Antinuclear

A nuclear industry in South Australia would move Australia towards having nuclear weapons

Study says SA plan would lift nuclear latency Sky News , 11 March 2015 South Australian plans for a nuclear industry would take Australia well down the path to a nuclear weapons capability, a new study says.

That’s termed ‘nuclear latency’ – the potential for a country to build atomic bombs.

‘The recent move by the South Australian government to examine nuclear industry development options would contribute significantly to Australia’s own nuclear latency,’ said analyst Michael Malyshev in a paper released by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute………

Mr Malyshev said that in the 1960s, US president John F. Kennedy expressed fear that 20-30 countries could develop nuclear weapons in a few years as nuclear knowledge and technology became more widely available.

To keep track, various international watchdogs such as the International Atomic Energy Agency established the concept of nuclear latency.

No developed nation has zero latency and about four dozen countries have significant nuclear latency. Most, including Australia, are also signatories to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty.

Mr Malyshev said nuclear watchdogs and other entities, including intelligence services, needed to remain vigilant.

March 11, 2015 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | AUSTRALIA - NATIONAL, weapons and war