On the link between nuclear energy and nuclear weapons

[kristopher]

Japan's leaders must face country's 'latent' possession of nuclear weapons

...The reason for the multiple visits was the plant's significance in the country's energy security scheme. It was important that we probe and monitor not just the safety of the plant, but the trends in local residents' attitudes and their tactics in dealing with politicians, the speed of construction, and any "interference" by other countries.

... it was the presentation of the plant as a national project that would fulfill government policy and goals that ultimately won the villagers' "cooperation." "Of a nuclear power plant's spent nuclear fuel, only 5 percent or less should be disposed of," the government had explained. "Uranium and plutonium can be recycled. We want to reprocess the fuel and pave the way to energy self-sufficiency."

...There's a little "secret" to the reprocessing plant, however.

On July 17, 1988, Japan implemented revisions to the Japan-U.S. Nuclear Agreement that would allow Japan to construct nuclear fuel reprocessing plants, despite strong opposition from the U.S. Congress. Using its own enrichment technology, it was now possible for Japan, in theory, to produce the raw materials necessary to build nuclear bombs...

http://mdn.mainichi.jp/perspectives/news/20111028p2a00m0na004000c.html

[AtheistCrusader]

1. Yep.

MOX was a red-herring-ish thing for Dai-ich. All production uranium fuel rods of that type reach an equilibrium level of plutonium, as a natural part of the decay process.

Re-processing removes that. And it goes... somewhere?

[kristopher]

2. I don't believe Japan has nuclear weapons...

...but I do believe they probably have all the components already manufactured, sitting on a shelf waiting to be assembled if the need arises.

[AtheistCrusader]

3. I would not bet against you.