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RANSAC Nuclear News, November 17, 2003 Compiled By: Matthew Bouldin A. Nuclear Scientists
 A. Nuclear Scientists 1. PART 2: HARD TIMES FOR EX-WMD DESIGNERS (Part 2 of 2) PHILADELPHIA - Yuri Belinskii, an investment manager in a venture capital firm, stood in front of a huge promotional poster titled "Ukraine: The New Silicon Valley". Belinskii's firm, AVentures, was among scores of companies attending an exhibition in the northeastern US city of Philadelphia recently sponsored by the US Department of Energy. The aim was to bring together American investors with experts from the former Soviet Union to assure that their expertise, once used for manufacturing weapons of mass destruction, could be put to more benign uses today. AVentures, like other participants in the exhibition, was eager to secure financing for its projects, but found less interest than it had hoped for. Belinskii told RFE/RL that AVentures has been in the Ukrainian market for nine years and is now trying to promote Ukrainian technology in markets in North America, Europe and Asia. "We fill this gap between Ukrainian scientists and [research and development] people, and Western markets. We know the Ukrainian market very well, we are very well connected in Ukraine, we have very good marketing and [research and development] expertise 'in house', so we can provide for specific needs. [We need] a partner who has expertise and connections in the Western markets who can promote Ukrainian technologies. We can provide both finances and management on the Ukrainian part of this equation," Belinskii said. Belinskii says that in the countries of the former Soviet Union, venture capital firms are still a rarity. Lack of funds and underdeveloped markets are the main stumbling blocks. That's why AVentures is looking for outside partners. Oleg Pavlovski of the Moscow-based Nuclear Safety Institute gave a cautious assessment of the practical value of the Philadelphia expo. "There was a hope, but I think that the opportunity to find a [US] partner is not really high. First of all, I see that there is not much activity in the exhibit hall - well, maybe it is still early. The second issue is that it is difficult to find a partner in the computer technology business at the development stage instead of the [stage where you are already dealing with the] practical application of a finished product. It is especially difficult in our particular industry," Pavlovski said. Pavlovski's laboratory is engaged in the development of computer-enhanced models dealing with the consequences of so-called "radioactive terrorism". He says that the essence of its work puts it in an awkward position for finding a commercial partner in the US. There is too much sensitive information, he says, that cannot not be publicly disclosed without running the risk of attracting potential terrorists. Although not very optimistic about the possibility of securing a joint venture with a US partner on the heels of the exhibition, Pavlovski said that since the collapse of the Soviet Union their institute has relied more and more on contractual work with outside partners. "In reality, we do a lot of contractual work with the Americans - and not only with them. We are developing certain parts of [US Nuclear Regulatory Commission] programs, [the US Department of Energy], [the US Department of Defense,] and many others in the US. We are working with particular laboratories in the US. But all this is contractual work, we are just doing a part of the project within an overall framework," Pavlovski said. Pavlovski says that this year only about 15 percent of the Nuclear Safety Institute's budget has come from state coffers. The rest of the financing is secured through commercial contracts. He says compensation for the scientists employed in developing such contracts is very good by Russian standards, in the range of "several thousand" US dollars a month. Manat Tolymbekov is director of the Karaganda Chemical Metallurgical Institute in Kazakhstan. He says that his research and development team last year developed three major innovations, among them a cheaper and more efficient way to extract metals from ore. He told RFE/RL that Karaganda is eager to bring its products to Western markets. "We are mostly interested in the marketing of our products. We know that we have customers in Russia, Kazakhstan and in the former Soviet Union. We would like [to sell] our products in Western Europe and America for the production of steel and iron alloys. And we are interested in [foreign] investment," Tolymbekov said. Tolymbekov says that foreign investment will be doubly beneficial for Karaganda because it will allow for the construction of additional technological facilities and speed up the firm's production, allowing it to satisfy both domestic markets and export demand. Like other conference participants, Tolymbekov says that the Philadelphia exposition is more a chance to explore potential business opportunities than a direct route to a lucrative contract with an American partner: "It seems the visitors [at the exhibit] are more interested in [nuclear] technologies. If it was a metallurgical expo then the interest [in Karaganda] would be higher. As it is, we kind of don't fit in the overall picture. Realistically speaking, we didn't find interested [US] parties. Some of the visitors took our advertising brochures and business cards and told us that if there is an interest they will contact us. When we initially saw the outline of the expo and were invited, we realized that our [products] were different. I had the gut feeling that our stuff would not be very much in demand here," Tolymbekov said. Among the few partnerships forged at the exhibition was an agreement between Fuelco, a Midwest-based utilities service company, and Optima, a Moscow-based systems integrator and software development firm. The initial agreement will lead to development of fuel accounting software designed to help track procurement of nuclear fuel products. This partnership aims to help US utilities lower costs to their customers. Another joint venture announced by the US and Russian energy ministers at the exhibition will employ former Russian nuclear scientists to manufacture medical components in the formerly closed city of Snezhinsk. Return to Menu 2. US SEES DOLLARS IN RUSSIAN NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY (Part 1 of 2) PHILADELPHIA - At a time of growing alarm about terrorism, weapons of mass destruction and nuclear proliferation, United States officials are looking to enlist the ingenuity of former Soviet scientists. The US Department of Energy last week unveiled a new approach to its non-proliferation efforts at a two-day conference in Philadelphia - highlighting products from the former Soviet Union in need of matching capital. The conference featured 140 high-tech products from Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan for use in a diverse range of industries, including nuclear reactors, coal, petroleum and gas and hydrogen technology. Many of the technologies presented have never before been accessible to US companies. US Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham spelled out the importance of the initiative, called "Partnerships for Prosperity and Security": "There is no question that many of these