November 24, 1976
Notes from President of Nuclebrás Paulo Nogueira Batista to the Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Relations
This document was made possible with support from Carnegie Corporation of New York (CCNY)
Nota à reunião no MRE em 24 de Novembro de 1976, promovida pelo Conselho de Segurança Nacional
Integrantes: Paulo Cabral (Itamaraty), Luiz Felipe Lampreia (Itamaraty), Coronel Castro (Conselho de Segurança Nacional - CSN), Proença (CSN), Rex Nazareth (Comissão Nacional de Energia Nuclear), Ferreira (Ministério de Minas e Energia - MME), Luiz Francisco (MME), Paulo Nogueira Batista (NUCLEBRAS).
[A respeito da] idéia dos promotores do acordo Brasil-Argentina para dissipar dúvidas quanto à competição nuclear entre os dois países:
-Foram citados por Proença (CSN), Rex (CNEN) e Ferreira (MME) contatos feitos pela delegação argentina à reunião da AIEA no Rio de Janeiro [setembro de 1976], inclusive do [presidente da Comissão Nacional de Energia Atômica da Argentina] Carlos Castro Madero no Dia da Escola de Guerra Naval.
-Ministério das Relações Exteriores [mostra-se] reticente em relação à idéia porque tem de ser avaliada em função dos benefícios que possa trazer ao fortalecimento do Acordo Brasil-Alemanha.
-Ministério das Relações Exteriores [mostra-se] reticente também em relação a entendimentos com outros países da América Latina para não distrair recursos da execução do Acordo Brasil-Alemanha.
-Foi também reticente em relação à América Latina (caso Chile) e à Argentina em particular mostrando que a garantia de mercado para futuras exportações não virá por aí e alertando para riscos de "contaminação" mais expressiva da Argentina no tocante ao TNP e às salvaguardas; lembrei instruções do Presidente da República quanto ao contencioso com a Argentina, também citados por Paulo Cabral de Mello (riscos de contaminação ideológica em acordo com Chile).
-Secretaria do Conselho de Segurança Nacional parece preocupada em dirigir política nuclear e faz jogo da CNEN, que procura ter área de atuação internacional, fora do âmbito concreto do acordo Brasil-Alemanha aplicado à Nuclebrás.
-Ministro Ueki (Minas e Energia), alertado por mim, conversou com o Coronel Ferreira e deu instrução para esclarecer ao embaixador Paulo Cabral de Mello que o Ministério de Minas e Energia não patrocinava qualquer acordo nuclear com a Argentina e no máximo favorecia que se ouvisse uma proposta de iniciativa argentina. O Ministério de Minas e Energia [pronuncia-se] contra qualquer viagem do presidente da CNEN a Buenos Aires e vice-versa.
Notes taken during a meeting at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MRE) on November 24th 1976. Handwritten document. PNB pn a 1974.07.01 [5/666]
Participants: Paulo Cabral (Itamaraty), Luiz Felipe Lampreia (Itamaraty), Coronel Castro (National Security Council- CSN), Proença (CSN), Rex Nazareth (National Commission of Nuclear Energy), Ferreira (Ministry of Mines and Energy- MME), Luiz Francisco (MME), Paulo Nogueira Batista (NUCLEBRAS).
- Idea of a BR/ARG agreement to clear up any doubts on the nuclear competition between the two countries;
- Proença, Rex and Ferreira made reference to contacts by the Argentinian delegation during the IAEA meeting in Rio [the conference was held in Rio de Janeiro in September 1976], including one by Cap. Castro Madero, on the Naval War College Day.
- MRE is a bit hesitant to accept this idea because it must be evaluated taking into consideration the benefits it can bring to the Brazil-Federal Republic of Germany Agreement (inst. AFAS).
- MRE is also hesitant regarding understandings with other Latin American countries, so it does not shift the focus from the execution of Brazil-Germany Agreement.
- It was also reticent regarding Latin America (Chilean case) and in particular Argentina, showing that there won’t be market guarantees for future exports like this, and alerting for more expressive “contamination” risks by Argentina regarding NPT and safeguards; I reminded them of the President’s instructions on litigations against Argentina, also recalled by PCM [Paulo Cabral de Mello] (risks of ideological contamination in an agreement with Chile)
- The National Security Council’s Secretariat seems worried about directing nuclear policy and is in accordance with CNEN’s position in favor of an international participation outside the concrete Brazil/Germany framework, etc., applied to (or complicated about) Nuclebrás.
- Minister Ueki, as alerted by me, talked with Colonel Ferreira and instructed him to tell Ambassador Paulo Cabral de Mello that the Ministry of Energy would not support any nuclear agreement with Argentina, at most, it was in favor of considering a proposal by the Argentinians. The Ministry of Energy was against any visit of CNEN’s President to Buenos Aires
Meeting among the members of the Ministry of Foreign Relations, the Ministry of Energy, the National Commission of Atomic Energy and the Council of National Security on a nuclear cooperation agreement proposed by CNEA. The objective of the agreement was to steer away doubts about a hypothetical nuclear competition between Brazil and Argentina, after Jimmy Carter was elected president in the US. Most participants of the meeting were contrary to a nuclear cooperation with Buenos Aires.
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