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RANSAC Nuclear News, July 25, 2003 Compiled By: Billy Magnuson A. Nuclear Cities Initiative
 A. Nuclear Cities Initiative 1. Bush May Abandon Weaponeer Program The Bush administration has warned Russia's nuclear-weapons chief of plans to let lapse an agreement turning Russian weapons scientists, labs and factories to nondefense work if Moscow fails to expand liability protections for American scientists and corporations. Nonproliferation advocates in Congress called the move a "dan-gerous and unnecessary development" that is contrary to U.S. security interests in keeping Russian weapons, materials and expertise out of the hands of terrorists. Six House Democrats urged the White House on Tuesday to reconsider and renew the agreements for another year, saying "Few objectives are as central to U.S. national security as eliminating these threats as soon as possible." Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham has cautioned Russian Atomic Energy Minister Alexandr Rumyantsev that the United States will not renew the 1998 Nuclear Cities Initiative unless Moscow shields Americans from lawsuits based on premeditated acts that cause injury or death to Russian workers. Due to expire Sept. 22, the $20 million-a-year Nuclear Cities Initiative has been a perennial target of fiscal conservatives and Cold War-style hawks, who point to its only modest success at diverting unemployed Russian weaponeers and unused nuclear facilities to new jobs. So far, the program has removed 500,000 square feet from nuclear-weapons assembly work and redirected roughly 400 Russian scientists and engineers to fuel-cell research and the manufacture of artificial limbs. But those achievements seem meager against the monolith of the Russian nuclear-weapons enterprise of 75,000 workers, of whom an estimated 15,000 to 30,000 are considered unemployed or underemployed. Since the late 1990s, the Pentagon and Energy Department have run a family of "Cooperative Threat Reduction" programs to prevent the migration of Russian weapons, materials and skills into the black market and the hands of terrorists, driven by wrenching economic adjustments and poverty. The earliest of these programs required the Russian government to fully indemnify American scientists and corporations against any liability, including from intentional, "premed-itated" acts. "The Russians are being put in a position where they're being told that even if a U.S. contractor performs a harmful act intentionally that you, Russia, are on the hook," said Raphael Della Ratta, a coordinator at the Russian American Nuclear Security Advisory Council, a non-profit research group in Washington, D.C. "Of course, the Russians don't like that." The Energy Department has not released Abraham's correspondence with Rumyantsev, but the secretary's staff said he was urging the Russians to allow current Nuclear Cities projects to continue even if the agreement expires. The lapse, however, would not allow any new projects to expand employment of Russian weaponeers. "Given the concern that a terrorist organization or rogue nation seeking to develop their own nuclear arsenals would actively recruit these scientists, it only makes sense to continue with the very program that helps them transition to peaceful, alternative careers," said Rep. Ellen Tauscher, D-Alamo, who joined fellow Democrats on House Armed Services Committee and the California delegation in writing to President George W. Bush about the agreement. "A lackluster commitment to stopping the spread of nuclear weapons seems to be a pattern with this administration," she said. Joe Davis, an Energy Department spokes-man, took issue with Tauscher's characterization, noting that the administration recently concluded a pact with Russia to phase out plutonium-producing nuclear reactors in favor of energy plants powered by fossil fuels. "We would just like to see some of those workers that the congresswoman represents protected," Davis said. Return to Menu 2. Feds press Russians on work liability The Department of Energy said Tuesday it will cancel a program to help isolated Russian nuclear weapons cities if the country does not adopt new liability provisions. Nonproliferation advocates say the move is so onerous it will essentially cancel the Nuclear Cities Initiative, which since 1998 has helped make the transition for the flailing cities to non-weapons work through job creation and infrastructure development. "These are just the first dominos in something that could seriously undermine very important programs," said Raphael Della Ratta with the Russian American Nuclear Security Advisory Council. DOE officials say the concern is exaggerated, and they want the programs to continue, but with new rules to protect U.S. workers. "We hope that the Russian Federation will accept our broad proposal on liability in time to allow for the extension of the ... agreement," Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham said in a statement. The Nuclear Cities Initiative is coordinated by the three U.S. nuclear weapons labs, including Lawrence Livermore. And, Livermore is a sister