for the U.S., which Is now competing 

 with a number of planned and managed economies, to decide where to focus 

 Its resources in order to enhance the possibility for attaining world lead- 

 ership. 



Are the experiences of International cooperation In magnetic fusion energy 

 directly applicable to other fields of science? What lessons may be 

 learned? 



There are other fields of science that could benefit from the experiences 

 of international cooperation in fusion energy. However, fields of science 

 that are expected to go through a period of manufacturing complex systems 

 are more applicable. Space science, fission energy and jet aircraft en- 

 gines are examples of mature programs. 



