E DIVISION. DTI
ID:071-828-7285
15 FEB '93 17:58 No.007 P.04
however have been less than impressed by progress since then.
2. The discussions have run into difficulties mainly because the Chinese negotiating team has only been authorised to discuss the sharing of information with Hong Kong in the case of an off-site emergency. Even in those cases they have adopted a very limited interpretation of their obligations under the IAEA convention.
3. The IAEA convention refers to the need for states to provide relevant information about nuclear accidents as early as possible. It applies in all cases in which a release of radioactivity occurs or is likely to occur, and which results or might result in an international trans-boundary release. In that event, the state in which the nuclear reactor is located is obliged to immediately provide all relevant information to those who might be physically affected.
4.
The outcome of recent diplomatic pressure in Peking suggests that the relevant Chinese authorities are now briefed of the Hong Kong concerns and that the problem may be addressed rather more cogently at the next meeting of experts on 16 March. Raising the matter in Vienna will hopefully reinforce the message.
AE2a
February 1993