A Japanese strategic uranium reserve: A safe and economic alternative to plutonium

Leventhal, Paul; Dolley, Steven

doi:10.1080/08929889408426412

Cited by 7 publications

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“…During the past 40 years, however, uranium has been abundant, cheap, and available from a variety of countries. Furthermore, as some foreign observers have suggested, if Japan was really concerned about possible disruptions of supply, it could have acquired a 50-year strategic reserve of uranium at a much lower cost than its plutonium program (Leventhal and Dolley 1994). Indeed, because of the low cost of uranium, globally, utilities have accumulated an inventory sufficient for about seven years.…”

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Forty years of impasse: The United States, Japan, and the plutonium problem

Takubo¹,

Hippel

2017

Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists

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Recently, records have been published from the internal discussions in the Carter administration (1977-80) on the feasibility of convincing Japan to halt its plutonium-separation program as the United States was in the process of doing domestically. Japan was deeply committed to its program, however, and President Carter was not willing to escalate to a point where the alliance relationship could be threatened. Forty years later, the economic, environmental, and nonproliferation arguments against Japan's program have only been strengthened while Japan's concern about being dependent on imports of uranium appears vastly overblown. Nevertheless, Japan's example, as the only nonweapon state that still separates plutonium, continues to legitimize the launch of similar programs in other countries, some of which may be interested in obtaining a nuclear weapon option.

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confidence: 99%