On March 28, 2006, during the 18th annual Arab Summit, Amr Mousa, the Secretary General of the 22-nation Arab League and former Egyptian Foreign Minister, called on all Arab countries to respond to societal energy needs by aggressively pursuing peaceful nuclear energy programs and, in the words of one report, thereby joining the “nuclear club.” [1] One day before the summit, which was held in Khartoum, Sudan, the Sudanese government announced that it was considering the establishment of a peaceful nuclear program to meet Sudan’s growing energy needs. [2] At a time when many observers consider Iran’s expansive nuclear energy program to be little more than a cover for nuclear weapons, these declarations in Khartoum raised questions as to whether some in the Arab world were eyeing a similar course to that apparently being pursued by non-Arab Tehran.

The Arab League summit was attended by leaders of most Arab countries, although several important regional figures, including Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Saudi Arabian King Abdullah were absent. Secretary General Mousa’s opening remarks to the summit attendees covered topics that ranged from the Arab-Israeli conflict to the situation in Iraq to nuclear energy. Mousa stressed the need for Arab countries to move toward development and renewal. [3]

Mousa’s comments on nuclear energy have been variously reported, but all accounts echo the same basic theme.
Al-Ittihad, a paper owned by the government of the United Arab Emirates, quoted Mousa as saying, “It is important for me to use this forum to call on the Arab world to quickly and powerfully enter the world of using nuclear power.” [4] A widely quoted Associated Press report stated more provocatively, “Mousa called on Arabs ‘to enter into the nuclear club and make use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.” [5] IRNA, the official Iranian news agency, provided the most extensive coverage of Mousa’s statement:

“The Arab world’s quick and decisive entry into the field of peaceful use of nuclear power is necessary,” Mousa told Arab leaders meeting in the Sudanese capital for their 18th annual summit.

He said developing nations were in dire need of nuclear energy to spur economic development and promote social welfare as well as end environmental degradation.

“It is a right that belongs to all countries that are members of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

“We should use this right like others are doing to support Arab countries’ scientific base and meet people’s increasing demand for water and energy,” he added. [6]

Cairo-based Nile-TV carried similar coverage. [7] An authoritative text of Mousa’s remarks addressing nuclear energy has not been made available by the Arab League.

Mousa’s encouragement of Arab states to pursue nuclear energy was presented at a time of growing international concern that (non-Arab) Iran is using its civilian nuclear power program as a cover to pursue nuclear weapons. Iran’s nuclear program has come under intense international scrutiny because of that country’s secret efforts over 18 years to develop a uranium enrichment capability. If successful, such a capability could enable Iran to produce weapons-usable highly enriched uranium. Iran has defended its activities as legitimate elements of its civilian nuclear power program, claiming that its efforts to enrich uranium have the goal only of producing low-enriched uranium fuel for future nuclear power plants. In addition, Iran has asserted that as a party to the NPT, it has the inalienable right to enjoy the benefits of the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and is entitled to build and operate the full range of facilities needed to sustain a nuclear power program, including uranium enrichment plants. However, because Iran is required under the NPT to declare all of its nuclear activities to the IAEA and submit them to inspection, Tehran’s failure to declare its clandestine nuclear work led the agency’s Board of Governors, in September 2005, to find Iran to be in non-compliance with its IAEA inspection agreement and, in early February 2006, to refer the matter to the UN Security Council for further action.

Against this background, Mousa’s comments invited a range of interpretations, in particular, the possibility that his remarks were intended as an implicit appeal for Arab states to follow Iran’s model and develop nuclear energy as a means for obtaining nuclear arms, or at least the capability to manufacture them at a later time. That conveying this message was his unspoken intention was reinforced by some reports of his remarks, which state that he called on Arab states to join the “nuclear club.” Although he used the term to refer to possessors of nuclear energy facilities, it traditionally denotes the states possessing nuclear weapons. Such an allusion would undoubtedly have been recognized by his audience. In his capacity as Egyptian Foreign Minister, it should be noted, Mousa led Egyptian diplomatic efforts to constrain Israeli nuclear capabilities by pressing for universal acceptance of the NPT and by championing the establishment of a Weapon-of-Mass-Destruction-Free Zone in the Middle East. The prospect that Iran might emerge as a second, non-Arab nuclear power in the region would inevitably be a source of deep concern in Egypt and the rest of the Arab world.

Mousa’s apparent, although veiled, appeal for Arab states to consider the development of capabilities that could support nuclear weapons may have been intended, in part, as a means of reminding outside powers of the urgency of addressing the Iranian nuclear threat to avert the possibility that Arab states might seek parity. Another possible objective was to soothe criticism and cynicism within the Arab community. The Arab street and Arab media have been critical of the inability of Arab governments to match the perceived scientific and technological advances of Israel and Iran. Mousa’s comments may have sought to offer reassurance that added efforts in this realm are forthcoming.

In a related development, one day before the summit, Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir announced in a televised interview that Sudan is considering the possibility of establishing a peaceful nuclear program to meet the country’s energy needs. Al-Bashir expressed the concern that Sudan’s current infrastructure may not be able to meet rising energy demands during the coming 25 years. He stated that “during that period, nuclear energy comes in to fill the deficit in electrical power generation.” [8]

Although Sudan’s aspirations in this regard could not pose a direct proliferation threat for many years, Sudan has been implicated in the transshipment of hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of nuclear-relevant dual-use goods. [9] (Iran, ironically, is thought by some analysts to have been the ultimate recipient of the materiel.) Development of even a small nuclear research program in Sudan could facilitate that country’s access to nuclear supplier firms and provide a measure of cover for future nuclear-relevant trafficking activities. The possibility that Sudan might support terrorist access to nuclear materials must also be considered; the United States lists Sudan as a state-sponsor of terrorism.

Sammy Salama, Gina Cabrera-Farraj - Monterey Institute Center for Nonproliferation Studies