Brasilia - "It is important for Brazil to protect not only its technological secrets, but also its ability to engage in technological development," declared minister of Foreign Relations, Celso Amorim. The minister made his remark at a hearing at the Chamber of Deputies during a discussion of the proposal by the United States that Brazil accept an additional inspection protocol for its nuclear industrial plant in Resende, Rio de Janeiro.

Amorim said that a US Department of State official had called Brazil a model that other nations could follow, but that he would prefer to see the US call for additional guarantees from countries that arouse suspicion rather than Brazil because "there is no reason to suspect Brazil."

According to Amorim, Brazil has faithfully fulfilled its obligations under international treaties in an exemplary manner, but the same cannot be said of nuclear powers that have not complied with article 6 of the Non-Proliferation Treaty, which calls for negotiations to eliminate all nuclear weapons.

Amorim said Brazil was willing to give International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors the benefit of the doubt, but that he thought Brazil also deserved the benefit of the doubt with regard to its nuclear activities. "There is no reason to suspect that Brazil is using uranium for non-peaceful ends. The safeguards that have worked for 50 years for everybody should be sufficient for Brazil. With regard to our factory in Resende, the specific problem is to determine exactly how the inspections will be done. The IAEA inspectors are not necessarily spies. The only certain thing is that we have to be careful," declared the minister.

Amorim also explained that Brazil is a member of the Atomic Energy Commission and that when Brazil joined the Non-Proliferation Treaty the country accepted its safeguards. (Translator: Allen Bennett)