TREATIES AND OTHER INTERNATIONAL ACTS SERIES 14-924.1

________________________________________________________________________

NUCLEAR SAFETY 

Arrangement Between the 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

and the CZECH REPUBLIC

Signed at Vienna September 24, 2014

with

Addenda and Annex
 NOTE BY THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE

 Pursuant to Public Law 89—497, approved July 8, 1966

(80 Stat. 271; 1 U.S.C. 113)—

“. . .the Treaties and Other International Acts Series issued

under the authority of the Secretary of State shall be competent

evidence . . . of the treaties, international agreements other than

treaties, and proclamations by the President of such treaties and

international agreements other than treaties, as the case may be, 

therein contained, in all the courts of law and equity and of maritime

jurisdiction, and in all the tribunals and public offices of the

United States, and of the several States, without any further proof

or authentication thereof.”
 CZECH REPUBLIC

 Nuclear Safety

 Arrangement signed at Vienna 

 September 24, 2014;

 Entered into force September 24, 2014.

 With addenda and annex.
ARRANGEMENT

BETWEEN

THE UNITED STATES

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

AND

THE CZECH REPUBLIC

STATE OFFICE FOR NUCLEAR SAFETY

FOR THE EXCHANGE

OF TECHNICAL INFORMATION

AND

COOPERATION IN NUCLEAR SAFETY MATTERS

SEPTEMBER 24, 2014
ARRANGEMENT

BETWEEN

THE UNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

AND

THE CZECH REPUBLIC STATE OFFICE FOR NUCLAR SAFETY

FOR THE EXCHANGE OF TECHNICAL INFORMATION

AND

COOPERATION IN NUCLAR SAFETY MATTERS

The United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (hereinafter called the USNRC),

and the Czech Republic State Office for Nuclear Safety (hereinafter called SUJB), both

hereinafter referred to as "the Parties;"

Having a mutual interest in a continuing exchange of information pertaining to regulatory

matters and of standards required or recommended by their organizations for the regulation

of safety and environmental impact of nuclear facilities;

Having similarly cooperated under the terms of a five-year Arrangement for the

Exchange of Technical Information and Cooperation in Nuclear Safety Matters, signed at

Vienna on September 20, 2000; and having extended this Arrangement on March 10, 2010;

Have agreed as follows:
2 

I. SCOPE OF THE ARRANGEMENT 

A. Technical Information Exchange 

To the ~xtent that the Parties are permitted to do so under the laws, regulations, 

and P?hcy directives of their respective countries, they shall exchange the 

followmg types of unclassified technical information relating to the regulation of 

safety, waste management, radiological safety, and environmental impact of 

designated nuclear energy facilities and to nuclear safety research programs: 

1. Topical reports concerning safety, waste management, radiological 

safety, and environmental effects written by or for one of the Parties as a 

basis for, or in support of, regulatory decisions and policies. 

2. Documents relating to significant licensing actions and safety and 

environmental decisions affecting nuclear facilities. 

3. Detailed documents describing the USNRC process for licensing and 

regulating certain U.S. facilities designated by the SUJB as similar to 

certain facilities being built or planned in the Czech Republic and 

equivalent documents on such facilities owned by the Czech Republic. 

4. Information in the field of reactor safety research that the Parties have the 

right to disclose, either in the possession of one of the Parties or available 

to it, including light water reactor safety information from the technical 

areas described in Addendum "A" and "8", attached hereto and made 

integral parts ofthis Arrangement. Cooperation in these itemized 

research areas may require a separate agreement, as determined to be 

necessary by the research organizations of one or both of the Parties. 

Each Party shall transmit immediately to the other information concerning 

research results that requires early attention in the interest of public · 

safety, along with an indication of significant implications. 

5. Reports on operating experience, such as nuclear incidents, accidents 

and shutdowns, and compilations of historical reliability data on 

components and systems. 

6. Regulatory procedures for the safety, waste management, radiological 

safety, and environmental impact evaluation of nuclear facilities. 

7. Early advice of important events, such as serious operating incidents, 

government-directed reactor shutdowns, and emerging technical issues 

that are of immediate interest to the Parties. 
3 

B. Cooperation in Nuclear Safety Research 

The terms of cooperation for joint programs and projects of nuclear safety 

research and development, or those programs and projects under which 

activities are divided between the two Parties, including the use of test facilities 

and/or computer programs owned by either Party, shall be considered on a caseby-case basis and may be the subject of a separate agreement, if determined to 

be necessary by the research organizations of one or both of the Parties. When 

not the subject of a separate agreement, the terms of cooperation may be 

established by an exchange of letters between the research organizations of the 

Parties, and shall be subject to the terms and conditions of the present 

Arrangement. 