technologies can have wider applications in the global marketplace. On display are more than 100 high technology products ready for commercialization, in areas ranging from nuclear fuel and reactor technology to fuel cells, aerospace and nanotechnology. There are even several technologies specifically designed to aid nonproliferation efforts and reduce terrorism threats. Among these are face-recognition software, portable diagnostics and chemical and biological detectors." This technical ingenuity is the product of entities like the Moscow-based Kurchatov Research Institute for Nuclear Energy, which during the Cold War employed more than 10,000 nuclear energy experts and scientists. With the demise of the Soviet Union and the collapse of the planned Soviet economy, a significant number of these professionals could not find employment or were forced by necessity to work for meager salaries. The US was intent from the beginning on preventing these scientists from accepting employment in rogue states considered a threat to international peace and security. Aleksandr Rumyantsev, Russia's atomic energy minister, acknowledged at the Philadelphia conference that there are few opportunities for these scientists in Russia, especially those employed in the so-called "closed cities" inaccessible to foreigners. A Russian nuclear city is a closed territory where nuclear weapons design and production takes place. "It's true, it is definitely a problem for us to determine how we should transform these unemployed [or underemployed] scientists for a peaceful, [non-military] working environment," Rumyantsev said. "Today's exhibit is an intermediate step, a kind of bridge-crossing between the military use of nuclear energy and its use for peaceful and practical purposes for all humankind." Rumyantsev recalled the experience of the joint US-Russia Nuclear Cities Initiative, which sought to provide employment to former military nuclear specialists. The development of nuclear arms was accompanied by the discovery of many new technologies that at the time were highly secretive. But now, with the dismantling or reducing of nuclear arms facilities in both the US and Russia, there is a potential for many of those innovations to be applied in non-military fields, such as medicine. Last week's conference follows strides in recent months to enhance the energy dialogue between the US and Russia. Last month, Abraham participated in the US-Russia Commercial Energy Summit in St Petersburg, which drew 600 business and government leaders in energy policy and commerce. Abraham told the Philadelphia conference that such efforts are starting to yield results: "Promoting employment and economic development opportunities for these individuals is one of Minister Rumyantsev's and my highest priorities. And I am proud of the significant resources which our department has been devoting for creating peaceful commercial prospects for those individuals. So far we have witnessed a number of encouraging developments in these efforts to create jobs and partnerships for former weapon scientists." Abraham and Rumyantsev announced at the conference the first joint venture project between a US company and a Russian company founded in a closed nuclear city. The groundbreaking project, which furthers the non-proliferation efforts of the US Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration, will employ former Russian nuclear scientists to manufacture medical components, equipment and devices in the formally closed city of Snezhinsk. The joint venture - between Numotech Inc, a Northridge, California medical-devices company, and Spektr-Conversion LLC, a Russian entrepreneurial start-up - will make life-changing medical products available to millions of people worldwide. Projects include a product to prevent and heal pressure ulcers for those confined to wheelchairs, and a unique oxygen-bath system for healing wounds, pressure sores, burns and incisions. Nearly 100 former employees of the Russian Federation's All Russian Scientific and Research Institute for Technical Physics, who previously worked on the manufacturing and design of nuclear weapons, are now employed at Spektr-Conversion. The Numotech-Spektr Conversion joint venture culminates three years of US government support and is expected to create 433 permanent local jobs. Return to Menu B. Sub Dismantlement/Recommissioning 1. MURMANSK ATOMFLOT COMMISSIONED INF INTERIM STORAGE November 13 ship technical support base Atomflot in Murmansk commissioned the "accumulation storage site for temporary storage of nuclear submarine irradiated fuel containers" As Nuclear.Ru was informed by Valeri Govorukhin, the State Secretary - RF Deputy Minister of Atomic Energy, who participated in the inauguration ceremony, the facility had been built under the program for the Arctic military environmental cooperation (AMEC) where the key players were the ministries of defense of Russia, Norway and the USA. This summer the program was joined by the U.K. defense ministry. Presently, 23 projects are underway within this program with the temporary N-Sub INF (irradiated nuclear fuel) container storage site being one of them. Govorukhin reminded that in the past the USSR had built over 250 nuclear submarines. Today 192 submarines have retired and subject to cutting. Only 89 of them have been cut so far. Nuclear fuel has been unloaded from 118 vessels. Correspondingly, 74 submarines subject to cutting have the INF in. "The temporary INF storage site has been constructed to facilitate the N-Subs disposition process", said Govorukhin explaining that previously the fuel had been unloaded directly to the railcars and shipped to PA Mayak for storage and processing. From now on the fuel will be unloaded to a support ship and then to the shore buffer storage site and temporary stored until the off-shipment. "The accumulation site has been built to ensure the continuity of the process and speed up the fuel unloading from submarines. It is a part of the overall transport and process scheme used for NS INF handling", the Deputy Minister said. The site is located on the territory belonging to Atomflot in the Murmansk seaport and constitutes a structure equipped with all necessary safety and security systems. The delegations present during the inauguration ceremony were demonstrated how the pilot loading-unloading operation worked. It was done on the dual-purpose metal-and-concrete transport container, which can be used both for INF storage and transportation. The container design was developed by St. Petersburg-based Nuclid Company and manufactured by Izhorskie Zavody works. The accumulation site can house 19 containers simultaneously. The containers are designed for INF storage for 5 to 50 years at temperatures down to minus 50 degrees Celsius. Govorukhin also said that an information and technical system of emergency monitoring of safe functioning of the facility had been commissioned along with the site. "This is the system, which includes detectors, communication links, displays and software Picasso developed and supplied by the Norway experts under AMEC program". Return to Menu 2. NERPA SHIPYARD COMPLETED DEFUELING FIRST GENERATION N-SUB REACTOR Nerpa shipyard has completed reloading of irradiated nuclear fuel (INF) from the first generation nuclear submarine reactor into the special storage facility of the technical