The Department of Justice (DOJ) has upheld the legality of the Agreement for Cooperation between the governments of the Philippines and the United States concerning peaceful use of nuclear energy embodied in the 123 Agreement forged on Nov. 16 last year in San Francisco, California.
In a three-page legal opinion address to the Department of Foreign Affairs, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla, in his capacity as a member of the Nuclear Energy Program – Inter-Agency Committee (NEP-IAC), declared that the 123 Agreement conforms to the existing laws and compliance with international agreements and policies undertaken by the Philippines.
Remulla rendered the opinion even as he expressed his agency’s ‘all-out’ support to the 123 Agreement.
“Considering the world’s perpetual and unending need for better sources of energy, nuclear energy research is an avenue our country can expeditiously explore with proper regulation and safety measures locked in place,” Remulla said.
It is important to note that the 123 Agreement covers the safe and secure use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes wherein the parties undertake to transfer and share information, nuclear material equipment and components directly or through authorized persons such as the Philippine Nuclear Research Institute which is mandated to regulate activities related thereto by virtue of RA 5207 or the Atomic Energy Regulatory and Liability Act of 1968, as amended.
It is also explicitly provided under the provisions of the PH-US Nuclear Energy Agreement that the same are not in conflict with existing Philippine laws, as well as with pending nuclear-related bills before Congress.
Besides, the 123 Agreement also emphasizes that outputs produced within its purview shall not be used for any nuclear explosive devices, for research on or development of any nuclear explosive devices or for any military purpose detrimental to the national interest of the parties.