UNCLASSIFIED US Department of State Case NO F-2016-02521 Doc NO C06119619 Date 10 31 2016 LIMITED OFFICIAL USE PAGE 01 TOKYO 04750 01 OF 02 1807482 ACTION INFO OCT-01 ADS-00 AID-07 NSCE-OO COME-00 L-03 TRSELOO PM-09 OPIC-07 CEA-01 OMB-01 INRE-OO DES-09 ACDA-IZ ICAE-OO SPRS-O2 i116 341617 1807562 I10 1806412 MAR 81 RELEASE IN FULL FM AMEMBASSY TOKYO TO SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7275 INFO AMEMBASSY MANILA DOE WASHDC LIMITED OFFICIAL USE SECTION 01 OF 02 TOKYO 04750 MANILA FOR DAS JOHN NEGROPONTE Ed 12065 TAGS PARM TNUC ENRG SCSA JA SUBJECT PNC PROPOSAL FOR ABANDONMENT OF CO-PROCESSING MODE FOR TOKAI MURA REPROCESSING PLANT 1 SEPTEL REPORTS ON GOJ VIEWS CONCERNING MODIFICATION OF BILATERAL NUCLEAR RELATIONSHIP THIS MESSAGE PROVIDES TECHNICAL INFORMATION ON ONE ASPECT OF RELATIONSHIP WHETHER THE TOKAI MURA PILOT PLANT SHOULD BE PERMITTED TO CONTINUE OPERATION IN ITS CURRENT MODE WHEREBY PLUTONIUM IS SEPARATED AS A SOLUTION FREE OF A URANIUM DILUENT REPORT BELOW IS EMBASSY SUMMARY TRANSLATION OF MAJOR ARTICLE WHICH APPEARED IN KEIZAI ON MARCH 12 2 BEGIN SUMMARY THE US HAS BEEN ASKING JAPAN TO ADOPT THE MIXED EXTRACTION METHOD I E CO- PROCESSING FOR REPROCESSING SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL IN LIMITED OFFICIAL USE REVIEW AUTHORITY Charles Lahiguera Senior LIMITED OFFICIAL USE Reviewer PAGE 02 TOKYO 04750 01 OF 02 1807482 PLACE OF THE SEPARATE EXTRACTION METHOD WHICH IS LIKELY TO LEAD TO PROLIFERATION OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS RECENTLY PNC HAS REACHED THE CONCLUSION THAT EM- PLOYING THE MIXED EXTRACTION METHOD FOR A COMMERCIAL SCALE PLANT IS NOT REALISTIC THE CONCLUSION HAS COME OUT OF RESEARCH ON PRACTICAL APPLICATION OF THE MIXED EXTRACTION METHOD PERFORMED AT REPROCESSING PLANT AT TOKAI MURA JAPAN INTENDS TO WORK UPON THE US FOR ADOPTION OF THE SEPARATE EXTRACTION METHOD FOR A SECOND REPROCESSING PLANT ON THE BASIS OF THIS UNCLASSIFIED US Department of State Case No Doc No C06119619 Date 10 31 2016 UNCLASSIFIED US Department of State Case No F-2016-02521 Doc No 006119619 Date 10 31 2016 CONCLUSION --AT TOKAI MURA REPROCESSING PLANT THE SEPARATE EXTRACTION METHOD HAS BEEN EMPLOYED UNDER WHICH PLU- TONIUM AND URANIUM CONTAINED IN SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL ARE SEPARATELY EXTRACTED IN THE FORM OF NITRIC ACID SOLUTIONS HOWEVER PRESIDENT CARTER WHO WAS COM- MITTED TO NUCLEAR DURING HIS TENURE OF OFFICE AS PRESIDENT PROPOSED THE MIXED EXTRACTION METHOD AND ADOPTION OF THE METHOD FOR SPENT FUEL REPROCESSING HIS REASONING WAS THAT UNDER THE SEPARATE EXTRACTION PROCESS THE PRODUCTION OF PURE PLUTONIUM WILL POSE THE DANGER OF ITS BEING USED IN THE MAKING OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS AND OF EVENTUAL PRO- LIFERATION OF NUCLEAR THEREFORE THE MIXED EXTRACTION PROCESS SHOULD BE USED SO THAT URANIUM AND PLUTONIUM ARE MIXED IN A SOLUTION THUS MAKING IT DIFFICULT TO USE THE MATERIAL IN MANUFACTURING NUCLEAR WEAPONS --WHILE THE US WHICH HAS BEEN SUPPLYING JAPAN WITH ENRICHED URANIUM AS MATERIAL FOR NUCLEAR FUEL MENDED THE MIXED PROCESS JAPAN INSISTED ON THE SEPARATE LIMITED OFFICIAL USE