support ship Imandra of the Murmansk Shipping Company (MSC), RIA Novosti reports referring to MSC press-service. The defueling operations were conducted normally with no violations recorded. The 658 project nuclear submarine K-54 ("Hotel" class) was built in 1960. Last time its reactor was fuelled in 1976 and eleven years after it retired from the Russian NAVY Northern Fleet that was followed by sixteen years of idling with nuclear fuel in. Then it was towed to the "closed city" Ostrovnoi and stayed there until now still with INF unloaded. MSC said complexity of this defueling operation was that it was the first time when it was done solely by the MSC specialists. The company's employees received appropriate training and got permits for such work from the Experimental Design Bureau of Machine Engineering named after I.I. Afrikantov". The N-Sub defueling operation procedure was prepared by the Research and Design Bureau Onega. Return to Menu 3. RUSSIA RECOMMISSIONS DELTA 3-CLASS SUBMARINE The Russian Navy has recommissioned a Delta 3 ballistic missile submarine, ITAR-Tass reported today (see GSN, Sept. 3). The submarine, St. George the Victorious, was returned to the Russian Pacific Fleet today after an overhaul and is now stationed at a naval base on the Kamchatka Peninsula, according to ITAR-Tass. The submarine is armed with 16 ballistic missiles (Naryshkin/Konovalov, ITAR-Tass, Nov. 14). Return to Menu C. Nuclear Trafficking 1. CZECH POLICE STOP RADIOACTIVE TRADE AS IAEA DISCUSSES ISSUE As the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna was concluding a conference on how to make radioactive waste globally secure, Czech police were arresting two men for trying to sell enough material to make a massive so-called "dirty bomb." Undercover Czech officers arrested two men in a "sting" operation for trying to sell them three kilograms of radioactive material. The men, who were from Slovakia, were arrested in their hotel room in the Czech town of Brno as they were counting $700,000 handed over in the deal. The Czech nuclear safety office says the material confiscated probably came from somewhere in the former Soviet bloc and could be used to make a so-called dirty bomb powerful enough to make a large town uninhabitable. (A dirty bomb uses conventional explosives to disperse radioactive material. It does not produce a nuclear explosion.) As the arrests in the Czech Republic were made, IAEA scientists in nearby Vienna were winding up a two-week conference on improving security for radioactive waste. The IAEA says only 33 countries have agreed to a legal convention on common safety standards. Gordon Linsley, head of waste safety at the IAEA, says radioactive material is widely used in innocent pursuits, for example, to check the welding in pipelines. "It is not uncommon for these radioactive sources to go missing, and there have been rather large sources from the former Soviet Union which were used for various purposes, and there have been a number of incidents with these being found in the environment and the agency has been engaged in trying to recover these," he said. Mr. Linsley said he is disappointed that most of the countries in the Middle East and the former Soviet Union have so far not agreed to the convention. He says radioactive sources can be stolen relatively easily from nuclear waste dumps left unguarded or from hospitals and factories. Terrorists could then buy the material on the black market and assemble a simple dirty bomb that could scatter radioactive material causing panic, contamination and deaths. Return to Menu D. Chemical Weapons Destruction 1. MUSTARD GAS DISPOSED OF AT GORNY FACILITY IN RUSSIA SARATOV. Nov 17 (Interfax) - A chemical weapons destruction facility in the community of Gorny in the Saratov region completed the disposal of stockpiles of yprit, or mustard gas, on Friday. An interregional information and analytical center on safe storage and disposal of chemical weapons made this announcement on Monday. The facility has destroyed 622.3 tonnes of yprit, releasing 1,371.6 tonnes of stock, the center said. On Friday, specialists began taking the yprit disposal line out of operation. The process includes the completion of detoxification, degassing, washing, blowing, and drying of the equipment that was in direct contact with the war gas. The lewisite disposal line in the Gorny facility will be put into operation only after the yprit line is completely taken out of operation, the center said. The yprit polymerization products that was released in the form of sediment after the lengthy storage of the gas in containers will be processed during the disposal of yprit-lewisite mixtures after the lewisite stored at the facility is fully destroyed. The Ministry of Natural Resources, which inspected the Gorny facility in late October, found that the maximum permissible concentration of war gases was not exceeded. Return to Menu 2. RUSSIAN CHEMICAL WEAPONS CANNOT BE DESTROYED IN NINE YEARS Moscow, Nov 15, Ria-Novosti/ACSNA/IRNA -- Russia ratified the Chemical Weapons Convention on November 5, 1997. Under it, Russia must destroy its chemical weapons stock by 2012. However, the adoption and ratification of the convention was the first stage in a long and costly process, one that is proceeding slower than expected. The Russian Green Cross, a non-governmental public organization, held the Fifth Public Forum that discussed the fulfillment of Russia`s chemical disarmament obligations in Moscow on November 11 and 12. The latest data on chemical disarmament were announced at the forum. The creation of the Green Cross is the evidence of the complicated task that Moscow has undertaken. Its president Sergei Baranovsky said the creation of the organization was prompted by the need to coordinate the efforts of the main parties involved in the destruction of chemical weapons. These parties include the population and the administration of the sites where toxic agents are stored and where scrapping facilities are operating or being built, representatives of regional public organizations, federal executive authorities and departments responsible for the organization of disarmament and representatives of the international public and donor countries directly involved in chemical disarmament. New factories must be built to destroy toxic agents at their storage sites. There is little difference between such enterprises and textile or chocolate factories. They are large investment projects that need money for building highways and railways, residential blocks, hospitals, water and gas lines, and sewage systems for the nearby settlements. So far, these tasks are being tackled rather well, though not very quickly. But what about the rest? During the Cold War, Russia accumulated more chemical weapons (40,000 metric tons) than any other country. (The USA had 35,000 metric tons.) It will cost 93 billion roubles, or approximately dlrs 3.1 billion, to destroy these weapons. Neither the Russian budget and economy in the 1990s nor the current budget and economy can afford this endeavor. Russia increases allocations for chemical disarmament annually (5.36 billion roubles in 2003), yet this is not enough. "Currently, Russia has destroyed 610 metric tons of yperite," Vyacheslav Kulebyakin, deputy director general of the Russian Munitions Agency, said at the forum. "We will finish destroying