Breeder reactors and the non proliferation

The notions of proliferation and of international controls must be correctly defined as related to the problems of diversion by governments; the analysis of the proliferation resistance of a given fuel cycle must take into account not only the nuclear material mass flows of this cycle but also the various possible strategies, including the nature of the risks and of the political drawbacks associated to each strategy. In these conditions, the uranium-plutonium cycle, used for fast breeder plants, including reprocessing, presents in its existing implementation, no more proliferation risk than the uranium cycle without reprocessing commonly accepted today