Iraq was one recent, notorious example. While there's very little likelihood of an Australian Government pursuing a nuclear weapons program in the foreseeable future, the development and export of alternative technologies, such as cyclotrons, would represent a concrete Australian contribution to global efforts to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons. The third problem with research reactors concerns safety. There have been at least 13 serious accidents involving research reactors around the world, and at least three of these resulted in loss of life. There are several alternatives.
Cyclotrons belong to a class of machines called particle accelerators.
These are electromagnetic devices which accelerate charged particles to enormous velocities. The particles can then be directed to hit a target and thus produce radio isotopes. Cyclotrons have important advantages over nuclear reactors in relation to radioactive waste and safety, and cyclotrons pose no risk in relation to weapons proliferation. The underlying reason for these advantages is that cyclotrons are powered by electricity, whereas research reactors rely on a uranium fission reaction. Cyclotron technology has advanced at a rapid pace in the past ten to twenty years.