Technical areas specified by such exchanges of letters may be modified 

subsequently by mutual consent. Temporary assignments of personnel by one 

Party in the other Party's Agency shall also be considered on a case-by-case 

basis and shall, in general, require a separate agreement between the research 

organizations of the Parties. 

C. Training and Assignments 

Within the limits of available resources and subject to the availability of 

appropriated funds, the USNRC shall cooperate with the SUJB in providing 

certain training and experience for SUJB safety personnel. Unless otherwise 

agreed, costs of salary, allowances, and travel of SUJB participants shall be paid 

by the SUJB. The following are typical of, but not necessarily exclusive of, the 

kinds of training and experience that may be provided: 

1. SUJB designated inspector accompaniment of USNRC inspectors on 

reactor operation and reactor construction inspection visits in the United 

States, including extended briefings at USNRC regional inspection 

offices. 

2. Participation by SUJB employees in USNRC staff training courses. 

3. Assignment of SUJB experts for certain periods to be determined by the 

Parties within the US NRC staff to work on USNRC staff duties and gain 

on the job experience. 

4. Training assignments of the SUJB within the radiation control program in 

the United States. 
4 

II. ADMINISTRATION 

A. The exchange of information under this Arrangement shall be accomplished 

through letters, reports, and other documents, and by visits and meetings 

arranged in advance on a case-by-case basis. Periodic meetings shall be 

held at such times as mutually agreed to review the exchange of information 

and cooperation under this Arrangement, to recommend revisions to the 

provisions of the Arrangement, and to discuss topics coming within the 

scope of the cooperation. The time, place, and agenda for such meetings 

shall be agreed upon in advance. Visits which take place under the 

Arrangement, including their schedules, shall have the prior approval of the 

administrators referred to in paragraph II.B. 

B. An administrator shall be designated by each Party to coordinate its 

participation in the overall exchange under this Arrangement. The 

administrators shall be the recipients of all documents transmitted under 

the exchange, including copies of all letters unless otherwise agreed. 

Within the terms of the exchange, the administrators will be responsible for 

developing the scope of the exchange, including agreement on the 

designation of the nuclear energy facilities subject to the exchange, and on 

specific documents and standards to be exchanged. One or more 

technical coordinators may be appointed as direct contacts for specific 

disciplinary areas. These technical coordinators shall ensure that both 

administrators receive copies of all trans!llittals. These detailed 

arrangements are intended to ensure, among other things, that a 

reasonably balanced exchange giving access to equivalent available 

information is achieved and maintained. 

C. The administrators shall determine the number of copies to be provided of 

the documents exchanged. Each document shall be accompanied by an 

abstract in English, 250 words or less, describing its scope and content. 

D. The application or use of any information exchanged or transferred 

between the Parties under this Arrangement shall be the responsibility of 

the receiving Party, and the transmitting Party does not warrant the 

suitability of such information for any particular use or application. 

E. Recognizing that some information of the type covered in this 

Arrangement is not available within the agencies that are Parties to this 

Arrangement, but is available from other agencies of the governments of 

the Parties, each Party shall assist the other to the maximum extent 

possible by organizing visits and directing inquiries concerning such 

information to appropriate agencies of the government concerned. The 

foregoing shall not constitute a commitment of other agencies to furnish 

such information or to receive such visitors. 
5 

Ill. EXCHANGE AND USE OF INFORMATION 

A General 

The Parties support the widest possible dissemination of information provided 

or exchanged under this Arrangement, subject to the requirements· of each 

Party's national laws, regulations and policies and the need to protect 

proprietary and other confidential or privileged information, and subject to the 

provisions of the Intellectual Property Annex, which is an integral part of this 

Arrangement. 

B. Definitions 

1. The term "information" means unclassified nuclear .energy-related 

regulatory, safety, waste management, scientific or technical data, 

including information on results or methods of assessment, research, and 

any other knowledge provided, created or exchanged under this 

Arrangement. 

2. The term "proprietary information" means information made available 

under this Arrangement that contains trade secrets or other privileged or 

confidential commercial information (such· that the person having the 

information may derive a commercial benefit from it or may have a 

commercial advantage over those who do not have it), and may only 

include information that: 

a. has been held in confidence by its owner; 

b. has not been transmitted by the owner to other entities (including 

the receiving Party}, except on the basis that it be held in 

confidence; 

c. is not otherwise available to the receiving Party from another 

source without restriction on its further dissemination; and 

d. is not already in the possession of the receiving Party. 