the yperite stocked in Gorny, Saratov Region, in November and start detoxifying lewisite." The Russian Munitions Agency is responsible for the safe storage and destruction of Russia`s chemical stocks. Russia has destroyed Category 2 -- 122mm artillery shells armed with phosgene (3,844, with the aggregate mass of 10 metric tons of toxic agents) -- and Category 3 -- unarmed (meaning empty) shells and aviation bombs and fragmentation and powder charges (288,300, including 24,000 charges) -- chemical weapons. It has also scrapped 6.5 metric tons of dangerous chemical weapons, weapons whose containers` service life has expired and could crack any moment. Thank God, not a single emergency was recorded during their storage time. Gen. Kulebyakin`s example about the destruction of yperite and lewisite in the Saratov Region demonstrates that Russia cannot destroy its chemical stocks by the deadline coordinated with the Hague Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). Russia was supposed to report the destruction of one percent of its chemical stocks the Hague on April 26, 2000. At the forum, Kulebyakin said the 400 metric tons of yperite (the required one percent) were destroyed in April 2003 (presently, 610 metric tons have been destroyed). Nobody is talking about the initial deadlines now. The OPCW granted Moscow`s appeal to extend the deadline. Russia must liquidate 20 percent of its stocks (8,000 metric tons) by April 29, 2007; 45 percent (18,000 metric tons) by April 29, 2009; and the rest by late April 2012. It appears these deadlines will unlikely be met for the same -- financial -- reason. To destroy 8,000 metric tons of toxic agents by 2007 and create the basis for the next stage (45 percent by 2009), Russia needs to open in 2005 the lewisite scrapping factory in Kambarka (6,360 metric tons) and the first stage of the factory in Shchuchye (5,440 metric tons of sarin, soman and VX). In 2003, 439.7 million roubles was allocated for the construction of the lewisite scrapping factory in Kambarka. Another 112 million roubles was allocated for social projects, a requisite expense. A similar amount will be allocated in 2004. This may not be enough to build the facility for the utilization of reactive masses, detoxification modules, a compressor and refrigerator stations, a terminal for dismantling equipment with toxic agents, a fire-fighting depot, sewage and water system, and to modernize the boiler room and build several kilometers of roads. The German government allocated 30 million euros for the project. The Netherlands supplied 2 million euros, inspiring the hope that Russian builders will meet their deadlines -- if the Russian government allocated the promised funds. The situation at the Shchuchye facility in the Kurgan Region is even worse. The US pledged dlrs 888 million to finance the construction of the first stage of a factory for destroying organophosphorous substances in the local storage. However, for the past three years, the Republican majority in Congress conditioned financial assistance to the Kremlin to all kinds of unacceptable conditions. As a result, Russia has not received the money. This year President Bush ordered dlrs 200 million allocated to Moscow. As of November, the US has only provided dlrs 12 million. Meanwhile, Russia is building the second stage (which it is duty bound to finance independently) in Shchuchye. Foreign countries are also contributing to the project. In particular, Canada and the EU (Britain and Norway) have granted dlrs 20 million and 10 million euros, respectively, for the modernization of power lines and the construction of a railway bridge and line to link the storage facility and the factory. Poland and the Czech Republic have provided small but highly appreciated sums (dlrs 100,000 each). Vyacheslav Kulebyakin says Russia will complete the construction of the second stage in Shchuchye in 2005 and the destruction of organophosphorous toxic agents will begin by the end of 2006. However, if the USA fails to provide the promised funds, Moscow will have to appeal to the Hague to extend the deadline again. The trouble is not that US Congressmen view the money as `assistance` and fail to understand that the destruction of toxic agents in Russia increases US security as well. The trouble is that the US has `discovered` that the destruction of chemical weapons is more expensive than its production. The US, although financially stronger than Russia, has also asked the OPCW to extend the deadline to destroy its own chemical weapons. Return to Menu 3. RUSSIA TO BEGIN DESTROYING LEWISITE STOCKPILES BY END OF THIS MONTH Sergei Kiriyenko, chairman of the Russian state commission for chemical disarmament, said Tuesday that Russia would begin destroying lewisite stockpiles on Nov. 25, according to ITAR-Tass (see GSN, May 14). Kiriyenko also said the destruction of stockpiles of msutard at the Gorny chemical weapons disposal facility would be completed before a Nov. 20 deadline (ITAR-Tass, Nov. 11 in FBIS-SOV, Nov. 11). Russia has increased funding for the safeguarding and destruction of chemical weapons stockpiles three times so far this year, Russian Munitions Agency Deputy Director General Vyacheslav Kulebyakin said today. The additional funding has gone toward improving the �engineering safeguarding of facilities� and enhanced security measures, Kulebyakin said (Anatoly Yurkin, ITAR-Tass, Nov. 12). Return to Menu E. Biological Weapons Convention Conference 1. UN * BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS CONVENTION * TALKS GENEVA, November 15, 2003. /RIA Novosti correspondent Yekaterina Andrianova/. Five-day negotiations of the representatives of member-countries of the UN Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) concluded on Friday in Geneva. The participants reached an agreement to develop measures aimed at observing the BWC provisions on a national level. "This meeting allowed us to reach better mutual understanding on issues that we had been discussing throughout the entire year," head of the Russian delegation, Russian special envoy Anatoly Antonov told RIA Novosti. The participants have issued a report on the results of the negotiations, which provides for the study and, if necessary, the alteration of the existing legislation of the member-countries in order to exercise better control over strict observance of the BWC. According to the head of the Russian delegation, this document has a "factological" character. Moscow has been proposing a "more ambitious version" of the final report. Mr. Antonov stated that the Russian side suggested adopting a series of concrete recommendations that could have been used by BWC member-countries voluntarily in the process of improving their respective legislation. At present, 151 member-countries of the 1972 UN Biological Weapons Convention face the major task of developing the Compliance Protocol. Last year, the members agreed to conduct three yearly meetings in 2003-2005 prior to the scheduled revision conference in 2006. This decision was adopted after the United States refused to continue participation the preparation of the Compliance Protocol in December 2001. Return to Menu F. Cooperative Threat Reduction 1. U.S. LAWMAKERS URGE WHITE HOUSE TO RESOLVE THREAT REDUCTION LIABILITY DISPUTE WITH RUSSIA WASHINGTON � U.S. lawmakers last week called on the Bush administration to resolve an ongoing dispute with Russia over liability protections in nuclear nonproliferation agreements (see GSN, Oct. 17). In a provision to the fiscal 2004 energy appropriations conference report, House and Senate negotiators said they were �greatly concerned with the continued impasse� in the negotiations between the United States and Russia over liability protections, which are intended to protect workers involved in cooperative threat reduction efforts. The impasse led the Bush administration to allow two nuclear nonproliferation projects � the Plutonium Disposition Scientific and Technical Cooperation Agreement (see GSN, July 25) and the Nuclear Cities Initiative (see GSN, Sept. 19) � to expire recently. �The conferees urge a speedy resolution to the liability negotiations,� the report says. Kenneth Luongo, executive director of the Russian-American Nuclear Security Advisory Council, yesterday praised lawmakers for urging a speedy resolution to the liability dispute. �The Congress now has clearly stated that the protracted wrangling over liability issues threatens the success of U.S.