Taiwan Still Has Drawings for Nuclear Weapons Development

Although Taiwan gave up its nuclear ambition because of pressure from the United States in 1988, it still has drawings of nuclear weapons development and all the relevant materials, the China Times reported on Monday.

Quoting contribution from a researcher at the Heritage Foundation who was also an intelligence official at the U.S. State Department, the China Times said the following, “According to CIA intelligence, not only has 10 nuclear fuel-rods that could extract 0.5 kg of plutonium disappeared 20 years ago in Taiwan, but also Taiwan has six nuclear reactors that can produce nuclear fuel rods in which plutonium can be extracted.”

The Taiwanese Nuclear Energy Research Institute (NERI) began to develop small nuclear weapons in 1969 after purchasing related facilities including a 40,000 kW atomic research reactor from Canada, as well as plutonium chemical laboratories and reprocessing equipment from countries like France, Germany, and the United States according to the paper. Taiwan even bought 100 tons of uranium from the Republic of South Africa.

The U.S.’s Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) found Taiwan’s nuclear weapons development plan in 1974. So the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) carried out investigation into Taiwan’s nuclear ambitions in 1976, discovering that 10 fuel rods were missing. In response, the U.S. threatened to stop the construction of the nuclear power plant which was being built, making the Taiwanese government declare that “Although Taiwan has facilities and capabilities to make nuclear weapons, Taiwan will never make nuclear weapons.”

The Taiwan’s leadership, however, in 1987 ordered to resume plutonium reprocessing work in strict secrecy. But its plan was once again halted several weeks after its resumption because the deputy director of the NERI, who turned out to be a U.S. spy, came to the U.S. as an exile with thousands of pages of documents in connection with the nuclear weapons development plan.

The Reagan Administration of the U.S. sent an ultimatum to the counterpart of Taiwan in 1989 saying it would stop providing military support and fuel for the Nuclear Power Plant. In response, the Taiwanese counterpart gave a written promise to halt its nuclear development. However, experiencing China’s missile launch toward the Taiwanese channel, the Taiwanese leader has said to resume nuclear weapons development research for its nation’s long term. However, he withdrew his remark four days later.

Yoo-Sung Hwang yshwang@donga.com