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RANSAC Nuclear News, December 15, 2003 Compiled By: Matthew Bouldin A. Nuclear Smuggling
 A. Nuclear Smuggling 1. The Hunt For Osmium-187 The Russian Interior Ministry's Economic Crime Department has successfully wrapped up one its most complicated cases, which involved arresting a gang dealing in precious metals. This criminal saga began almost two years ago, when the police apprehended couriers illegally carrying the rare-earth metal osmium-187. The operation was conducted in Moscow, Volgograd, St Petersburg and Novosibirsk. The security services keep the illegal trade in precious metals under constant control, but the sale of osmium-187 attracted their attention also for another reason. It is a strategic dual-purpose material used in the defence industry as a catalyst to increase the blast range of a nuclear bomb. The Defence Ministry's main intelligence department possessed information that Chechen terrorist groups were looking to secure secret nuclear technologies and raw materials for carrying out major terrorist acts. State Duma deputy Viktor Ilyukhin made this information public. The search for the intermediaries in the trade in osmium-187 led to a group headed by St Petersburg resident Vladimir Soltaganov, who turned out to have a whole network of accomplices. Investigator Marina Tsyvkina scrutinised the group's ties and discovered that it worked over an enormous territory. The blue silvery crystals of this rare platinum group metal had been smuggled from the Dzhezkazgan deposit in Kazakhstan, while samples had also been bought cheaply at factories with special laboratories that could also carry out isotope enrichment. The investigation established that to check whether the osmium-187 was genuine or not, Soltaganov used to visit a laboratory at the Moscow Giredmet Institute, where he introduced himself as the deputy head of the Cosmoflot-Invest firm and even produced the appropriate papers so his samples could be examined. It turned out that he had never been on the Cosmoflot Invest staff, and the firm itself had long been closed down. When the scope of this business became clear, senior figures in the Economic Crime Department decided to send officers to Soltaganov. Pretending to be interested in purchasing the metal, the sting pulled off a spectacular sting operation. The intermediaries who arrived at the agreed location did not suspect that their actions were being filmed. After receiving a package with glass tubes filled with osmium-187, the criminal investigation officers paid the seller $120,000. The other intermediaries approached the seller to get their shares of the profit, but were then surrounded by police officers and arrested. The criminal case of the Soltaganov group, charged with illegally trading in precious metals, has been sent to the courts. It shows beyond any doubt that the group had established regular channels for osmium-187 illegal deliveries from the Dzhezkazgan ore basin. Porous borders and particular customs regulations between Russia and Kazakhstan allow criminals to smuggle their commodity with relative ease, while the sums on offer for the rare-earth metal prompts them to ignore the possible consequences. Now the security services in both countries have a great deal of work ahead of them to put an end to the illegal trade in osmium-187. Return to Menu B. Cooperative Threat Reduction 1. U.S.-Russian Agreement on Liability Issues Nears Linton Brooks, administrator of the Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration, said that he soon expects the United States and Russia to reach agreement on liability provisions for U.S. contractors involved in the Energy Department's Nuclear Cities Initiative. The program provides funds for former Russian nuclear scientists to carry out civilian research in formerly closed Soviet nuclear cities. The administration has not provided new funds for that program, or a separate plutonium disposition program, for several months. Washington has insisted that the Kremlin first agree to comprehensive liability provisions for foreign projects carried out in Russia to prevent the U.S. government and its representatives from being sued for accidents or problems that arise during building or operation. (See ACT, September 2003.) "We are hopeful that the liability issue will be resolved soon," Brooks said in an interview with Arms Control Today, indicating that Russia's recent parliamentary elections had held up agreement. "We measure soon in a single digit number of months." In other Russia-related news, President George W. Bush waived conditions that prevented U.S. funding from reaching the former Soviet republic for construction of the Shchuch'ye chemical weapons destruction facility. In a memorandum to Secretary of State Colin Powell Dec. 9, Bush said waiving the chemical weapons certification requirements "is important to the national security interests of the United States." In the fiscal year 2004 Energy and Water Appropriations bill, Congress approved $200.3 million�the Bush administration's request�for construction of the Shchuch'ye facility. The requirements for Russian chemical weapons programs are stricter than those for other CTR programs. Such rules generally require the administration to certify that states receiving assistance are making progress in getting rid of the arsenals they inherited. But for chemical weapons program funding, Russia is also required to provide a detailed inventory of its chemical weapons and more verifiable plans for destroying them. There is disagreement over whether the Russian declaration under the Chemical Weapons Convention is complete. At a conference Dec. 10 cosposored by the Defense Department's Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), former CTR Director Retired Air Force Brig. Gen. Thomas Kuenning asserted that the Bush administration needs to work harder to encourage U.S.