- Russian nonproliferation engagement. The Administration may find it hard to ignore such a pointed bipartisan message from key legislators,� Luongo said in a press statement. Last week, U.S. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham said the United States and Russia were moving to resolve the disagreement. �[Russian Atomic Energy] Minister [Alexander] Rumyantsev suggested this summer that we get the legal teams together, and we�ve already had one such meeting. I think it was a positive meeting that hopefully can help lead to resolving these legal issues in terms of interpretation and issues of that sort. We�re obviously each putting a great deal of emphasis on the program,� he said in a Nov. 6 press briefing. Return to Menu G. Multilateral Threat Reduction 1. CANADA TO ASSIST IN WARGASES DESTRUCTION IN RUSSIA MOSCOW, NOVEMBER 17. /RIA NOVOSTI / -- On November 19 British and Canadian ambassadors will sign in Moscow a memorandum of mutual understanding. It intends assisting Russia in the destruction of its chemical arms stockpiles in its territory, reads the communique, which has come to hand at RIA Novosti from the Canadian embassy to the Russian Federation. Canada will allocate 33 million Canadian dollars and the United Kingdom will assume management of the project. The means will go to build an 18-kilometer railway outspur for the transportation of ammunition from the wargas depot to the destruction facility in Schuchye in the Kurgan region, the Ural federal district. The project is part of the programme Global Partnership against the Spread of Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction, adopted by the G8 leaders at the Kananaskis summit meeting in Canada in June 2002. The programme is designed to give a backing to projects preventing weapons and materials of mass destruction from getting into the hands of terrorists. It obliges participant countries to allocate up to 20 billion American dollars for the implementation of such projects. Return to Menu 2. JAPAN TO HELP RUSSIA SCRAP NUCLEAR WEAPONS MOSCOW. Nov 15 (Interfax) - Russian and Japanese negotiators on Friday confirmed an agreement on Japanese assistance in the disposal of a Russian nuclear submarine, the first in a series of projects in which Japan will help Russia scrap its nuclear weapons. The agreement, which comprises a financial contract and an operational deal, was signed during a visit by Japanese Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi to Vladivostok, Russia, in June this year. A Victor III class submarine will start to be taken apart at a Vladivostok shipyard soon, the Japanese Embassy in Moscow said late on Friday. Other issues, including environmental monitoring in the Sea of Japan, were also raised during Friday's talks, in which the Japanese delegation was led by Ambassador to Russia Issei Nomura and the chief Russian negotiator was Deputy Atomic Energy Minister Sergei Antipov, the embassy said in a release made available to Interfax. Return to Menu 3. G-8 EFFORT TO PREVENT WMD PROLIFERATION NEEDS MORE FUNDING, RESEARCHERS SAY WASHINGTON � A multinational effort to secure WMD materials in the former Soviet Union needs more support to be effective, a group of more than 20 international research organizations said in a report released this week (see GSN, Sept. 22). In establishing the Global Partnership Against the Spread of Weapons of Mass Destruction last year, the Group of Eight nations pledged $20 billion over 10 years to help fund nonproliferation projects, primarily in Russia. The effort was launched during a 2002 G-8 summit in Kananaskis, Canada. The G-8 consists of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States, and several other nations have joined the effort, including Finland, the European Union, Norway, the Netherlands, Sweden and Switzerland (see GSN, June 6). According to a report by the Strengthening the Global Partnership project, partnership nations have provided �inadequate and short-sighted� funding to adequately combat WMD proliferation threats. While partnership members have so far pledged $18.6 billion to the effort, this figure does not represent actual national funding allocations, the report says. It also says that the pledged funding is for projects designed to be carried out over the 10-year course of the partnership rather than immediate work, and that much of the pledged funding is for projects that were initiated before the launch of the partnership. �We are doing a lot of things, but we are not moving nearly fast enough. We have a common peril and we must hold leaders to be accountable for the wise pledges they have made,� the Singapore Straits Times today quoted former U.S. Senator Sam Nunn (D-Ga.) as saying. In addition, according to the report, many of the funding pledges made by partnership members are �minimal� compared with national resources. For example, if current spending patterns are maintained, every partnership member with the exception of Russia itself will spend less than 1 percent of what they devote to defense spending on cooperative assistance programs. In addition, no partnership member has agreed to provide as much as 1 percent of their annual gross domestic product toward the efforts of the partnership, the report says. �It is in the interest of every member to make a contribution to the partnership proportional to its means and reflective of the magnitude of the threat the partnership confronts,� it says. Return to Menu H. Russia -- Korea 1. RUSSIA AND SOUTH KOREA AGAINST NUCLEAR WEAPONS ON KOREAN PENINSULA Russia and South Korea are for the settlement of the Korean crisis. "We are for clearing the Korean Peninsula of nuclear weapons", Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov said after meeting with his South Korean counterpart today. Russia is closely cooperating with South Korea in this area and is an active participant of corresponding negotiations, Ivanov emphasized. The Russian foreign minister mentioned that the resolution of this problem should take account of lawful safety and non-interference in domestic affairs of North Korea. Similar announcements on the part of the USA and North Korea testify to a constructive dialogue in searching after a solution to this problem, Ivanov pointed out. Return