VZCZCXYZ0002
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHUNV #0056 0401016
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 091016Z FEB 09
FM USMISSION UNVIE VIENNA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 8997
RHMCSUU/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEANFA/NRC WASHDC PRIORITY
INFO RUEHII/VIENNA IAEA POSTS COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHSA/AMEMBASSY PRETORIA PRIORITY 0197

UNCLAS UNVIE VIENNA 000056 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
PRETORIA FOR ECON-P.BALL, POL-R.BROWN 
STATE FOR IO/T, ISN/MNSA, ISN/NESS, ISN/RA 
NA-21 BIENIAWSKI/SHEELY/STAPLES/ILIOPULOS; NA-243-GOOREVICH/BRUNNS; 
NA-241 O'CONNOR, LAMONTAGNE 
NRC FOR OIP - HENDERSON, SCHWARTZMAN 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: AORC KNNP IAEA ENRG TRGY SF
SUBJECT: IAEA: SOUTH AFRICA WILLING TO GIVE UP U.S. ORIGIN HEU 
 
REF:  A) STATE 6083 B) PRETORIA 238 
 
¶1. (SBU) Acting on REFTEL A, Ambassador Schulte passed the USG 
non-paper on security of nuclear and radiological material to South 
Africa's IAEA Governor, Ambassador Abdul Minty, on February 4 during 
a lunch meeting.  Ambassador Minty expressed gratitude for the offer 
and said he was open to cooperation with the U.S. on nuclear 
security. Ambassador Minty also confirmed that South Africa is ready 
to give up its U.S. origin HEU. 
 
¶2. (SBU) Ambassador Minty said he was not previously aware that this 
offer was coming from the USG or that it had been passed in South 
Africa to his staff.  Minty expressed appreciation for the offer 
directly to him because, at times, information passed to the 
Department of Minerals and Energy (DME) in Pretoria gets "lost." 
Minty said he was open to cooperation with the U.S. on nuclear 
security activities. 
 
¶3. (SBU) On a separate issue, Ambassador Schulte asked about the 
status of the investigation into the Pelindaba break-in. Minty said 
there still have been no arrests in the case and that South African 
authorities have worked with the IAEA on a security assessment.  He 
also mentioned that he was unhappy with the "60 Minutes" piece on 
this subject. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Asked why South Africa was keeping all its weapons-grade 
HEU, Minty responded that the material is being used for medical 
isotope production. Ambassador Schulte tasked whether all the HEU 
will be used for this purpose; Minty said the HEU was under 
safeguards in South Africa, but he was worried that if transferred 
to a nuclear weapons state the HEU would not be under IAEA 
safeguards.  Ambassador Schulte said that he understood that several 
years ago the USG was willing to work with South Africa and industry 
to reprocess the HEU and bring it back to South Africa for 
commercial use in a nuclear power plant.  Minty said he did not know 
anything about such a proposal, but volunteered that South Africa is 
now ready for the USG to take back the U.S.-origin fuel.  Ambassador 
Schulte mentioned that the USG is also offering radiological 
security support for the 2010 World Cup soccer events.  Ambassador 
Minty thanked Ambassador Schulte for the non-paper and said he would 
be in touch with South Africa's response. 
 
¶5. (SBU) Comment: It is highly unlikely Minty was unaware of the 
2006 discussions on reprocessing the HEU.  However, South Africa's 
stated intention to keep the HEU for other purposes, like medical 
isotope production, may be partially founded in South African 
government documents.  In the June 2008 publication "Nuclear Energy 
Policy for South Africa," under "Security of Nuclear Energy Supply" 
it states "The operation of a nuclear power plant requires fuel 
which is currently and for the foreseeable future mainly being 
provided by uranium, and to a lesser extent mixed oxide fuel from 
reprocessed and recycled irradiated uranium fuel. South Africa 
therefore has to ensure reliable and sustainable supply of uranium. 
The country has uranium resources and as such can provide for the 
needs of its nuclear programme."  If this is the case, it begs the 
question of why the RSA is not down-blending the material to use it 
for the planned Pebble Bed Reactor (which will operate on LEU) 
and/or the Safari Reactor for medical isotope production.  End 
Comment. 
 
PYATT