-Russian cooperation in Nunn-Lugar programs. "It is becoming a coercive program, rather than a cooperative program," he said. "We need to get cooperation back into the program." Meanwhile, construction is set to be completed this week on the Mayak fissile material storage facility. The Ministry for Atomic Energy of the Russian Federation announced earlier this month that the facility's environmental requirements had been met; security and safety conditions could be satisfied by the end of next week. In addition, security upgrades have been completed at two chemical weapons storage sites�Planovy and Kizner�and operations will begin this week. Return to Menu C. G-8 Global Partnerships 1. Fusion in Exchange for Uranium? December 15-17 the Russian Federation Government delegation headed by Prime Minister Mikhail Kasianov will be paying an official visit to Japan. One of the key topics for the negotiations will be the energy cooperation. In this visit Mikhail Kasianov is accompanied by the Russian Federation Minister of Atomic Energy Alexander Rumyantsev and RAO EES of Russia�s Deputy Chairman Sergei Dubinin. As regards nuclear power the negotiations, in addition to the traditional plutonium issue � Japan, being a G8 member, participates in financing of the international program dealing with disposition of the Russian surplus plutonium � will discuss the possibility of the Russian fresh nuclear fuel (FNF) supplies to the Japanese nuclear power plants. The fresh nuclear fuel supply discussions with the Japanese colleagues have been underway for a long time. In particular, this issue was discussed during the visit of representatives of two large Japanese companies to the Novosibirsk Chemical Concentrate Plant (NCCP) held early October. However, the fuel supply negotiations are not widely publicized. It is quite clear why � this is a strategic issue because presently Japanese nuclear plants use the USA-flagged fuel. Therefore, the NCCP officials, while commenting on held negotiations, were very cautious describing them as �a preliminary meeting with a potential customer� and noted that the decision of principal regarding purchasing the Russian nuclear fuel �must be not only of technical but also of political nature�. The political constituent is necessary since Japan generally considers strategic cooperative areas in the context of the �northern territories� issue. For instance, this issue is raised every time at the Russian-Japanese consultations on cooperation in the peaceful uses of atomic energy. A certain deviation from this hardline trend has appeared only after Japan�s Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi�s visit to Moscow and negotiations with President Putin. Politics is still politics, however the science and technology and commercial nuclear cooperation between Russia and Japan has been apparently on the upbeat recently as the first contracts to scrap Victor III nuclear submarine at the Japanese funds were signed earlier this December, with the pending arrangement for in-pile test of 21 MOX-fuel assemblies at Beloyarsk nuclear power plant. If Russia succeeds in convincing Japan to buy fresh nuclear fuel, this would be a serious achievement of the national nuclear industry. Besides, considering the fact that Russia and Japan consider their future nuclear industry development through closed nuclear fuel cycle (NFC) and fast neutron reactors, it is the nuclear fuel cycle cooperation that can prove to be the most perspective and diversified. Russia�s benefits from selling nuclear fuel to Japan are evident � new sales market. In addition to fuel the uranium products� export is possible. Some time ago an option was discussed of sales of low enriched uranium produced by downblending of 100 tons of highly enriched weapons material � an HEU Agreement�s twin. It means that the Russian isotope separation capacities may be loaded with new orders. Though �sieved� by Tekhsnabexport, but still orders� In turn, Japan is interested in the Russian operating experience of the only world�s industrial-scale breeder � BN-600, and the vibropacked fuel technology developed by NIIAR Institute. The possibility to test MOX-fuel in the Russian reactor is the only option for Japan so far, since the future of the Japanese prototype fast neutron reactor Monju is still unclear. The reactor was shutdown in 1995 after a serious accident. This year the court issued the ruling prohibiting its restart. And finally, Russia can substantially support Japan in selection of ITER construction site where there is a competition between the EC Cadarache (France) and Japanese Rokkasho. The construction decision is likely to be taken on December 19-20. It is not excluded that the Russia�s position during the voting would depend to a certain extend on the Kasianov�s negotiations in Japan. Return to Menu 2. Former U.S. Defense