The European Union will contribute up to Euros 25 million, of which 80 percent will come from the European Commission's 'Stability Instrument.'

"This move is an excellent example of how the EU and the U.S. collaborate to support concrete and practical measures that will allow those developing peaceful nuclear energy to do so without compromising agreements to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons," he said.

Ambassador Bruton added that "the EU's clear position on effective multilateral nuclear non-proliferation and the recent call by French President Sarkozy on behalf of the EU to revive global nuclear disarmament efforts, are very much in line with President-elect Obama's commitment to a safer world without nuclear weapons; this must be the basis for even closer EU/U.S. cooperation on this essential issue."

Background
EU foreign ministers, meeting this week in the General Affairs and External Relations Council, agreed to support the establishment of a nuclear fuel bank under the control of the IAEA. The EU is willing to contribute up to Euros 25 million (about $32 million) once the conditions and modalities for the scheme have been defined and approved by the IAEA's Board of Governors.

At least 80 percent of the EU contribution will come from the European Commission's Instrument for Stability, a tool designed to address situations of crisis and instability in third countries.

The EU considers it essential that the development of nuclear energy takes place under conditions that maximize safety, security and non-proliferation.

Nuclear fuel supply security is crucial for countries developing a nuclear program and international efforts to establish multilateral mechanisms will provide states with increased energy security. This may offer a credible alternative to the development of national enrichment and reprocessing capacities.

The proposed nuclear bank will be part of a broader initiative to provide multilateral fuel supply mechanisms because different solutions will have to be developed for different situations. In this spirit, the European Union intends to pursue in-depth discussions on this issue with third parties concerned.

The Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI)
The Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) is a non-profit organization co-chaired by ex-Senator Sam Nunn and Ted Turner with a mission to strengthen global security by reducing the risk of use and preventing the spread of nuclear, biological and chemical weapons.

NTI's contribution of USD 50 million, backed by US philanthropist Warren Buffett, is conditional on the IAEA receiving USD 100 million in start up funding for the nuclear fuel bank initiative.

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