earticle

영어

In the 1950s, then-USPresident Eisenhower introduced the ‘Atoms for Peace’ initiative to decouple nuclear power from nuclear weapons in both public imagery and policy making processes. Political science literature generally follows this distinction, treating nuclear energy as a civilian domestic issue, while discussing nuclear weapons as military and security issues of international relevance. This paper looks at the nuclear power politics in Finland and South Korea to show the arbitrary nature of this division. Both countries are self-declared non-nuclear weaponsstates, and thus rely on nuclear power to reduce dependency on imports for improved national energy security. National security concerns also influence nuclear research activities in terms of the selection of reactor models and construction companies, as well as the treatment of nuclear waste material. The latter challenges the notion that nuclear energy production is a purely domestic affair. Nuclear waste reprocessing produces weaponsgrade material, and thus challenges proliferation agreements and, especially in East Asia, the volatile balance of power. In addition to this realist reading, Finnish nuclear waste policies are often influenced by international environmental norms to seek responsible solutions for neighboring countries, as well as for future generations. Both cases thus highlight the interdependence of ‘atoms for peace’ and ‘atoms for war’ and the role of energy security in peace studies.