Secretary Calls for New Nonproliferation Approaches WASHINGTON � Former U.S. Defense Secretary William Perry Wednesday called for new approaches to combating the spread of nuclear weapons, warning that the possibility of terrorists obtaining such a weapon is �the gravest danger facing our nation today� (see GSN, Dec. 11). In a speech before the Asia Society in New York, Perry, who served as defense secretary in the Clinton administration, outlined several approaches to preventing rogue states and terrorist organizations from obtaining nuclear weapons. While offering tentative support for the Bush administration�s counterproliferation policy of pre-emptive military action, Perry said that such an approach was not fully effective. In his remarks, Perry warned that a terrorist group such as al-Qaeda would detonate a nuclear weapon within the United States if they were able to obtain one. He also predicted that unless more work was done to prevent nuclear proliferation, such weapons were likely to be used either in a regional conflict or against the United States �before this decade is over.� �This is a harsh judgment, but it is the most conclusive judgment I can make based on the evidence we have so far unless we can stop this tide of proliferation. The acid test of America�s national security programs should be, do they make that catastrophic outcome less likely? In my judgment, our current programs do not pass that test. They do not pass that test,� Perry said. According to Perry, approaches used during the Cold War to stem nuclear proliferation, such as the strategy of deterrence, are no longer effective. �Deterrence does not work against fanatics who are willing, even eager, to die for their cause,� he said. Perry also offered only tentative support for the Bush administration�s counterproliferation policy of pre-emptive military action, as demonstrated by Operation Iraqi Freedom (see GSN, Dec. 9). While saying such action �is and must be one of the options open to the United States,� he warned that such military action would entail casualties, political costs and could have unforeseen consequences. In addition, Perry said that any decision to undertake a pre-emptive war must be based on �solid intelligence,� which is often difficult to obtain on WMD programs (see GSN, Dec. 5). He noted errors made by the U.S. intelligence community in assessing the WMD capabilities of prewar Iraq � assessments that so far have been largely unconfirmed by coalition forces searching for Iraqi weapons of mass destruction. The fault of U.S. intelligence to accurately assess rogue states� WMD capabilities rests more on the nature of WMD programs themselves than with the intelligence community, Perry said. �The facilities involved in such programs can be small, decentralized and without a distinctive physical signature. A full-scale biological weapon program could fit into this room,� he told the gathered audience. �We may expect continuing difficulty in making a confident assessment of nuclear or biological programs in nations that are trying to keep those programs covert. As a consequence, when confronted with what we believe to be a covert nuclear program, we will generally not have the solid intelligence that is required and that will be rightly demanded by the American public before we take any conclusive action,� Perry said. In fact, the lack of success in finding evidence of large-scale Iraqi WMD efforts could result in the U.S. public failing to support pre-emptive military action even when it is necessary, he said. New Nonproliferation Approaches In his call for new nonproliferation strategies, Perry singled out for praise the U.S. Cooperative Threat Reduction program, also known as the Nunn-Lugar program after its founders, former Senator Sam Nunn (D-Ga.) and Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Richard Lugar (R-Ind.). Through the CTR program, the United States supports efforts to secure and dismantle WMD materials in the former Soviet Union. Calling the CTR program �the most important new tool� the United States has to prevent proliferation, Perry called for its acceleration and expansion. Last month, U.S. President George W. Bush signed the fiscal 2004 defense authorization bill, which included a provision to provide an initial $50 million for Nunn-Lugar projects conducted outside the former Soviet Union. In a Nov. 19 speech in Washington, Lugar called on Congress to provide additional funding for expanded Nunn-Lugar efforts and to provide the president with a permanent authority to waive funding certification requirements (see GSN, Nov. 20). �Senator Lugar�s proposal deserves our full support and, given the uphill battle it faces, is in desperate need of it,� Perry said Wednesday. In addition, Perry also called for the closure of a �loophole� in the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty that allows countries to potentially develop nuclear weapons under the cover of establishing a civilian nuclear power program. The nuclear weapon-states should be give the authority to control all nuclear fuel cycle activities to prevent non-nuclear states from obtaining weapon-grade materials under the pretext of creating civilian reactor fuel and then withdrawing from the NPT, Perry said. He also said that the International Atomic Energy Agency should be given expanded authority to conduct inspections, including challenge