city of Snezhinsk, one of the formerly closed nuclear company towns that was devastated when the Soviet Union collapsed. Some cooperative programs between the two cities were sponsored through the nuclear cities program. According to a DOE statement, Abraham sent a letter to the Russian Ministry of Atomic Energy this week saying they will likely pull out of the program if the new rules that expand Russia's liability for joint work between the two countries are not approved. Existing projects will be allowed to continue if an agreement is not reached by September, when the current agreement expires. Several members of Congress, including Rep. Ellen Tauscher, D-Alamo, sent a letter to President Bush on Monday asking that the programs be preserved. "Given the concern that a terrorist organization or rogue nation seeking to develop their own nuclear arsenals would actively recruit these scientists, it only makes sense to continue with the very program that helps them transition into peaceful alternative careers," Tauscher, who has worked to support nuclear programs with Russia, said in a statement. The DOE's move attempts to match liability provisions in other joint nuclear agreements with Russia, including those to dispose of nuclear weapons and build power plants. The focus on the nuclear cities fund and another, which funds research on the safe disposal of plutonium, is paradoxical because the programs pose almost no risk to the United States compared to those other programs, said Leonard Spector, deputy director of the Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Monterey Institute of International Studies. A compromise would extend the program for six months or a year, until the Russian parliament gets a chance to vote on other provisions. "The hard-liners in the administration seem to have rejected that approach," Spector said. "The sad part is that some very important programs may be victimized." Return to Menu 3. U.S.-Russia: Legal Issues Threaten Nonproliferation Programs (*Corrected Version*) A U.S.-Russian legal dispute is threatening to end two nonproliferation agreements intended to help convert Russian nuclear weapons materials and facilities into peaceful uses. U.S. officials say the dispute centers around protecting U.S. personnel working in Russia, but critics say the Bush administration policy could end these and other cooperative programs. One agreement is set to expire tomorrow, and the other will probably run out in September unless Moscow grants sweeping liability protections to U.S. workers and companies operating in Russia. The Energy Department announced yesterday that it will not renew the 1998 Nuclear Cities Initiative agreement unless Russia accepts changes to the agreement, which is due to expire Sept. 22. Under the program, the United States has supported scaling back activities in Russia�s nuclear weapon research and production sites and converting some remaining facilities to peaceful purposes. According to the Energy Department�s Web site, the initiative �is the only U.S. government program whose primary aim is to help downsize the Russian nuclear weapons complex.� Yesterday�s announcement, however, said that U.S. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham has informed his Russian counterpart, Atomic Energy Minister Alexander Rumyantsev, that the NCI agreement will not be renewed �until the Russian government approves legal provisions intended to protect American workers and companies working on projects in Russia.� Abraham expressed hope that Russia will accept new liability language in time for the agreement to be renewed in September, but he said that if the agreement lapses, the two countries should nevertheless be able to continue existing projects. In such a case, Abraham said, �We look forward to reinstating the NCI agreement once broader issues of liability protection have been settled.� The announcement came only one day after U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration spokesman Bryan Wilkes said the NCI program �is not being canceled; it is not being stopped.� �We fully support the program. � The secretary is not canceling the program,� Wilkes said Monday. Plutonium Science and Technology Agreement Runs Out Tomorrow The Energy Department�s announcement yesterday may signal not only that the NCI program is in jeopardy, but also that other threat reduction efforts are threatened, as the Bush administration makes a priority of obtaining broad liability protections in all such agreements, according to congressional and nongovernmental organization observers. Immediately threatened is another 1998 U.S.-Russian initiative, known as the Plutonium Science and Technology agreement, that is set to expire tomorrow. The agreement provides for U.S.