3. The term "other confidential or privileged information" means information, 

other than "proprietary information," that has been transmitted and 

received in confidence under this Arrangement and is protected from 

public disclosure under the laws, 'regulations, or policies of the country of 

the Party providing the information. 
6 

C. Marking Procedures for Documentary Proprietary Information 

A Party receiving documentary proprietary information pursuant to this 

Arrangement shall respect the privileged nature of such information, provided 

that such proprietary information is clearly marked with the following (or 

substantially similar) restrictive legend: 

"This document contains proprietary information furnished in confidence 

un~er an Arrangement dated September 24, 2014, between the United 

States Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Czech Republic State 

Office for Nuclear Safety and shall not be disseminated outside these 

organizations, their consultants, contractors, and licensees, or concerned 

departments and agencies of the Government of the United States and 

the Government of the Czech Republic, without the prior written approval 

of (name of transmitting Party). This notice shal! be marked on each 

page of any reproduction hereof, in whole or in part. These limitations 

shall automatically terminate when the proprietary information is disclosed 

by the owner without restriction." 

This restrictive legend shall be respected by the Parties to this Arrangement. 

Proprietary information bearing this restrictive legend shall not be made public or 

otherwise disseminated in any manner unspecified or contrary to the terms of this 

Arrangement without the prior written consent of the transmitting Party. 

Proprietary information bearing this restrictive legend shall not be useg by the 

receiving Party or its contractors and consultants for any commercial purposes 

without the prior written consent of the transmitting Party. 

D. Dissemination of Documentary Proprietary Information 

1. ·In general, proprietary information received under this Arrangement may 

be disseminated by the receiving Party without prior consent to persons 

within or employed by the receiving Party, and to concerned Government 

departments and Government agencies in the country of the receiving 

Party, provided: 

a. such dissemination is made on a case-by-case basis; and 

b. such proprietary information bears the restrictive legend appearing 

in Section Ill. C. of this Arrangement. · 
7 

2. Proprietary information received under thi"s Arrangement may be 

disseminated by the receiving Party without prior consent to contractors 

and consultants of the receiving Party located within the geographical 

limits of that Party's country proVided: 

a. that the proprietary information is used by such contractors and 

consultants only for work within the scope of their contracts with 

the receiving Party relating to the subject matter of the proprietary 

information, and shall not be used by such contractors and 

consultants for any other private commercial purposes; 

b. that such dissemination is made on a case-by-case basis to 

contractors and consultants who have executed a non-disclosure 

agreement; and 

c. that such proprietary information shall bear the restrictive legend 

appearing in Section Ill. C. of this Arrangement. 

3. With the prior written consent of the Party furnishing proprietary 

information under this Arrangement, the receiving Party may disseminate 

such proprietary information more widely than otherwise permitted under 

the terms set forth in this Arrangement. The Parties shall endeavor to 

grant such approval to the extent permitted by their respective national 

laws, regulations and policies, provided: • 

a. that the entities receiving proprietary information under Section 

111.0.3. of this Arrangement, including domestic organizations 

permitted or licensed by the receiving Party to construct or 

operate nuclear production or utilization facilities, or to use n~:~clear 

and materials radiation sources, have executed a non-disclosure 

agreement; 

b. that the entities receiving proprietary information under Section 

111.0.3. of this Arrangement, including domestic organizations 

permitted or licensed by the receiving Party to construct or 

operate nuclear production or utilization facilities; shall not use 

such proprietary information for any private commercial purposes; 

and 

c. that those entities receiving proprietary information under Section 

111.0.3. of this Arrangement that are domestic organizations 

permitted or licensed by the receiving Party, agree to use the 

proprietary information only for activities carried out under or 

within the terms of their specific permit or license. 
8 

E. Marking Procedures for Other Confidential or Privileged Information of a 

Documentary Nature 

A Party receiving under this Arrangement other confidential or privileged 

information shall respect its confidential nature, provided such information is 

clearly marked so as to indicate its confidential or privileged nature and is 

accompanied by a statement indicating: 

1. that the information is protected from public disclosure by the government 

of the transmitting Party; and 

2. that the information is transmitted under the condition that it be 

maintained in confidence. 

F. Dissemination of Other Confidential or Privileged Information of a Documentary 

Nature 

Other confidential or privileged information may be disseminated in the same 

manner as that set forth in Section Ill. D. "Dissemination of Documentary 

Proprietary Information." 