inspections, to verify compliance with such a system. Earlier this week, IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei also restated his support for increased multilateral control over fuel cycle activities, such as through a new protocol to the NPT itself (see GSN, Dec. 8). �It is not enough that each country now has the so-called sovereign right to develop plutonium and sit on it ... and have highly enriched uranium,� ElBaradei was quoted by AP as having said in prepared remarks. �What I�m looking (for) is a better multinational control over the sensitive parts of the fuel cycle,� he said. �None of this will be easy, just as it was not easy during the Cold War to formulate the strategy and provide the leadership that avoided a nuclear holocaust,� Perry said Wednesday. �But if we fail, and if terror groups are able to detonate nuclear bombs in our cities, we will forever after be asking ourselves why we did not take the timely action to avert the catastrophe. And if we succeed, our children and our grandchildren will thank us,� he added. Return to Menu D. Russia - Iran 1. Iran Rejects Explosion At Bushehr Nuclear Plant Tehran, Dec 15, IRNA -- No explosion has taken place at Bushehr nuclear plant, official in charge of the plant`s public relations department Saber Zaeimiyan said on Monday. Speaking to IRNA, he refuted the recent news released by various news agencies on explosion at the plant as "fabricated and unreal`. Some of the news networks have tried to attribute the explosion pertaining to a military drill to Bushehr nuke power plant, he said. Certain news agencies and international news networks on Sunday and Monday reported the occurrence of explosion at Bushehr nuclear plant site, he said. A military official in the province announced here Monday that Iranian soldiers practicing with an anti-aircraft cannon fired two shells that failed to explode in the air and crashed into a minibus and a house, thus killing two persons and injuring 13 others. Return to Menu 2. Russia To Sign Spent Fuel Accord With Iran, On Terms � Minister Tokyo, Dec 15, Itar-Tass/ACSNA/IRNA -- Russia will sign an agreement with Iran on the return of spent nuclear fuel from the Bushehr nuclear power plant after Tehran signs an additional protocol with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Russian Nuclear Power Minister Alexander Rumyantsev said. Rumyantsev, who is accompanying Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov on his visit to Japan, said on Monday that the accord `most likely` will be signed after Iran signs the protocol with the IAEA. "Russia will not deliver fresh nuclear fuel (to Bushehr) until after Iran signs this document," he said in an interview with Itar-Tass. The accord on Iran`s returning spent fuel to Russia is a `technical matter`, Rumyantsev said. Both Russia and Iran have the right to sign it any time, but Tehran appears to be engaged in preparing procedures related to signing the additional protocol with the IAEA, he said. Iran`s president said in a statement on December 13 that a date ofsigning the protocol would be set on agreement with the IAEA, while the Iranian foreign minister said the `protocol will be signed in the nearest days`. Return to Menu 3. Two Killed In Military Accident Near Iranian Nuclear Plant TEHRAN : At least two civilians were killed and 13 injured by stray anti-aircraft shells during firing exercises near a controversial nuclear power plant being built at Bushehr, southern Iran. "Two people were killed and 13 were injured, but there are reports that the number of dead could be as high as seven. We are investigating it," Asghar Zareii, a public relations officer of Bushehr's governor-general, told AFP. "One of the dead was decapitated," he added Monday. Zareii explained that the incident was caused by the firing of anti-aircraft cannon shells during a drill at a military airbase adjacent to where the Islamic republic's first nuclear power station is currently under construction. He said the shells failed to explode in the air as they should have done, and on landing hit a minibus and a residential area. The two people known to have been killed, and most of the injured, were in the minibus. A local police official was quoted by the official news agency IRNA as saying that the injured were in "a satifactory condition". IRNA also put the toll at two dead and 13 injured. The Bushehr plant is being built with Russian assistance, but does not currently contain any nuclear fuel. The plant, described by Iran as crucial for meeting future energy needs, is expected to go on stream in 2004 or 2005. Hundreds of Russian engineers and their families are based at Bushehr. Following international tensions surrounding its atomic energy programme -- which the US and Israel allege is merely a cover for nuclear weapons development -- Iran has stepped up its anti-aircraft defences near its main nuclear facilities. On October 7, 1981, Israeli warplanes destroyed a nuclear reactor near Baghdad, after Israel accused Iraq of preparing to develop atomic weapons. There has been speculation that the Jewish state or even its chief ally, the United States, has been considering carrying out a similar pre-emptive strike against Iran. But tensions have eased somewhat after Iran agreed to allow tougher inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), provide the UN watchdog with a full