-Russian scientific and technical collaboration related to the withdrawal of plutonium from nuclear military programs. Aspects of the Plutonium Science and Technology agreement are also covered by the 2000 Plutonium Management and Disposition agreement, and activities carried out under the auspices of the 1998 agreement could conceivably continue under the 2000 text, according to Leonard Spector, who directs the Washington office of the Monterey Institute of International Studies� Center for Nonproliferation Studies. A planned liability protocol to the 2000 agreement has yet to be negotiated, while the language of the older plutonium agreement contains liability language similar to that of the NCI agreement � language that the Bush administration has consistently sought to replace with provisions such as those in the 1992 Cooperative Threat Reduction �umbrella agreement,� Spector said. Among other differences, the 1998 texts would exempt Russia from liability in cases of �premeditated� actions causing damage or injury, while the 1992 language contains no such references, leaving it entirely up to Russia to deal with all liability issues arising under activities governed by the agreement. House Members Write Bush Writing ahead of the Energy Department�s announcement on the NCI agreement, six Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives wrote U.S. President George W. Bush yesterday to express �deep concern that the United States is contemplating the possible nonrenewal of two key U.S.-Russian nonproliferation agreements that provide the legal basis for important cooperative threat reduction efforts with Russia.� Referring to the Plutonium Science and Technology agreement, the representatives � Ike Skelton (D-Mo.), John Spratt (D-S.C.), Ellen Tauscher (D-Calif.), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Chet Edwards (D-Texas) and Brad Sherman (D-Calif.) � said they �understand that the administration may be prepared to allow� the agreement to lapse tomorrow. �Beyond the national security and nonproliferation concerns of allowing the plutonium disposition program in Russia to stall or terminate,� the six lawmakers added, �there might also be significant negative domestic impacts on the activities associated with the plutonium disposition activities in the U.S. The U.S. plutonium disposition effort is a multibillion-dollar program that is designed to operate in tandem with the Russian plutonium disposal activities, and support for the effort could falter if the Russian program stalls.� Duma Endorsement Sought for Broad Liability Provisions Spector said the Bush administration is consistently championing what it sees as the �tried-and-true, clean approach of the CTR agreement.� �Whether or not that is the good approach is not the issue any longer. The government has decided that that is the approach that they want,� he said. According to Spector, the U.S. Defense Department views the liability language in the 1992 text as �perfection.� The Russian Duma, however, has never ratified the 1992 agreement or a later extension of the agreement, and it has been applied only provisionally. Meanwhile, some agreements signed in recent years � including bilateral arrangements between Germany and Russia and the 12-country Multilateral Nuclear Environmental Program for Russia (see GSN, May 22) � do not match the 1992 umbrella agreement�s broad liability provisions. In light of these developments, the desire to see the Duma ratify the liability provisions of the 1992 text is the key to U.S. insistence on similar language in the 1998 texts, according to Spector, who cited hopes the Russian legislature could ratify the umbrella agreement soon despite the fact that it is unlikely to sit for more than two months over the rest of this year. �The Americans think that once the Duma acts� on the 1992 agreement, Spector said, �the Russian objections will die off.� Even critics of the Bush administration�s approach, he said, agree that Duma action on the older text would �kind of cut the Gordian knot,� allowing the United States to hold up the 1992 agreement as a model of what the Duma is willing to ratify in the hope that such language can become the standard for agreements such as the plutonium disposition protocol. Spector and the Fridtjof Nansen Institute�s Douglas Brubaker wrote an article in the Monterey Institute�s Nonproliferation Review supporting reform of liability provisions in nuclear nonproliferation assistance agreements with Russia. Spector, a former assistant deputy administrator in the U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration, said yesterday that he opposes terminating the NCI program but supports the principle of liability reform in the interest of facilitating future nonproliferation assistance to Russia. �Whatever the next agreement is going to be, this is a humongously difficult headache every single agreement. And if you could get one of them locked in and endorsed, it would really streamline all future work,� Spector said. Spector and Brubaker argued in their article that none of the existing liability language models for cooperative threat reduction agreements sufficiently addresses the question of victim compensation. While Russia may be fully liable under umbrella agreement-style provisions, they said, Moscow is unlikely to be in a position to actually pay out compensation. The two researchers advocated two approaches to resolving the compensation problem. In the first approach, Russia would be liable for a certain amount of compensation, the