to Menu 2. RUSSIA, CHINA DISCUSS NORTH KOREA'S NUCLEAR PROGRAM BEIJING, November 17, 2003 (RIA Novosti) -- Russian-Chinese consultations on the nuclear problem of the Korean Peninsula took place in Beijing on Monday. Preparations for the second round of six-sided talks with the United States, South Korea, Japan, China, Russia, and North Korea were the focus of the meeting, diplomatic sources said. Director of the First Asia Department of the Russian Foreign Ministry Yevgeny Afanasyev represented Russia at this meeting. A new round of six-sided talks on North Korea's nuclear program is likely to be held in December. The outcome of the talks depends on the approach of the United States, a spokesman for the North Korean Foreign Ministry said in Pyongyang on Sunday. North Korea will end its nuclear program if the U.S. ends its policy of threatening North Korea, the spokesman said. Return to Menu I. Russian Nuclear Forces 1. TWO STRONTIUM POWERED LIGHTHOUSES VANDALISED ON KOLA PENINSULA Two radioisotope thermo generators, or RTGs, were vandalised at the Kola Peninsula. The Northern Fleet discovered it during regular checks in mid November. The government of the Murmansk region referred to the event as "radiation accident." Two RTGs were found ripped apart at two locations at the Kola Peninsula. The thieves took with them all the valuable metals they can sell at the scrap metal market in Murmansk, including stainless steel, lead and aluminium. The perpetrators also took with them depleted uranium which is used as the protection of RTGs strontium core. The strontium cores are left behind, at the location of the lighthouses. The government of the Murmansk region sent out a presser today which says that on November 12th 2003, while conducting a scheduled examination of the lighthouses, the Hydrographic Department of the Northern Fleet found a completely dissembled radioisotope thermal generator (RTG) Beta-M type no.255, which used to power the navigation lighthouse no.414.1 in Olenya bay in the Kola harbour (on the northern shore opposite the entry to Ekaterininskaya harbour). The RTG is completely destroyed. All its parts, including the protection made of depleted uranium, have been stolen by unidentified thieves. Radioisotope heat source was found onshore in water at 1.5-3 meters depth. On November 13th 2003�follows the presser�� completely dissembled RTG of Beta-M type no 256, which used to power lighthouse no.437 on island Yuzhny Goryachinsky in the Kola harbour (opposite former settlement Goryachiye Ruchyi). The RTG is also completely destroyed. All its parts, including the protection made of depleted uranium, have been stolen by unidentified thieves. Radioisotope heat source was found onshore near the sea in the northern part of the island. It is reason to believe that the people who dissembled RTGs received lethal radiation dose. The Russian Security Police (FSB) and the police are looking for the thieves and the RTGs� parts in the scrap metal collection centres. No overview and control The ripped apart RTGs fall under auspices of the Russian Defence Ministry, which carries out periodic controls of their condition. According to Bellona's information, the controls are conducted once or twice a year. In a similar accident in the Leningrad region in March 2003, an RTG of Beta-M type was vandalised. The Navy carried out control of this RTG in June 2002�almost one year before the accident was discovered. Bellona calls on the authorities in the Russian Federation, to provide stricter controls over RTGs and to carry out an immediate inventory of all the RTGs which are currently in operation. In addition to the health risks, the RTGs represent non-proliferation risks. The strontium emitter, which is used to power RTG, can be easily used to create so-called dirty bombs, a conventional explosive device stuffed with radioactive materials. RTGs There are around 1000 RTGs in Russia. Most of them are used as a power source for lighthouses. All the RTGs, which are in operation, have passed their operational terms and must be decommissioned. RTGs are operated by the Defence Ministry, the Ministry of Transport and Russian Hydro-Meteorological Service. The Ministry of transport runs more than 380 RTGs, whereas the Ministry of Defence operates 535, including more than 100 located on the Kola Peninsula. Most of the RTGs which fall under auspices of the Defence Ministry are located along the Arctic coast, or the so-called Northern Sea Route. There are nine different models of RTGs developed since 1960s. Beta-M type RTG is most commonly used, there are around 700 of them in operation across the Russian Federation. Beta-M has power of 230 Watt. The weight of RTG is 560 kg. The weight of the active part is around 5 kg, it contains 35,000 to 40,000 Ci of activity. The radioactivity of the RTG at the distance of 0.02 to 0.5 meters is 800 to 1000 roentgens per hour. Return to Menu 2. RUSSIA TO TEST CONVERTED SS-19 ICBM NEXT MONTH Russia plans to conduct a flight test of its Strela space-launch vehicle Dec. 5, according to ITAR-Tass (see GSN, July 1). The Strela, based on a converted SS-19 Stiletto ICBM, will be launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome and will place a dummy spacecraft into orbit, ITAR-Tass reported (see GSN, July 28). According to Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov, it is more cost-effective for Russia to convert its ICBMs to other uses rather than merely disposing of them (ITAR-Tass, Nov. 14) Return to Menu J. Russian Nuclear Industry 1. MOSCOW�S CITY ADMINISTRATION PLANS FOR CLEANING OF KURCHATOV INSTITUTE All radioactive waste is to be removed from RRC Kurchatov Institute territory in Moscow within the coming three years, ITAR-TASS cites Moscow�s acting mayor Valeri Shantsev as saying. According to Shantsev, the funds allocation issue is discussed at the federal and city administration level for these purposes. The radwaste is to be shipped to SPA Radon located in the city of Sergiev Posad near Moscow. Shantsev also said that the last nuclear reactor in the research center, which is used for medical needs will be moth-balled in five years with the relevant premises be refurbished to house �technical parks� for medium and small-scale businesses. �The gained revenues will be used to support the scientific teams of Kurchatov Institute�, the acting mayor stressed. Meanwhile, academician Nikolai Ponomarev-Stepnoi, the RRC Kurchatov Institute (KI) vice-president, believes that it is practically impossible to move KI�s reactors out of Moscow in near future. �Seven nuclear reactors located in the KI�s territory are the core of a very complex scientific arrangement and it would require several billions of dollars to reproduce it in a new place�, the academician said. However, he does not exclude a possibility of clearing a couple of hectares of the KI�s territory from certain buildings and structures. �But it would be highly erroneous to wipe out 200 hectares of unique world-known research laboratories and buildings�, Ponomarev-Stepnoi stressed. Return to Menu 2. POWER GENERATING UNIT IN VOLGODONSK PUT ON STREAM AFTER BREAK ROSTOV-NA-DONU, November 17 (Itar-Tass) - A power-generating unit of Russia's tenth, Volgodonsk nuclear power plant where an emergency situation happened on November 7, has been put on the stream of the Russian united power grid on Monday