declaration of its nuclear activities and suspend uranium enrichment. Last month, the IAEA condemned Iran for 18 years of covert nuclear activities although a report said there was no clear evidence the country has been developing nuclear arms. Although IAEA director general Mohamed ElBaradei said there was so far no evidence Iran was trying to make the bomb, Washington dismissed that conclusion Washington as "simply too impossible to believe." And in November Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom described Iran's nuclear programme as a threat to Israel and to world peace, but when asked whether his country was willing to take military action against Iran, he replied: "We would like to do it in a peaceful way." Israel also warned Iran would reach a "point of no return" in its suspected nuclear programme within a year unless there were concerted efforts to stop it. Iran also has other nuclear facilities at Natanz, Arak and Isfahan to the south of Tehran, inside the capital itself as well as uranium mines in the centre of the country. Press reports and witnesses have spoken of increased security around the facilities, including anti-aircraft gun installations. Return to Menu 4. Agreement To Return Spent Nuclear Fuel From Iran To Russia Postponed Again Moscow and Tehran will not sign an agreement about spent nuclear fuel return from Iran. As the Russian nuclear minister Alexander Rumyantsev said in November in an exclusive interview to Itar-Tass, Iranian specialists �simply have no time� to prepare this document, as they �are focused on providing IAEA with information� about their nuclear programs. �Busher NPP will not need fuel soon, the shipment will not start before the next year, so we have three months minimum to prepare the agreement� the minister said. The Secretary of the Iranian Supreme Council Hasan Rouhani confirmed Iran�s consent to sign an agreement about returning spent nuclear fuel back to Russia as it is the main condition of the Russia�s fresh nuclear fuel deliveries. The text of the agreement was drafted during the minister�s visit to Tehran back in December 2002. On August 22nd, 2003, after an evaluation carried out by the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources, the Russian Government instructed Minatom to sign the agreement about spent nuclear fuel return. Some reports indicated that Minatom was ready to go as far as buying the spent fuel back from Iran. Return to Menu E. Russia - Korea 1. Minister Doubts NKorea's Nuclear Capability At Present TOKYO, December 15 (Itar-Tass) - Russian Atomic Energy Minister Alexander Rumyantsev said North Korea had potential for creating nuclear weapons, but that it was unlikely that Pyongyang possessed a nuclear charge at the present time. Rumyantsev, who is accompanying Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov on an official visit to Tokyo, told Itar-Tass on Monday that they /North Koreans/ "have nuclear materials and nuclear chemistry; they were capable of extracting weapon-grade plutonium." At the same time, he said he had "serious doubts" regarding the possibility that Pyongyang possessed a nuclear charge as of now. However it does seem possible that North Korea has nuclear fissure materials, production and potentiality to create nuclear weapons, the minister said. "It seems probable," he added. Return to Menu 2. Moscow Active In Preparing New Six-Party Talks On NKorea TOKYO, December 14 (Itar-Tass) - Russia is active in preparing a new round of the six-party talks on settling the situation around the North Korean nuclear problem and hammering out a possible understanding, said in an interview with Tass Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Losyukov who arrived in Tokyo on Sunday. He heads the Russian delegation at the talks with the participation of the North and South Koreas, the United States, Russia, China and Japan. The diplomat reported that during his consultations late in November with U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia and Pacific Affairs James Kelly who heads the U.S. delegation at the six-party talks, as well as other American representatives, the Russian side put forth specific considerations on a joint statement which can be adopted at the second round of talks. �It was not a draft of a joint statement, but a sketch,� Losyukov noted. In the diplomat�s opinion, �this helped, at a definite stage, to bring closer positions and rendered some assistance in advancing to understandings�. �We actively participate in these affairs,� emphasised the deputy minister who is on a delegation, headed by Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov, arriving in Japan on an official visit on Monday. Asked about a possible date for calling the next round of talks, the first round of which was held late in August in Beijing, Losyukov noted that �it should not be a fixed idea�, he explained, permitting a possibility of holding them next January. Moscow is ready for calling negotiations at any time, the high-ranking diplomat noted. �I�m even ready to go to Beijing from here, if need be,� he claimed. Return to Menu F. Nuclear Industry 1. Russia, Chile To Join Hands In Space And Nuke Efforts: Foreign Ministers SANTIAGO, December 15, 2003. (RIA Novosti) - Russia and Chile will soon be ready with a partnership agreement for space efforts, nuclear industry and military technologies, Igor Ivanov