Nuclear hypocrisy

Egypt to build several nuclear power plants

CAIRO, October 29 (RIA Novosti) – Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak announced on Monday that a program will soon be launched to build several nuclear power plants in the country, national news agency MENA reported.

Mubarak said a decree would soon be issued establishing a supreme council on peaceful uses of nuclear energy, which will oversee Egypt’s nuclear plant program.

“We believe that energy security is a key component of building the future of this country, and an integral part of Egypt’s national security,” Mubarak said.

He said the use of nuclear power would enable Egypt to meet its energy needs and diversify sources, allowing the country’s hydrocarbon reserves to last longer.

Egypt intends to build three nuclear plants with aggregate capacity of 1,800 MW, or 600 MW each. The first plant is expected to go online in 2015-16.

Russia earlier announced its intention to take part in a tender to build an atomic power plant in Egypt.

Russia’s nuclear power equipment and service export monopoly Atomstroyexport is currently building five nuclear power plants in China, India and Iran, on contracts worth $4.5 billion, and has also won a tender to build a plant in Belene, Bulgaria.

The company is in talks on building nuclear plants in Morocco, Vietnam, and South Africa.

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DEBKAfile Reports: Iranian-Syrian nuclear issues heat up amid growing mistrust of IAEA director in Washington, Paris and Jerusalem

October 29, 2007, 10:33 PM (GMT+02:00)

FRench defense minister Herve Morian visit Saudi King Abdullah

French defense minister Herve Morin said Monday, Oct. 29, he has information that Iran is developing nuclear weapons. He thus publicly contradicted remarks made by IAEA director Mohammed ElBaradai that there is no such evidence. Morin, on a visit to the Persian Gulf emirates, spoke at the same time as the IAEA director’s address the UN General Assembly.

DEBKAfile’s sources report that president Nicolas Sarkozy plans a state visit to Jerusalem in a few weeks, during which he will the address the Knesset on the Iranian nuclear threat, counter-measures and his commitment to Israel’s security.

Washington and Jerusalem are in intensive discussions over the prudence of Israel publicly leveling on its Sept. 6 attack on the Syrian installation, in consideration of the risk that a statement by prime minister Ehud Olmert could further raise war tensions. DEBKAfile’s military sources report that Israel’s air force and navy have been on high alert for some days.

Washington and Jerusalem are of one mind about the need to refute ElBaradei’s position that there are no grounds for nuclear allegations against Iran and Syria.

Addressing the UN General Assembly Monday, the IAEA director admitted that Iran was flouting UN Security Council resolutions on two points: uranium enrichment continued and so did the construction of a heavy water plant in Arak. He made no reference to Iran’s current work with plutonium.

The Wall Street Journal quoted a senior American official who has worked extensively on nuclear issues: “I would say there’s no doubt now that Syria was in an early phase of a program.”

Some U.S. diplomats were quoted by the paper as deriding the IAEA for failing to identify the Syrian program itself. Involving the IAEA could have bogged down the Syrian proliferation threat in endless rounds of negotiations with no action. “The Israelis decided to take care of this early on. We don’t want to involve an agency that thinks it’s in control, but isn’t,” said one diplomat.

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