Margaret P Grafeld Declassified Released US Department of State EO Systematic Review 06 JUL 2006 Message Text SECRET PAGE 01 STATE 240692 62 ORIGIN SS-25 INFO OCT-01 ISO-00 SSO-00 NSCE-00 026 R DRAFTED BY OES MBKRATZER FEJ APPROVED BY OES MBKRATZER EA - MR HABIB IN DRAFT PM - MR VEST IN DRAFT D - MR PENDLETON IN DRAFT C - MR KELLY IN DRAFT S P MR KALICKI DRAFT ACDA - MR DAVIES IN DRAFT S S MR HOGANSON --------------------- 041439 O P 090155Z OCT 75 FM SECSTATE WASHDC TO AMEMBASSY SEOUL IMMEDIATE INFO AMEMBASSY TOKYO PRIORITY AMEMBASSY PARIS PRIORITY USMISSION IAEA VIENNA PRIORITY AMEMBASSY OTTAWA PRIORITY S E C R E T STATE 240692 EXDIS E O 11652 GDS TAGS TECH ENRG KS SUBJECT DEPUTY SECRETARY INGERSOLL'S MEETING WITH AMBASSADOR HAHM OF KOREA 1 DEPUTY SECRETARY INGERSOLL CALLED IN AMBASSADOR HAHM ON OCTOBER 7 TO REINFORCE THE U S EFFORT TO PERSUADE THE ROK TO FOREGO ITS PLANS TO ACQUIRE FRENCH-BUILT REPROCESSING FACILITY HAHM WAS ACCOMPANIED BY POL COUNSELOR YOO ASSISTANT SECRETARY HABIB VEST PM AND KRATZER OES ALSO PARTICIPATED SECRET SECRET PAGE 02 STATE 240692 2 DEPUTY SECRETARY STATED WE WISH TO ENSURE THAT ROK IS Margaret P Grafeld Declassified Released US Department of State EO Systematic Review 06 JUL 2006 Margaret P Grafeld Declassified Released US Department of State EO Systematic Review 06 JUL 2006 FULLY AWARE OF SERIOUSNESS WE ATTACH TO REPROCESSING ISSUE BEFORE FINAL RESPONSE IS MADE TO AMBASSADOR SNEIDER'S DEMARCHE POINTING TO DESTABILIZING EFFECT ON THE REGION OF KOREAN ACQUISITION OF REPROCESSING CAPABILITY HE STRESSED THAT SUCH ACQUISITION WOULD SPARK HIGHLY CRITICAL CONGRESSIONAL REACTION WHICH COULD JEOPARDIZE OUR FUTURE NUCLEAR COOPERATION INCLUDING LOAN ASSISTANCE TO KOREAN PLANTS HE SUGGESTED KOREA PURSUE ITS REPROCESSING AMBITION IN MULTINATIONAL FRAMEWORK WHICH WE HAVE UNDERTAKEN TO ENCOURAGE HE ALSO POINTED OUT THAT FRENCH OFFICIALS HAVE INDICATED THAT THEY WOULD NOT OBJECT TO CANCELLATION IF APPROPRIATE TERMINATION CHARGES ARE PAID 3 OBVIOUSLY RESPONDING ON BASIS OF CAREFULLY PREPARED REBUTTAL HAHM REPEATED FAMILIAR KOREAN ARGUMENT THAT ROK HAD FIRST APPROACHED U S FOR REPROCESSING ASSISTANCE WITHOUT RESPONSE THAT PROPOSED FACILITY HAS NO PRODUCTION CAPABILITY BUT IS FOR PURPOSE OF TRAINING AND ACQUISITION OF TECHNOLOGY WHICH WILL ENABLE KOREA TO EVALUATE ECONOMIES ON INFORMED BASIS AND PARTICIPATE MEANINGFULLY IN FUTURE MULTINATIONAL FACILITY AND THAT WITHOUT URANIUM OF ITS OWN KOREA MUST LOOK FORWARD TO REPROCESSING TO ENSURE NUCLEAR FUEL SUPPLIES AND TO AVOID COSTLY TRANSPORT STORAGE ETC CONFIRMING THAT KOREA WAS PREPARED TO PARTICIPATE IN REGIONAL REPROCESSING ENTERPRISE WHEN ONE IS FORMED HE INQUIRED WHETHER U S RATHER THAN INSISTING ON CANCELLATION WOULD BE WILLING TO OBTAIN ALL NECESSARY ASSURANCES BY DIRECT APPLICATION OF SUPPLEMENTARY SAFEGUARD MEASURES 4 DEPT OFFICIALS COUNTERED HAHM'S ARGUMENTS POINTING OUT