after eight days of repairs necessitated by the emergency shutdown at 12:45 Moscow time on November 7, a source at the station information centre told Itar-Tass. A commission was set up by Rosenergoatom concern to find out what had caused the breakdown. "The unit was shut down in the emergency and cut off from the network," commission member Vladimir Povarov said. Another commission arrived from St. Petersburg's Elektrosila nuclear plant where the failed equipment had been manufactured. The commission analysed the breaches in the work of the unit. Some of the electro-technical equipment, in particular the rotor exciter, was replaced in the course of the repairs. From the point of view of safety "no design limits were overstepped in the reactor's active zone, the radiation background at the plant remained normal," Povarov said. The plant generates daily over 21,000 kilowatts of electric power. Its first and only unit has generated over 6,2 million kilowatts of electricity since the beginning of 2003. Return to Menu 3. PRIME MINISTER TO PROTECT RUSSIAN INTERESTS IN FINLAND MOSCOW - Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov is scheduled to visit Finland on November 17-18. During the visit, Mr. Kasyanov will meet with Finnish President Tarja Halonen, and Paavo Lipponen, speaker of the Finnish parliament, with whom he will discuss the Northern Dimension policy and Russia�s prospects for WTO membership. The Russian Prime Minister will also meet with his Finnish counterpart Matti Vanhanen. In addition, Mr. Kasyanov will meet with the leading members of Finland�s business community. The issue of Russia-EU cooperation is expected to top the agenda of the talks. Significant attention will be given to the questions of trade and economic cooperation, including forestry and transportation. The problems of customs and border cooperation will also be addressed. The Russian newspaper Vremya Novostey commented on Mr. Kasyanov�s visit. According to the newspaper, the development of the energy sector, nuclear energy in particular, will be at the top of the agenda. Until recently, Matti Vanhanen, known for his environmental concerns, was against the construction of a nuclear power plant in his country. However, as Prime Minister, he has to look at many things differently. That is why, Finns continue talking about the construction of a nuclear power plant and the holding of a tender. Russia�s oil and gas supplies to Finland will also be considered at the talks. Finns are increasingly using Russian gas, and they ask Russia to increase supplies. In the oil sphere, Russians are very interested in the prospects of Finnish oil refineries. If a tender is announced for the acquisition of the Porvoo oil refinery, Russian businessmen are ready to take part. The Russian delegation arriving in Finland on Monday also includes Russian businessmen. In addition, Mr. Kasyanov is going to discuss the complicated problem of Russia�s energy transit to the EU via Finland. Return to Menu K. Official Statements 1. DECLARATION OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION AND THE REPUBLIC OF INDIA ON GLOBAL CHALLENGES AND THREATS TO INTERNATIONAL SECURITY AND STABILITY, THE KREMLIN, MOSCOW, NOVEMBER 12, 2003 (excerpted) [�] The Russian Federation and India regard the following as urgent and major steps to avert effectively and everywhere the threat of international terrorism: [�] - perfecting the national and international legal base of counteraction against terrorism, ensuring a truly universal character of existing antiterrorist conventions, and completing as soon as possible the elaboration of the draft treaties at the UN, including the draft Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism, submitted by India, and the International Convention on the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism, submitted by the Russian Federation; - developing cooperation to deprive terrorists of access to weapons of mass destruction, their delivery means and materials and technologies for their production; [�] The Russian Federation and India support the efforts of concerned countries and the international community, directed towards a peaceful solution of the nuclear problem on the Korean Peninsula and the ensuring of its denuclearized status, including the continuation of six-way talks in Beijing and the finding of mutually acceptable solution, as well as for the further development of inter-Korean dialogue and cooperation. [�] Return to Menu 2. INTRODUCTORY WORDS AT A JOINT MEETING OF THE SECURITY COUNCIL AND THE STATE COUNCIL PRESIDIUM President Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon, dear colleagues, Today on the agenda we have a range of issues regarding our preparedness to protect ourselves against possible technological, natural and terrorist threats. The focus today will be on the sites and facilities of greatest importance for our national security that must have priority protection. We made a conscious choice to raise these issues at a joint meeting of the Security Council and the State Council Presidium. First, because these problems concern every region in the country, and second, because we can find effective solutions only by uniting our possibilities, resources and administrative efforts. We need to do this in the interests of ensuring the smooth running of our entire national economy and state life system, and above all, we need to do this in the interests of our citizens� safety. Today we will analyse the state of affairs in this area and identify the priorities for our work, including in the long term. The first thing I would like to draw to your attention is the noticeable increase in technological disasters. Experts estimate that they now account for more than 70 percent of all emergency situations. Of course, worn out infrastructure is a primary cause of this negative situation, but this is a problem that could be remedied substantially if the organisations and officials concerned worked in strict accordance with the demands and rules regulating their activities. A large number of accidents and disasters take place precisely because people do not follow standards and operating rules, and also because of poorly qualified personnel. And officials shirking their responsibilities for ensuring security at individual chemical plants is another contributing factor. The second focus of our analysis today is how ready we are to deal with natural disasters and their consequences. The damage caused by floods and storms, earthquakes and forest fires comes to billions of roubles. There are some losses we just cannot replace � the loss of human lives. Natural disasters kill thousands of people and it is simply our duty to develop a system of clear and precise preventive measures to protect people from them. Not only are people often unprepared for natural disasters, they also do not know how to behave when emergencies happen in the workplace. We urgently need now a clear, comprehensive and modern state policy to protect people and potentially dangerous sites and facilities from technological and natural disasters and from terrorist threats. All the separate components of this security policy should be worked out in detail and linked together in a united system. We must, therefore, step up our work in several key areas. Most importantly, we need to delimit authority and