UK "stunned" by EU prosecution for failing to comply with NPT
IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency
London, Sept 4, IRNA -- The UK government was reported Saturday to be shocked by the European Commission resorting to legal action to gain access for inspection of the amount of plutonium and uranium stored at its Sellafield nuclear reprocessing plant in northwest England. "The Department of Trade and Industry, which has been accused by the commission of dragging its feet, was stunned by the decision, and said that it would study the commission`s report before it could comment," the Guardian said. The European Commission on Friday carried out its threat to take Britain to the European Court of Justice for failing to provide information about the nuclear material stored at Sellafield. It claims that for four years its inspectors had been trying to verify how much material is in the pond so that the UK can be seen to have complied with the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), which specifies that the material must not be diverted for bomb-making. Euratom, the EU`s atomic energy agency, has regularly complained about poor access to the site and unsatisfactory operating records when carrying out annual inspections. The legal case makes the UK the first European Union member to be taken to the EU`s highest court over a nuclear safety issue and is seen as particularly embarrassing at a time when Britain is pressing Iran to clarify its nuclear program. "I don`t like going to court and I`m not happy about it," the outgoing EU Energy Commissioner Loyola de Palacio said in referring the UK to the Court of Justice. "The problem is that during four years there has been no real action from the UK and the commitments taken on different occasions have not been fulfilled," she said, but added she would stop the action if a clear timetable can be obtained from the UK. HC/2321/1432
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