THAT REPROCESSING IS NOT ESSENTIAL TO OPERATION OF LIGHT WATER REACTOR FUEL CYCLE AND THAT ITS ECONOMICS ARE EXTREMELY DOUBTFUL AND IN ANY CASE ARE SUBJECT TO ECONOMIES OF SCALE WHICH MAKE REPROCESSING FOR KOREA'S LIMITED NUCLEAR PROGRAM ESPECIALLY UNFAVORABLE THEY ALSO EXPLAINED THAT REPROCESSING HAS LITTLE RELEVANCE TO ASSURANCE OF NUCLEAR FUEL SUPPLY SINCE IN ANY EVENT IT COULD REDUCE NUCLEAR FUEL AND ENRICHMENT REQUIREMENTS BY ONLY ABOUT 20 PERCENT THUS KOREA WILL HAVE TO DEPEND SECRET SECRET PAGE 03 STATE 240692 ON OUTSIDE NUCLEAR FUEL SUPPLY IN ANY CASE THEY TOOK ISSUE WITH HAHM'S ASSERTION THAT FACILITY WAS TOO SMALL FOR WEAPONS PRODUCTION BY CITING UNDISPUTED FACT THAT IT HAS CAPACITY FOR ABOUT 20 KG YR PLUTONIUM PRODUCTION IF OPERATED ON YEAR ROUND BASIS THEY CONCLUDED BY STRESSING THAT VERY FACT THAT FACILITY WAS NOT RELATED TO CLEAR OPERATIONAL REQUIREMENT OR ECONOMIC NEED WOULD LEAD TO UNFORTUNATE PERCEPTION BY OTHERS INCLUDING U S CONGRESS Margaret P Grafeld Declassified Released US Department of State EO Systematic Review 06 JUL 2006 Margaret P Grafeld Declassified Released US Department of State EO Systematic Review 06 JUL 2006 THAT WE WOULD BE UNABLE TO COUNTER EFFECTIVELY IN RESPONSE TO HAHM'S SUGGESTION THAT U S APPLY SUPPLEMENTARY SAFEGUARDS DEPT OFFICIALS STATED THAT ISSUE IS PHYSICAL EXISTENCE OF REPROCESSING CAPABILITY IN KOREA AND THAT IN PERCEPTION OF OTHERS THE IMPLICATIONS OF THIS COULD NOT BE OVERCOME BY ANY CONTROL ARRANGEMENTS 5 IN LENGTHY DISCUSSION HAHM CAME UP WITH NEW TWIST SUGGESTING THAT AS ALTERNATIVE TO CANCELLATION FACILITY BE BROUGHT FROM THE OUTSET WITHIN MULTINATIONAL FRAMEWORK WHICH U S ADVOCATES DEPT OFFICIALS RESPONDED THAT FIRST STEP IN EXPLORATION OF MULTINATIONAL APPROACH INVOLVES ENGINEERING AND ECONOMIC STUDIES BY COUNTRIES OF REGION AND THAT AS SMALL RESEARCH FACILITY PROPOSED PLANT HAD NO CAPABILITY OF GENERATING INFORMATION OF USE TO SUCH STUDY THEY ALSO STRESSED THAT STUDY OF MULTINATIONAL APPROACH SHOULD BE UNDERTAKEN WITHOUT PRIOR JUDGMENT AS TO PLANT LOCATION AND THAT INCLUSION OF EVEN SMALL KOREAN FACILITY IN MULTINATIONAL FRAMEWORK WOULD BE INCONSISTENT WITH NEED TO AVOID PREJUDGING ISSUE OF LOCATION IN RESPONSE TO HAHM'S CONTENTION THAT CANCELLATION WOULD DEPRIVE ROK OF ESSENTIAL TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES DEPT OFFICIALS INDICATED U S WILLINGNESS TO CONSIDER COOPERATING IN PROVIDING TRAINING IN U S FACILITIES AFTER REPEAT AFTER SUITABLE MULTINATIONAL ENTERPRISE IS WELL ON ITS WAY 6 ANOTHER THEME TO WHICH HAHM RETURNED REPEATEDLY WAS ALLEGED DISCRIMINATION BETWEEN KOREA WHOSE REPROCESSING PROGRAM WE WISH TO CANCEL AND JAPAN WHICH HAS PROCEEDED WITHOUT U S COMPLAINT WITH MUCH LARGER FRENCH-BUILT FACILITY STATING THAT TECHNOLOGICAL APTITUDE AND WILLSECRET SECRET PAGE 04 STATE 240692 INGNESS TO WORK WERE ONLY ASSETS KOREA POSSESSES HAHM COMPLAINED REPEATEDLY THAT