and Maria Soledad Alvear, Ministers of Foreign Affairs, say in a joint statement to sum up bilateral negotiations. The Parties have agreed to urgently coordinate respective documents. They highlight a vast potential of Russo-Chilean partnership in aerospace and military technological efforts, civil-oriented nuclear industry, mining, transport, and fuel-and-power industry. A bilateral commission for trade and economic cooperation has been established. Even its maiden session will give an impetus to mutually lucrative contacts, the ministers are sure. The signatories point out the importance of Russia's closer ties with Latin America on bilateral and multilateral arrangements alike. Chile is willing to promote practical Russian partnership with the Organization of American States and the Rio Group, reassures Senora Alvear. It is essentially important to determine practical patterns for Russia's political dialogue with the MERCOSUR countries, Chile and Bolivia, and get that dialogue going for consultations on global and regional issues, said the Foreign Ministers. Return to Menu 2. Kremlin�s Party Leader To Build Nuclear Plants In Northern Russia Boris Gryzlov, the chief Russian policeman and the head of the Kremlin-backed �United Russia� party, which recently received the majority of the seats in the newly elected lower parliament, or the State Duma, recently described the future for the Russian nuclear energy. While visiting Kursk NPP during his election campaign in November, he mentioned about a necessity to build new nuclear power plants, including northern regions, where nuclear submarines� reactors could be used in order to develop a transport corridor from Europe to Asia, the North Sea Route: �The situation with atomic energy development has no alternative for Russia in the 21st century. We have to build new units, solve the technological safety issues. And they are solved now, as we practically achieved 100% technological safety. Therefore, it is needed to fund development of the nuclear plants, build new ones, and it is very important to move the atomic energy to the north of our country�, Russian RTR TV channel broadcasted on November 18th. Return to Menu G. Russian Nuclear Forces 1. Inside the Ring (excerpted) [...] New nuke Pentagon officials were quietly overjoyed last week when President Bush signed into law the 2004 Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act. Tucked away in the spending law is $7.5 million for the Robust Nuclear Earth Penetrator. It was half the $15 million request. The money will be spent studying the ultimate precision guided weapon: a high-yield nuclear bomb designed to drill through rock and destroy deep underground bunkers and facilities. If the weapon is built, rogue states like North Korea and Iran can forget about hiding weapons of mass destruction in rock-hardened, blast-proof shelters. And the penetrating nuke also would put Russia, China and other nuclear states on notice that they will be unable to protect hardened silos or cave missile complexes. Russian underwater submarine caves also could be taken out with the bomb. Pentagon officials would love to chalk a note on the penetrator before firing one into the cave used by Osama bin Laden and company in Afghanistan, when he is eventually located. Little has been said in public about the new weapon. Linton Brooks, director of the National Nuclear Security Administration, told a Senate hearing earlier this year one idea is to use a B-61 or B-83 nuclear warhead on a new guided aerial bomb with a special nose cone that can burrow through solid rock. "It's not just that you have to be able to penetrate," he said. "We know how to make things that will penetrate. You have to be able to penetrate and still have nuclear weapons, which are actually quite intricate machines, to work right." Both warheads have 350 kilotons or more of explosive power � the equivalent of 350,000 tons of TNT. The Pentagon wants a bomb that can go through 30 feet to 60 feet of solid rock before detonating. The bomb could also be used for what the Pentagon calls "agent defeat" � frying deadly biological or germ weapons. [...] Return to Menu H. Nuclear Safety 1. Fire Safety System Upgrade Project For Volgodonsk NPP Prepared The Volgodonsk nuclear plant and French Termatom�s experts have developed the nuclear plant�s fire safety system upgrade project, as Nuclear.Ru was said by the plant�s information and analytical center. This has completed the first phase of the joint work of the Russian and French teams. Volgodonsk nuclear plant and Termatom started their cooperation in December 2002 under the international agreement concerning improvements of fire safety of nuclear power plants. The Termatom experts who work in close contact with the French utility - Electricite de France (EdF) � have implemented fire safety systems at all French nuclear plants. The work on the Volgodonsk upgrade project took nearly eight months. Project manager Philippe Schwan noted that Volgodonsk nuclear plant safety level is very high; still any level must be improved further. �At French nuclear units we constantly work to improve fire safety�, he said. The next phase of the joint Russian and French effort will be implementation of concrete measures under the prepared project. Return to Menu 2. New Safety Systems Installed At Kola Under Norway Assistance December 2-11 the specialists