cost of which could be covered by insurance taken out by Moscow for the purpose, and donor countries involved in nonproliferation aid programs in Russia would pay the rest of the compensation under a pooling system. The second approach envisions a bond issue in which bondholders would stand to make money on their investment unless a catastrophic accident occurred � in which case their money could be used to compensate victims. In announcing its stance on the NCI liability language yesterday, the Energy Department cited agreements reached last year at the Group of Eight summit in Canada, where the world�s leading industrialized countries and Russia launched the Global Partnership Against the Spread of Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction. The department indicated it would seek the same liability protections in a wide variety of other agreements. Critics Assail Focus on Liability Language Critics said the administration�s liability focus could lead to a broader series of moves to shrink or end threat reduction programs. �It�s entirely possible this is going to be a chain reaction over these issues of liability,� Russian American Nuclear Security Advisory Council Executive Director Kenneth Luongo said. Luongo, who initially wrote top Bush administration officials July 2 to plead in favor of keeping both programs, said yesterday in a statement, �Allowing these agreements to expire is wrong and unnecessary at this time. It sends a terrible signal about the importance of securing the largest stockpile of weapons of mass destruction on Earth as rapidly as possible.� �This issue has been debated in the dark, without any public involvement,� he said, adding that an �impression is being left that arguments will be used to kill programs and not debate them publicly.� �At a time when the president is running around the country talking about the intersection of weapons of mass destruction and terrorism,� Luongo said, terminating NCI activities �doesn�t make any sense.� �The point is, this is a terrible decision from a policy perspective,� Luongo said. �If this was a new agreement � that�s a separate issue than, �These agreements have been in operation for five years and, in some cases, 10 years, and now we think the liability provisions are inadequate.� Well, you have to show why they�re inadequate,� he added. Rose Gottemoeller, senior associate for the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said allowing NCI to lapse not only would concern the U.S. Energy Department and the Russian Atomic Energy Ministry, but also could damage U.S.-Russian relations more broadly at a crucial moment. �It is a bigger issue than a DOE-Minatom issue,� Gottemoeller said. Return to Menu B. Plutonium Disposition 1. Russian Fast Reactor Uses First Batch of MOX Beloyarsk-3 fast reactor unit has burned 'its first 10 kilogrammes' of mixed-oxide (MOX) fuel, manufactured from weapons-grade plutonium, NucNet quoted the Nuclear Society of Russia as saying. Speaking during a visit to the Novovoronezh NPP on 11th July, atomic energy minister Alexander Rumyantsev said: "The legacy of Cold War, military-origin plutonium will be reprocessed for use (as commercial fuel) in nuclear plants. this first experience at the BN-600 nuclear unit demonstrated high efficiency of the new fuel, and this work will be continued." The Nuclear Society of Russia (NSR) also says that this is the first time MOX has been burned in a Russian commercial nuclear power reactor, following similar experiments carried out at a research reactor at the Russian Institute of Atomic Reactors in Dimitrovgrad (NIIAR) "several years ago". Beloyarsk-3 began commercial operation in 1981 and has a net capacity of 560 megawatts. Return to Menu C. Plutonium Production Reactor Shutdown 1. Dry Nuclear Storage Facility To Be Launched In Zheleznogorsk In 2005 The first part of the dry storage facility for spent nuclear fuel at the Zheleznogorsk Chemical Combine should be put into operation in 2005. The facility is expected to receive 8 tons of the spent nuclear fuel from the Russian designed reactors VVER-1000, RBMK-1000 and of foreign origin. The project�s price tag is about $130 mln. Some parts of the unfinished RT-2 plant are rapidly being dismantled to construct the dry facility instead. The fossil fuel-burning power plant, a substitute for nuclear reactor, should produce 400 Gcal and 117 MW of energy. It is expected to serve both neighbouring Sosnovoborsk and Zheleznogorsk. According to the agreement between the Russian Atomic Ministry and the USA, the US party earmarks $150 mln for the fossil fuel-burning power plant provided the Russian party shuts down the controversial reactor for good in 2006. The Zheleznogorsk authorities, however, believe this sum is not enough and intend to ask for additional investment from the state budget. Return to Menu D. Strategic Arms Reduction 1. U.S.