Thomas Barlow: “I rise in opposition to my colleague Representative Markey's amendment to the fiscal year 1995 National Defense…”

“I rise in opposition to my colleague Representative Markey's amendment to the fiscal year 1995 National Defense Authorization Act (H.R. 4301). This amendment is unnecessary and if adopted, will damage vital foreign trade and foreign policy interests of the United States. This amendment would require the President to suspend programmatic consent for the use of nuclear material at a foreign facility where the IAEA cannot affirmatively determine whether plutonium has been diverted from a facility. According to the IAEA, the basis for this amendment was an erroneous report that about 70 kilograms of material was missing from the Tokai plutonium fuel production facility in Japan. The IAEA has concluded that the plutonium involved was not lost but was only held up in the process areas within the plant. This plutonium was never lost and in fact, the Japanese have been very diligent in managing their operations. The true effect of this amendment will be to stifle trade between the United States Enrichment Corporation and the Japanese nuclear power industry. This industry will lose business to tough competitors worldwide if such an amendment becomes law in the face of a perceived problem that does not exist. Does it not make sense to step back from this and not knee jerk into a bad restriction?”