from IFE (Norway), ABB Oy (Finland) and Kurchatov Institute carried out start-up and alignment of two additional safety systems at Kola nuclear power plant: safety parameter display system (SPDS) and reactor core parameter monitoring system (SCORPIO). As Nuclear.Ru was informed by Rosenergoatom press-center, this work had been done under the technical assistance program supported by the Norwegian government. Both systems were delivered to Kola nuclear plant last month. SPDS is a computer-based complex to display information on the state of the unit�s main systems and parameters to the operator and designed for timely detection of deviations from the normal conditions. SPDS earlier installed at Kola-1 and 2 has performed well, and now it is in place at Kola-3 and 4. SCORPIO system uses readings of instruments installed at Kola nuclear plant. The readings are preliminary processed, screened out and computed using special codes. The final data are sent to the physics engineer�s display. A separate unit allows for work in �PREDICTIVE MODE�, which is used for planning the reactor operational modes on the basis of the current state. SCORPIO uses the same codes, which are employed for standard calculations of reactor cores. The codes have been developed and owned by RRC Kurchatov Institute. It role is to adapt and integrate codes for SCORPIO. The systems will be commissioned in 2004. The international cooperation under the Norwegian government-supported technical assistance program at Kola nuclear plant has been under way since the 1990s. So far 29 projects have been implemented with 10 more being underway. The Norwegian government has allocated about 120 million N kronor to improve Kola nuclear units� safety. The cooperation with Norway can be divided into four stages. SCORPIO and SPDS projects are implemented under the fourth stages where the Norwegian assistance was 20 million N kronor. Return to Menu 3. Putin Discussed Nuclear Safety With Russian Liberals In the end of November, not long before the elections, the Russian President discussed the issues of nuclear safety with the head of liberal Yabloko party and his deputy Sergey Mitrokhin. Earlier Sergey Mitrokhin took part in the meetings of the Inter-Parliamentary Working Group established by Bellona. The discussion concerned nuclear and environmental safety. The Russian Minister of Atomic energy Alexander Rumyantsev, Deputy Head Science Secretary of the Russian Science Academy Boris Myasoyedov, and the President of the Centre for Environmental Policy Alexander Yablokov also took part in the meeting. The participants discussed safety problems of the Russian nuclear sites and nuclear submarines dismantling. Putin said Minatom signed a $100m contract with foreign partners concerning nuclear submarines� dismantling, although he mentioned that the Russian state budget spent $68m on this issue in 2003. Yabloko leader mentioned that his party suggested in the Russian parliament to ban completely foreign nuclear waste import into Russia and provide maximum transparency for the revenues earned from foreign nuclear materials� storage and reprocessing. They claimed that the nuclear waste import project is unprofitable and dangerous for environment. If one calculates all Russia�s expenses on handling foreign spent nuclear fuel (storage, reprocessing, waste treatment etc.), he will see that the expenses are much higher than the expected revenues. Moreover, the costs can rise due to possible accidents during storage or shipment of the spent nuclear fuel. Return to Menu I. Official Statements 1. RIA Novosti Interview With Alexander Yakovenko, Official Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesman, In Connection With Russia's Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov's Visit To Latin American Countries (excerpted) [...] Q: How successfully is trade and economic cooperation developing between Russia and the region's countries? A: Taking into account real possibilities, efforts are being made to promote Russian-Latin American ties in the trade and economic field /volume of trade turnover with Latin America in 2002 totaled 5.6 billion dollars/. Substantial potential for growth of trade and economic ties exists in promoting on the market of Latin America of Russian engineering products and high technologies, in cooperation in the aerospace field, oil and gas and mining industries, in the peaceful atom sphere, energy, development of the transport infrastructure, and information technology. We see prospects for expanding cooperation in space exploration and military-technical cooperation. We note that Russia's foreign economic relations with Latin America show up new promising trends. Interest in the Latin American market is being displayed by Russian business circles. Such large companies as Russky Alyuminy (Russian Aluminum), Rosneft, Energomashexport and others are beginning active work in the region. [...] Argentina is one of our old partners in the region. There is successful political cooperation with it, including in the UN and other international organizations. We hope that upcoming negotiations will mark a new stage in the development of bilateral cooperation, above all in the trade and economic sphere, whose potential is not used to the full. It is necessary to give an effective impulse to the deepening of bilateral ties and in such promising areas as nuclear