LIMITED OFFICIAL USE PAGE 03 TOKYO 04750 01 OF 02 1807482 PROCESS THIS LED TO HEATED DISCUSSION BETWEEN THE TWO COUNTRIES IN SEPTEMBER 1977 THE TWO COUNTRIES ISSUED A JOINT STATEMENT WHICH SAID IN EFFECT THAT 1 OPERATION OF THE TOKAI MURA REPROCESSING PLANT WOULD BE AUTHORIZED ON THE CONDITION OF ITS USING THE SEPARATE PROCESS ONLY FOR A CERTAIN PERIOD OF TIME AND 2 ADOPTION OF THE MIXED PROCESS WILL BE A MATTER FOR FUTURE CONSULTATIONS BETWEEN THE TWO COUNTRIES AND THE FEASIBILITY OF THE MIXED PROCESS WILL BE EXPLORED USING OPERATING EXPERIMENTAL FACILITY ETC --PNC HAS SINCE BEEN STUDYING THE FEASIBILITY OF THE MIXED PROCESS BY PRODUCING MIXED SOLUTION USING VARIOUS KINDS OF SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL DISCHARGED FROM JAPANESE NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS AS A RESULT IT HAS BEEN FOUND THAT UNDER THE MIXED PROCESS THE PROPORTION OF PLUTONIUM TO URANIUM IS SUBJECT TO MAJOR VARIATIONS OWING TO DIFFERENCES IN THE BURN-UP OF FUEL IN THE REACTORS ETC IN THE FAST BREEDER REACTOR USING MIXED PLUTONIUM-URANIUM FUEL THE POSITION OF THE FUEL HAS BEEN STRICTLY DETERMINED FROM THIS FINDING PNC HAS REACHED THE CONCLUSION THAT THE USE OF THE MIXED PROCESS IS NOT REALISTIC --SINCE THE FATE OF THE MIXED EXTRACTION METHOD IS SUBJECT TO CONSULTATIONS BETWEEN THE US AND JAPAN WHETHER JAPAN CAN FOCUS ON THE SEPARATE PROCESS OR UNCLASSIFIED US Department of State Case No F-2016-02521 Doc No C06119619 Date 10 31 2016 UNCLASSIFIED US Department of State Case No F-2016-02521 Doc No C06119619 Date 10 31 2016 NOT IS SUBJECT TO BILATERAL NEGOTIATIONS WITH THE REAGAN ADMINISTRATION END SUMMARY 3 COMMENT PNC POSITION REPORTED ABOVE WILL NOT BE NEWS TO USG NUCLEAR EXPERTS REPORT IS SIGNIFICANT PRIMARILY BECAUSE IT APPEARS AT A TIME WHEN JAPANESE ARE FULLY AWARE THAT FURTHER NEGOTIATIONS WILL SOON BE REQUIRED ON EXTENSION OR MODIFICATION OF EXISTING BILATERAL AGREEMENT ON OPERATION OF TOKAI MURA PLANT LIMITED OFFICIAL USE LIMITED OFFICIAL USE PAGE 04 TOKYO 04750 01 OF 02 1807482 LIMITED OFFICIAL USE ADP026 LIMITED OFFICIAL USE UNCLASSIFIED US Department of State Case No F-2016-02521 Doc No C06119619 Date 10 31 2016 UNCLASSIFIED US Department of State Case No F-2016-02521 Doc No 006119619 Date 10 31 2016 PAGE 01 TOKYO 04750 02 OF 02 1807482 ACTION INFO ADS-00 AID-07 88-15 CIAE-OO EB-08 DODE-OO NSCE-OO NSAE-OO COME-00 SSO-OO L-03 TRSE-OO PM-09 INT-05 OPIC-OT OMB-01 STR-10 INRE-OO OES-09 ACDA-12 ICAE-OO NRC-02 I118W 1807582 10 01806412 MAR 81 FM AMEMBASSY TOKYO TO SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7276 INFO AMEMBASSY MANILA DOE WASHDC LIMITED OFFICIAL USE SECTION 02 OF 02 TOKYO 04750 WE ARE CERTAIN THA-T FOREIGN MINISTER ITO HAS NO IN- TENTION OF GOING INTO THE KIND OF TECHNICAL DETAIL REPORTED ABOVE DURING HIS CONSULTATIONS IN WASHINGTON MANSFIELD LIMITED OFFICIAL USE UNCLASSIFIED US Department of State Case No F-2016-02521 Doc NO C06119819 Date 10 31 2018 This document is from the holdings of The National Security Archive Suite 701 Gelman Library The George Washington University 2130 H Street NW Washington D C 20037 Phone 202 994-7000 Fax 202 994-7005 nsarchiv@gwu edu