U S ACTION WOULD HELP PERPETUATE ECONOMIC GAP BETWEEN JAPAN AND KOREA WHICH THEY ARE DETERMINED TO OVERCOME AND WOULD IN FACT MAKE KOREA DEPENDENT ON JAPAN IN RESPONSE DEPT OFFICIALS CITED DIFFERENCES IN STRATEGIC SITUATION OF KOREAN PENINSULA AND JAPAN ONCE AGAIN STRESSING THE IMPORTANCE OF PERCEPTIONS OF OTHERS AS TO POSSIBLE MILITARY SIGNIFICANCE OF KOREAN REPROCESSING FACILITY NOTWITHSTANDING ITS DECLARED PURPOSE FYI EMBASSY MAY WISH TO EMPHASIZE THIS ASPECT IN EVENT ROKG PURSUES THIS LINE OF ARGUMENTATION END FYI THEY ALSO POINTED OUT THAT JAPANESE DECISION TO BUILD REPROCESSING FACILITY NOW NEARING COMPLETION WAS MADE SOME 8 YEARS AGO WHEN WORLD-WIDE PERCEPTION OF NEED FOR AND ECONOMIC DESIRABILITY OF REPROCESSING WERE MUCH Margaret P Grafeld Declassified Released US Department of State EO Systematic Review 06 JUL 2006 Margaret P Grafeld Declassified Released US Department of State EO Systematic Review 06 JUL 2006 MORE OPTIMISTIC THAN AT PRESENT MOREOVER FOR LARGER NUCLEAR POWER PROGRAM JAPAN WILL HAVE NEED FOR REPROCESSING MUCH EARLIER THAN KOREA DEPT OFFICIALS ALSO QUESTIONED HOW ENGAGING IN UNECONOMIC OPERATION SUCH AS SMALL-SCALE REPROCESSING COULD HELP CLOSE ECONOMIC GAP BETWEEN KOREA AND JAPAN HAHM REPEATEDLY COMMENTED THAT IT LOOKED AS IF KOREA WAS BEING ASKED TO GIVE UP SOMETHING WHICH JAPAN WAS ALLOWED TO HAVE ALTHOUGH IT MIGHT BE NECESSARY FOR ROKG TO CANCEL IF U S INSISTED ON CANCELLATION OF PLANT FYI HAHM DID NOT APPEAR TO MAKE THIS OBSERVATION ON INSTRUCTIONS END FYI 7 NEAR THE END OF THE CONVERSATION THE DEPUTY SECRETARY ONCE AGAIN POINTED OUT TO HAHM THAT A KOREAN DECISION TO PROCEED WOULD FACE KOREA WITH A POLITICAL PROBLEM IN THE U S HAHM ASKED WHY THE STATE DEPARTMENT COULD NOT CONVINCE THE HILL OF THE BENIGN NATURE OF KOREAN PLANS AND WAS REMINDED THAT IT WOULD BE IMPOSSIBLE TO DO SO GIVEN THE FACT THAT THE INSTALLATION COULD PRODUCE WEAPONSGRADE PLUTONIUM INSPECTION WOULD NOT SUFFICE TO OVERCOME RESISTANCE HAHM COMMENTED THAT THE ARGUMENT ABOUT THE POSSIBLE PRODUCTION OF EXPLOSIVE MATERIAL IS DEVASTATING BUT RETURNED TO HIS COMPARISON WITH THE JAPAN CASE HE NOTED AT ONE POINT DURING THE CONVERSATION THAT IF WE SAY KOREA HAS TO CANCEL HE SUPPOSES IT WILL HAVE TO FYI SECRET SECRET PAGE 05 STATE 240692 WE BELIEVE THIS OBSERVATION WAS MADE WITHOUT AUTHORIZATION AND WE WOULD NOT WANT IT REPEATED TO ROK OFFICIALS 8 IN BRIEF DISCUSSION FOLLOWING CONCLUSION OF MEETING ASSISTANT SECRETARY HABIB SUGGESTED TO HAHM THAT TIME HAD COME FOR HAHM WHO UNLIKE ROK NUCLEAR OFFICIALS WAS NOT PERSONALLY ASSOCIATED WITH REPROCESSING FACILITY PLANS TO MAKE FORTHRIGHT RECOMMENDATION TO PRESIDENT WHO ALSO HAS REMAINED PERSONALLY DISENGAGED TO DECIDE IN FAVOR OF CANCELLATION KISSINGER SECRET NNN Margaret P Grafeld Declassified Released US Department of State EO Systematic Review 06 JUL 2006 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