power, peaceful space, science and technology. We expect that the recently established business councils Russia-Argentina and Argentina-Russia will be able to play the role of a real mechanism for expanding our ties. Great expectations in this respect are linked with the first forum of entrepreneurs of the two countries, which will be held during the days of the visit. [...] Return to Menu 2. Remarks to the National Conference of State Legislatures (excerpted) [...] Q: Mr. Secretary, I'm Mike Balboni. I'm a state senator from New York. I chair the legislature's Homeland Security Committee. And in that regard, there have been recent press accounts about weapons of mass destruction being able to be used by the Iraqi army right prior to the invasion. First of all, what kind of a threat does the United States still face as a result of weapons of mass destruction in that region of the world? And could you please compare that to the threats that we face in the former Soviet Republics and their inability to catalogue any of the biological and chemical weapons that were available at one time. RUMSFELD: Generally, weapons of mass destruction, they talk about nuclear weapons, biological weapons, chemical weapons. None of those countries in that particular region currently have nuclear weapons other than Pakistan and India. Some have programs. We've just learned a great deal about Iran's program, a company that is on the terrorist list, and they have a nuclear program which the International Atomic Energy group, the IAEA, just discovered they have been hiding for a good many years. One of the problems with these societies is, in a closed society, it's very difficult to know what they're doing. We do know that a number of them have chemical weapon programs. Syria clearly does. Saddam Hussein had programs. In fact, he used chemical weapons on his own people as well as on the Iranians. The biological piece of it I would elevate as extremely worrisome. It is so easy to do, relatively. It doesn't require moving big things. It can be put together in relatively small rooms. And it can be moved across borders because of dual-use aspects of so many elements involved with biological warfare. And you're quite right, the former Soviet Union had a lot of those activities taking place in Russia proper as well as in some of the former Soviet republics. So I would end the answer by saying this: The United States of America cannot deal with this problem alone. This is a problem that requires a broad group of coalition of nations to recognize that those weapons in the hands of terrorists can put at risk not 3,000 people, as were killed in September 11th, but 30,000 or 300,000 people. And that is a very serious problem that we face as a people. And it's quite clear, given the proliferation of ballistic missile technology and the proliferation of nuclear technologies, the proliferation of these other WMD capabilities, only an initiative in the U.N. or outside the U.N., with a very broad group of countries agreeing that that's a serious problem and coming together to figure out ways to reduce the proliferation of those technologies, are we going to -- I mean, think what the world would be like if we had double the number of nuclear powers and double the number -- and that half of the new ones had biological weapons, for example. That's a worrisome world five, 10, 15, 20 years out. [...] Return to Menu 3. Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation Approves a Federal Law Ratifying the MNEPR Agreement 2866-11-12-2003 On December 10 the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation approved a federal law earlier passed by the State Duma ratifying the Agreement on a Multilateral Nuclear Environmental Program in the Russian Federation (the MNEPR Agreement). The Agreement had been signed on May 21, 2003, and Belgium, Britain, Germany, Denmark, the EU, EURATOM, the Netherlands, Norway, the US, Finland, France and Sweden participate in it along with Russia. This framework document has become a legal basis for multilateral cooperation in solving the acute problem for us of disposition of decommissioned nuclear submarines and atomic maintenance ships in northwestern Russia. It will help to speed up the creation of an infrastructure for the safe handling of spent nuclear fuel and radioactive waste from the submarines to be disposed. An important part of the cooperation will be the ecological rehabilitation of the areas of the Russian Navy's former coastal bases in the Andreyev bay and at Gremikha. All this is a practical contribution of the states parties to the MNEPR Agreement to tackling the common problems of increasing nuclear and environmental safety. Return to Menu J. Links of Interest 1. Fulfilling the Promise of America: Meeting The Security Challenges of the New Century Return to Menu 2. The Proliferation Security Initiative: Dead In The Water Or Steaming Ahead? Return to Menu 3. Lawmakers Voice Concern on Failure to Control Iraqi Weapons Scientists Return to Menu 4. The Logic of Intelligence Hype and Blindness Return to Menu 5. Inter Parliamentary Conference - Organized by the European Commission's Non-Proliferation and Disarmament Co-operation Initiative Return to Menu 6. The Increasing Risk of Nuclear Proliferation: Lessons Learned 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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