Reaching Critical Will

Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)

Conference on Disarmament

General Assembly First Committee

UN Disarmament Commission

Special Session on Disarmament

Model Nuclear Inventory 2007
Chile

Location and capability of nuclear facilities
Fissile material holdings
Nuclear activities
International non-proliferation efforts
Positions taken in international fora on various issues of disarmament

1. Location and Capability of Nuclear Facilities

Chile considered launching a nuclear power program in the 1970s (Proyecto Nucleoeléctrico) and developed a nuclear research infrastructure, but the power project was halted in the 1980s. The Chilean Commission on Nuclear Energy has made it clear in recent years that nuclear power continues to be an open option for the country. In 2006, responding to political pressure to solve a potential energy crisis, Chilean Energy Minister Karen Poniachik said the ministry will commence a technical study on the use of nuclear power in Chile. Chile’s interest in nuclear energy comes as Argentina admitted in 2006, that its natural gas supplies to Chile might be permanently cut as early as 2007.
http://www.mineweb.net/energy/645007.htm
http://www.mercopress.com/vernoticia.do?id=9956&formato=HTML
http://www.easybourse.com/Website/dynamic/News.php?NewsID=51224&lang=fra&NewsRubrique=2
http://www.cchen.cl/?docp=Nucleoelectricidad/presiciones

Research Reactors
Operational: 1 (Rech 1)
Shut Down: 1 (Rech 2)
Decommissioned: 0
Under Construction: 0
Planned: 0

Uranium Mines
Chile has uranium mineralizations, but these haven't been mined, according to the World Energy Council, citing U.S. Atomic Energy Commission Data.
http://www.easybourse.com/Website/dynamic/News.php?NewsID=51224&lang=fra&NewsRubrique=2

2. Fissile Material Holdings

Highly Enriched Uranium: 0.005 tons (end of 2003)
Supplier- US and France
http://www.isis-online.org/global_stocks/end2003/civil_heu_watch2005.pdf

3. Nuclear Activities

Research Centers
CEN - Centro de Estudios Nucleares Lo Aguirre
CEN - Centro de Estudios Nucleares La Reina
CONICYT - Comision Nacional de Investigacion Cientifica y Technologica
http://www.radwaste.org/research.htm

Nuclear Cooperation
IAEA: The IAEA promoted the development of the ‘Nuclear Techniques in Copper Mining’ in Chile in cooperation with the Chuquicamata Division of the National Copper Corporation and the Centre for Mining and Metallurgy Research. http://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC47/Documents/gc47inf-8.pdf

China: Chile gets help in extracting uranium from the Andes Mountains according to an agreement signed in 1989. http://www.nti.org/db/china/nca.htm

4. International Nonproliferation Efforts

Treaties Signed and Ratified, date of deposit
Antarctic Treaty, 23 June 1961
APM Convention, 10 September 2001
Biological Weapons Convention, 22 April 1980
Certain Conventional Weapons Convention, 15 October 2003
Chemical Weapons Convention, 12 July 1996
Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, 12 July 2000
Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material, 27 April 1994
Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, 25 May 1995
Outer Space Treaty, 8 October 1981
Treaty of Tlatelolco, 9 October 1974
Vienna Convention on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage, February 1990
http://www.iaea.org/Publications/Documents/Conventions/liability_status.pdf

Chile ratified the IAEA Additional Protocol on 3 November 2003.

Multilateral Groups
Conference on Disarmament
Hague Code of Conduct

5. Positions Taken in International Fora on Various Issues of Nuclear Disarmament

Disarmament and Security: “The most serious failure of the 2005 Summit was its silence on the multilateral disarmament agenda. Chile bases its multilateral foreign policy on the principle that collective security is indivisible. We all have a share of responsibility to preserve peace and international security that cannot be delegated. For this reason, Chile has joined in efforts to revitalize the disarmament agenda and move towards prohibition of the use of fissile material for military purposes.” - Statement by President Michelle Bachelet Jeria at the 61st Session of the General Assembly, September 20, 2006. http://www.reachingcriticalwill.org/political/1com/1com06/disarmindex06.html#chile