Publication - 23 April, 2004
This paper attempts to explain the evolution of safeguards since the beginning of the nuclear age, and specifically to analyze the safeguards technology to be applied at the Rokkasho-mura reprocessing facility in Japan. This facility is the most expensive plutonium facility ever,with a potential yield thousands of kilograms each year of nuclear weapons usable plutonium, yet, the international safeguards system to be applied at the facility will be incapable of detecting the deliberate diversion or theft of large quantities of plutonium on an annual basis.