§2153b — Title 42 The Public Health and Welfare | U.S. Code

Summary

The President must quickly get all countries to agree to strict rules for exporting items used for peaceful nuclear work and for taking part in international nuclear trade. Countries may only send nuclear materials, equipment, or sensitive nuclear technology to others that promise they will not make or work on nuclear explosive devices (except as allowed by Article V of the Treaty), will accept IAEA safeguards on all peaceful nuclear activities in non-nuclear-weapon states, will keep strong physical security, will not transfer such items to countries that refuse similar promises, and will not help or encourage any non-nuclear-weapon state to get a nuclear explosive device. No country may enrich or reprocess source or special nuclear material, change irradiated fuel, or make or stockpile plutonium, uranium 233, or uranium enriched to greater than 20 percent in the isotope 235 except in facilities under international control and inspection. Those facilities should be limited, carefully placed and managed, and limit access to sensitive technology. Short-term storage of such fuels before reactor use or transfer must also be under international control and inspection. International safeguards must cover major shipments of nuclear material. Nothing here requires international control of U.S. military activities.

Title 42, §2153b

The Public Health and Welfare — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

The President shall take immediate and vigorous steps to seek agreement from all nations and groups of nations to commit themselves to adhere to the following export policies with respect to their peaceful nuclear activities and their participation in international nuclear trade:

(a)No nuclear materials and equipment and no sensitive nuclear technology within the territory of any nation or group of nations, under its jurisdiction, or under its control anywhere will be transferred to the jurisdiction of any other nation or group of nations unless the nation or group of nations receiving such transfer commits itself to strict undertakings including, but not limited to, provisions sufficient to ensure that—

(1)no nuclear materials and equipment and no nuclear technology in, under the jurisdiction of, or under the control of any non-nuclear-weapon state, shall be used for nuclear explosive devices for any purpose or for research on or development of nuclear explosive devices for any purpose, except as permitted by Article V, the Treaty;

(2)IAEA safeguards will be applied to all peaceful nuclear activities in, under the jurisdiction of, or under the control of any non-nuclear-weapon state;

(3)adequate physical security measures will be established and maintained by any nation or group of nations on all of its nuclear activities;

(4)no nuclear materials and equipment and no nuclear technology intended for peaceful purposes in, under the jurisdiction of, or under the control of any nation or group of nations shall be transferred to the jurisdiction of any other nation or group of nations which does not agree to stringent undertakings meeting the objectives of this section; and

(5)no nation or group of nations will assist, encourage, or induce any non-nuclear-weapon state to manufacture or otherwise acquire any nuclear explosive device.

(b)(1)No source or special nuclear material within the territory of any nation or group of nations, under its jurisdiction, or under its control anywhere will be enriched (as described in section 2014(aa)(2) of this title) or reprocessed, no irradiated fuel elements containing such material which are to be removed from a reactor will be altered in form or content, and no fabrication or stockpiling involving plutonium, uranium 233, or uranium enriched to greater than 20 percent in the isotope 235 shall be performed except in a facility under effective international auspices and inspection, and any such irradiated fuel elements shall be transferred to such a facility as soon as practicable after removal from a reactor consistent with safety requirements. Such facilities shall be limited in number to the greatest extent feasible and shall be carefully sited and managed so as to minimize the proliferation and environmental risks associated with such facilities. In addition, there shall be conditions to limit the access of non-nuclear-weapon states other than the host country to sensitive nuclear technology associated with such facilities.

(2)Any facilities within the territory of any nation or group of nations, under its jurisdiction, or under its control anywhere for the necessary short-term storage of fuel elements containing plutonium, uranium 233, or uranium enriched to greater than 20 percent in the isotope 235 prior to placement in a reactor or of irradiated fuel elements prior to transfer as required in subparagraph (1) shall be placed under effective international auspices and inspection.

(c)Adequate physical security measures will be established and maintained with respect to all nuclear activities within the territory of each nation and group of nations, under its jurisdiction, or under its control anywhere, and with respect to any international shipment of significant quantities of source or special nuclear material or irradiated source or special nuclear material, which shall also be conducted under international safeguards.

(d)Nothing in this section shall be interpreted to require international control or supervision of any United States military activities.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Codification Section was enacted as part of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Act of 1978, and not as part of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 which comprises this chapter.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

Section effective Mar. 10, 1978, except as otherwise provided and regardless of any requirements for the promulgation of implementing

Regulations

, see section 603(c) of Pub. L. 95–242, set out as a note under section 3201 of Title 22, Foreign Relations and Intercourse.

Executive Documents

Delegation of Functions Secretary of State responsible for performing functions vested in President under this section, see section 2(a) of Ex. Ord. No. 12058,

May 11, 1978, 43 F.R. 20947, set out under section 3201 of Title 22, Foreign Relations and Intercourse. Performance of Functions Pending Development of ProceduresThe performance of functions under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Act of 1978, Pub. L. 95–242, Mar. 10, 1978, 92 Stat. 120, not to be delayed pending development of procedures even though as many as 120 days [after Mar. 10, 1978] are allowed for establishing those procedures, see section 5(b) of Ex. Ord. No. 12058,

May 11, 1978, 43 F.R. 20947, set out under section 3201 of Title 22, Foreign Relations and Intercourse.

§2153b Export policies relating to peaceful nuclear activities and international nuclear trade