G. Non-Documentary Proprietary or Other Confidential or Privileged Information 

Non-documentary proprietary or other confidential or privileged information 

provided in seminars and other meetings organized under this Arrangement, or 

information arising from the attachments of staff, use of facilities, or joint projects, 

shall be treated by the Parties according to the principles specified for 

documentary information in this Arrangement; provided, however, that the Party 

communicating such proprietary or other confidential or privileged information 

has placed the recipient on notice as to the character of the information 

communicated. 

H. Consultation 

If, for any reason, one of the Parties becomes aware that it will be, or may 

reasonably be expected to become, unable to meet the non-dissemination 

provisions of this Arrangement, it shall immediately inform the other Party. The 

Parties shall thereafter consult to define an appropriate course of action. 

I. Other 

Nothing contained in this Arrangement shall preclude a Party from using or 

disseminating information received without restriction by a Party from sources 

outside of this Arrangement. 
9 

IV. FINAL PROVISIONS 

A Nothing contained in this Arrangement shall require either Party to take 

any action that would be inconsistent with its existing laws, regulations, or 

policy directives. Should any conflict arise between the terms of this 

Arrangement and those laws, regulations, or policy directives, the Parties 

agree to consult before any action is taken. No nuclear information 

related to proliferation-sensitive technologies shall be exchanged under 

this Arrangement. 

B. Unless otherwise agreed, all costs resulting from cooperation pursuant to 

this Arrangement shall be the responsibility of the Party that incurs them. 

The ability of the Parties to carry out their obligations is subject to the 

appropriation of funds by the appropriate governmental authority and to 

the laws, regulations and policies applicable to the Parties. 

C. Cooperation under this Arrangement shall be in accordance with the laws 

and regulations of the Parties. Any dispute or questions between the 

Parties concerning the interpretation or application of this Arrangement 

shall be settled by mutual agreement of the Parties. 

D. This Arrangement shall enter into force upon signature and, subject to 

paragraph E of this Section, shall remain in force for a period of five 

year~. It may be extended for a further period of time by written 

agreement of the Parties. 

E. Either Party may. terminate this Arrangement after providing the other 

party written notice 180 days prior to its intended date of termination. 

DONE at Vienna, Austria, on this 241

h day of September, 2014,-H:! duplicate, in the English anti- l4t·\~u .. s~·. 

Szeeh lai"'§UB§SS, both te.xts...beiog...equally a• 1thentic. 1\UQ A I;:, of vi 

FOR THE NUCLEAR REGULATORY 

COMMISSION OF THE UNITED STATES 

FOR THE CZECH REPUBLIC STATE 

OFFICE FOR NUCLEAR SAFETY 

/ 

Dana Drabova, President 
Addendum A 

USNRC-SUJB Safety Research Exchange 

Areas in Which the USNRC Is Performing or Sponsoring Safety Research 

1. Digital Instrumentation and Control 

2. Reactor and Electrical Equipment Qualification 

3. Environmental Transport 

4. Radionuclide Transport and Waste Management 

5. Dry Cask Storage and Transport 

6. Fire Safety Research 

7. Nuclear Fuel Analysis 

8. Severe Accident Analysis 

9. Operating Experience and Generic Issues 

10. Human Factors Engineering 

11. Organizational Factors/Safety Culture 

12. Human Reliability Analysis (HRA) 

13. Probabilistic Risk Assessments 

14. Radiation Protection and Health Effects 

15. Seismic Safety 

16. State of the Art Risk Consequences 

17. Reactor Containment Structural Safety 

18. Reactor Vessel and Piping Integrity 

19. Regulatory Guide Update 

20. New and Advanced Reactor Designs 

21. Decommissioning 

22. Thermal Hydraulic Code Applications and Maintenance 

23. Uncertainty Analysis for Thermal Hydraulic Kinetics 

24. Coupled 3D Neutronic and Plant Thermal Hydraulics 

25. Medical Isotope Production 

26. Long-term Operational Management 

27. Plant and Systems Operations 
Addendum B 

Areas in Which the SUJB Is Performing or Sponsoring Nuclear Safety Research 

1. Reactor Vessel and Piping Integrity 

2. Aging of Reactor Components 

3. Reactor Equipment Qualification 

4. Thermal Hydraulic Code Application and Maintenance 

5. Plant Performance 

6. Human Performance 

7. Core Melt and Reactor Coolant System Failure 

8. Reactor Containment Safety 

9. Containment Structural Integrity 4 

10. Seismic Safety 

11. Probabilistic Risk Assessment 

12. . Severe Accident Analysis 

13. Radiation Protection and Health Effects 

14. Radionuclide Transport and Waste Management 

15. Nuclear Fuel Analysis 
Intellectual Property Rights Annex 

I. General Obligation 

The Parties shall ensure adequate and effective protection of intellectual property 

created or furnished under this Arrangement and relevant implementing arrangements. 

