Will Climate Change Alter the NPT Political Balance? New Challenges for the Non-Proliferation Regime

Abstract

This article focuses on the possibilities of implementing a valid multilateral system for uranium enrichment and nuclear fuel-recycling activities. The contribution to the literature is twofold. First, I identify the economic, political, and legal tensions which should be overcome in order to establish such a multilateral system: enterprises’ interests in keeping their economic advantages; mistrust among states as well as mistrust in the current non-proliferation verification system; the necessity of redefining the content of the states’ right to use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. And, last but not least, the willingness to cooperate of the states currently developing those activities of enrichment and recycling. Based on that analysis, the second contribution is the definition of those formulae for cooperation which would be the most appropriate for tackling the problems detected, as they could pave the way to the transition towards a multilateral system of worldwide reach.