responsibility in this area between the different agencies responsible for security. This concerns not only the different levels of state power and the state agencies, but also the responsibilities of the directors heading the organisations that build and operate these sites and facilities, and it also concerns their owners. We need to avoid any overlapping of functions and ensure that each agency and responsible person concentrates their efforts and resources on their own concrete areas of responsibility. We also need to ensure smooth cooperation and coordination between all the organisations working in this area. One of the most urgent tasks is to draw up standard management documents and decisions and universal technical security measures needed in emergency situations. The next priority area is state supervisory functions at sites and facilities that are listed as being of critical importance and are in private hands. In carrying out this state supervision, we must remember that its purpose is to protect the vital interests of this country. This is obviously a complex question and so we have to work it through in detail and back it up with clear legislation regarding the powers of the state agencies concerned. Finally, there is the question of establishing a quality and complete base legal and regulatory base in this area. Many laws on environmental protection, protecting the population and territory from emergency situations and technical regulation have already been approved and are now in force. But regulation and legislation is still required for some important questions. I would ask you to examine these subjects today. Return to Menu 3. SCIENTISTS, ENGINEERS FROM KAZAKHSTAN PARTICIPATE IN PHILADELPHIA HIGH-TECH CONFERENCE Partnership for Prosperity and Security/, an international business conference in Philadelphia on November 5 and 6 featured scientists and engineers from 13 private companies, research institutes and a state innovation fund from Kazakhstan. The conference sought to establish business relations with private companies in the U.S. in areas that were previously off limits for such relationships because of national security concerns. Eduard Burlinski, general director of /Ecoras/, a private/ /company based in Almaty, participated at the conference calling it �an extremely useful event that allowed us to establish business links that in the past were simply unavailable.� Burlinski, a physicist and inventor with several patents, brought with him one of his inventions � sprayers with opposite dislodged jets that ensure high-quality combustion of liquid or gaseous fuels. The devices, which can be installed both in rockets and in standard boilers, allow burning fuels with extremely low emission of nitrogen oxide of less than 10-20 vppm, allowing 93-94% efficiency. In comparison compare, the U.S. Department of Energy envisions reaching these levels of nitrogen oxide emission from gaseous fuels by 2020. Burlinski�s invention does the same for liquid fuels, technically a harder case, today. Gennadi Shuvalov, an executive director of /Ecoras/ and a nuclear physicist by training, said, �these technologies would have been used by the Soviet military had the Soviet Union not collapsed.� Today, such products and others are offered on commercial basis to U.S. companies and globally. The two-day conference at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia featured 140 high technology products from Kazakhstan, Russia and Ukraine ready for commercialization in many industries including nuclear and fossil fuels, hydrogen technology, detection and security technologies, information technologies, advanced materials and nanotechnology, radiopharmaceuticals and medical applications, aerospace and electronics. In addition to /Ecoras/, Kazakhstan�s National Nuclear Center and several research facilities were represented, including the Institute of Physics and Technology, Institute of Nuclear Physics, Institute of Combustion Problems and others. The U.S. Department of Energy�s (DOE) National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) sponsored the event. It was organized by the United States Industry Coalition (USIC), a non-governmental organization of more than 150 U.S. firms who seek to exploit the potential of the U.S. Government's Initiatives for Proliferation Prevention (IPP). Early in 2002, under IPP several U.S. companies initiated a unique project with Kazakhstan�s Ulba Metallurgical Plant to reprocess spent nuclear fuel and sell the product at a profit. The Ulba plant used to produce uranium for nuclear weapons. This project also created jobs for 50 scientists and experts working at this plant, preventing �brain drain� to potentially dangerous employers. U.S. Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham, in a message to the conference, said: �Each of the three nations exhibiting their technologies here � the Russian Federation, Ukraine, the Republic of Kazakhstan � are important strategic partners of the United States in both economic cooperation and promoting international security in a world challenged by the potential spread of weapons of mass destruction.� He added: �The U.S. business community has an unparalleled opportunity to forge important new business relationships, while strengthening the U.S. economy and bolstering our national security.� The growing ties between Kazakhstan�s private companies and certain government entities with U.S. private firms also falls perfectly in line with Satan�s goals to develop high-tech industries and lead the country away from over-dependence on oil. A specially designed program was approved earlier this year in Kazakhstan with goals to develop high tech industries, such as biotechnology, software technology, space technology and peaceful use of atomic energy. Under the this program, known as the Strategy of industrial and innovation development, a number institutions, including the National Innovation Fund, Kazakhstan Investment Fund, and National Engineering and Technology Transfer Center, have been established with specific tasks to provide financial and technological backup to inventors and private companies in many fields. Until the year 2015, this group will lead them from initial design of products to commercialization. A special technology park has also been set up in the outskirts of Almaty to provide on-the-ground facilities and support for private inventors. Return to Menu L. Links 1. BOLTON CONFIDENT PROLIFERATION SECURITY INITIATIVE IS LEGITIMATE Return to Menu 2. CHECKING IRAN'S NUCLEAR AMBITIONS: Report Recommendations Return to Menu 3. THE NEW PROLIFERATION SECURITY INITIATIVE, /AN INTERVIEW WITH JOHN BOLTON WADE BOESE AND MILES POMPER Return to Menu 4. THE YUKOS AFFAIR AND RUSSIAN FOREIGN POLICY Return to Menu DISCLAIMER: Nuclear News is presented for informational purposes only. Views presented in any given article are those of the individual author or source and not of RANSAC. RANSAC takes no responsibility for the technical accuracy of information contained in any article presented in Nuclear News. RANSAC's Nuclear News is compiled two to three times weekly. To be automatically removed from our mailing list, click on the following link: Remove Me From The List If you have questions/comments/concerns, please reply to news@216.119.87.134 |
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