Rights to such intellectual property shall be allocated as provided in this Annex. 

II. Scope 

A This Annex is applicable to all cooperative activities undertaken pursuant to this 

Arrangement, except as otherwise specifically agreed by the Parties or their designees. 

B. For purposes of this Arrangement, "intellectual property" shall mean the subject matter 

listed in Article 2 of the Convention Establishing the World Intellectual Property 

Organization, done at Stockholm, July 14, 1967, and may include other subject matter 

as agreed by the Parties. 

C. Each Party shall ensure, through contracts or other legal means with its own 

participants, if necessary, that the other Party can obtain the rights to intellectual 

property allocated in accordance with this Annex. This Annex does not otherwise alt~r 

or prejudice the allocation between a Party and its nationals, which shall be determined 

by that Party's laws and practices. 

D. Except as otherwise provided in this Arrangement, disputes concerning intellectual 

property arising under this Arrangement shall be resolved through discussions between 

the concerned participating institutions, or, if necessary, the Parties or their designees. 

Upon mutual Arrangement of the Parties, a dispute shall be submitted to an arbitral 

tribunal for binding arbitration in accordance with the applicable rules of international 

law. Unless the Parties or their designees agree otherwise in writing, the arbitration 

rules of UNCITRAL shall govern. 

E. Termination or expiration of this Arrangement shall not affect rights or obligations under 

this Annex. 

Ill. Allocation of Rights 

A Each Party shall be entitled to a non-exclusive, irrevocable, royalty-free license in all 

countries to translate, reproduce, and publicly distribute scientific and technical journal 

articles, reports, and books directly arising from cooperation under this Arrangement. All 

publicly distributed copies of a copyrighted work prepared under this provision shall 

indicate the names of the authors of the work unless an author explicitly declines to be 

named. 

B. Rights to all forms of intellectual property, other than those rights described in paragraph 

III.A above, shall be allocated as follows: 
(1) Visiting researchers shall receive rights, awards, bonuses and royalties 1n 

accordance with the policies of the host institution. 

(2) (a) Any intellectual property created by persons employed or sponsored by one 

Party under cooperative activities other than those covered by paragraph 111.(8)(1) 

shall be owned by that Party. Intellectual property created by persons employed or 

sponsored by both Parties shall be jointly owned by the Parties. In addition, each 

creator shall be entitled to awards, bonuses and royalties in accordance with the 

policies of the institution employing or sponsoring that person. 

(b) Unless otherwise agreed in an implementing or other arrangement, each Party 

shall have within its territory a right to exploit or license intellectual property created 

in the course of the cooperative activities. 

(c) The rights of a Party outside its territory shall be determined by mutual 

Arrangement considering the relative contributions of the Parties and their 

participants to the cooperative activities, the degree of commitment in obtaining 

legal protection and licensing of the intellectual property and such other factors 

deemed appropriate. 

(d) Notwithstanding paragraphs III.B(2)(a) and (b) above, if either Party believes 

that a particular project is likely to lead to or has led to the creation of intellectual 

property not protected by the laws of the other Party, the Parties shall immediately 

hold discussions to determine the allocation of rights to the intellectual property. If 

an.Arrangement cannot be reached within three months of the date of the initiation 

of the discussions, cooperation on the project in question shall be terminated at the 

request of either Party. Creators of intellectual property shall nonetheless be 

entitled to awards, bonuses and royalties as provided in paragraph III.B(2)(a). 

(e) For each invention made under any cooperative activity, the Party ·employing or 

sponsoring the inventor(s) shall disclose the invention promptly to the other Party 

together with any documentation and information necessary to enable the other 

Party to establish any rights to which it may be entitled. Either Party may ask the 

other Party in writing to delay publication or public disclosure of such documentation 

or information for the purpose of protecting its rights in the invention. Unless 

otherwise agreed in writing, the delay shall not exceed a period of six months from 

the date of disclosure by the inventing Party to the other Party. 

IV. Business Confidential Information 

In the event that information identified in a timely fashion as business-confidential is 

furnished or created under this Arrangement, each Party and its participants shall 

protect such information in accordance with applicable laws, regulations, and 

administrative practices. Information may be identified as" business-confidential" if a 

person having the information may derive an economic benefit from it or may obtain a 

competitive advantage over those who do not have it, and the information is not 

generally known or publicly available from other sources, and the owner has not 

previously made the information available without imposing in a timely manner an 

obligation to keep it confidential.