-Russia: No Verification Measures Planned For Moscow Treaty The Bush administration plans to rely on START and the Cooperative Threat Reduction program to verify Russian compliance with the Strategic Offensive Arms Reduction Treaty, Assistant Secretary of State Paula DeSutter said this week (see GSN, June 5). The Bush administration sees the treaty as a complete document, and therefore no additional verification measures are needed, said DeSutter, head of the State Department�s Verification and Compliance Bureau. The bureau plans to examine what measures START and the CTR program will provide over the next two years, but �we are basically satisfied,� said Karin Look, DeSutter�s deputy who was involved in the treaty negotiations. If the bureau had been concerned about a lack of verification measures, �we would have pressed in the context of the negotiations and the ratification hearings to have something more in the treaty,� Look said (Thomas Duffy, Inside the Pentagon, July 24).At the time the treaty was signed in May 2002, Bush administration officials indicated that the United States and Russia would negotiate follow-on measures to the treaty (see GSN, May 24, 2002). �The verification stuff, all of that is going to go into the implementation agreement. These are essentially the details, the nitty-gritty and it�s being worked on, but it�s not done. It may take a little while,� National Security Council spokesman Michael Anton said when the treaty was signed (Greg Webb, GSN, July 24). The treaty calls for the creation of a Bilateral Implementation Commission, which may meet for the first time by the end of summer, according to Inside the Pentagon. Currently, the commission is not expected to do more than keep Washington and Moscow informed about the pace of each other�s disarmament, DeSutter said. �At the end of the day the MT [Moscow Treaty] has two obligations, one is to have the BIC meet and the other is to have both sides down to 1,700 to 2,200 warheads by 2012,� Look said. Look also said, however, that other U.S. agencies, as well as Russia itself, may still press for additional verification measures for the treaty. �Now will the Russians agree with us? I don�t know,� Look said. �Will there be other parts of the U.S. government that thinks there is something needed? I don�t know,� she said (Duffy, Inside the Pentagon). Return to Menu 2. Russians Tour Nuclear Silo With a Stoli Toast Five Russian military brass climbed out of helicopters on the Wyoming prairie Monday, strode to a chain-link fence guarded by U.S. airmen with M-16 rifles and quickly gained clearance to a nuclear-missile facility originally designed to cow them. Then, in a visit that symbolically upended residual Cold War hostilities, high-ranking officials with Russian Strategic Rocket Forces toured a Peacekeeper missile silo undergoing deactivation. "It's part of an overall process of transforming the relationship between our two countries from one of post-Cold War rivalry to one of working cooperatively," said Brig. Gen. Frank Klotz, commander of the 20th Air Force. In the silo, about 60 miles north of Cheyenne and 60 feet underground, the Russians saw the inner workings of the United States' most destructive nuclear missiles. This inconspicuous missile site, visited most often by cattle and antelope, held among the first of 50 Peacekeeper missiles that will be dismantled by 2005 as the two nations redesign their relationship. The missiles - each of which can carry 10 nuclear warheads - all are buried in southeastern Wyoming. Air Force leaders hosting the trip entered the U.S. military when Russia was part of the evil empire and the chief reason for amassing U.S. nuclear might, said Col. John Faulkner, maintenance group commander at F.E. Warren Air Force Base, which maintains intercontinental ballistic missiles in Colorado, Wyoming and Nebraska. But Sunday night, Air Force hosts toasted their Russian equivalents with Stolichnaya vodka during a steak dinner in Cheyenne. And Monday morning, they toured part of the U.S. underground nuclear arsenal that more than four decades ago was designed to deter similar forces in Russia. The military leaders discussed shared concerns about terrorism, rogue nations and worldwide political instability, said Col. Kenneth Van Sickle, vice commander of the 90th Space Wing. The Russians, who did not speak to reporters, learned about the deactivation schedule for Peacekeeper missiles, which will help the United States comply with mandates of the 2002 Moscow Treaty, an arms reduction agreement, signed by President Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin. The visitors also heard about the 150 Minuteman III missiles that remain on alert under the Western plains, and remain a concern among peace activists, including three Catholic nuns who will be sentenced in Denver on Friday for breaching a missile site. Gen. Col. Nikolay Solovtsov, commander of the Russian Strategic Rocket Forces, did not descend into the silo Monday. But he wiped the dirt-smudged nose of Airman 1st Class James Clouse as the young enlistee clambered up a ladder. "Son, you're dirty. That's good," the Russian general told Clouse, 21, who performs missile maintenance. "I was like, 'Yes, sir,"' Clouse said later. "It was pretty cool." On Monday night, the visiting Russians were scheduled to have another taste of the West: They were set to dine on barbecued beef, beans and coleslaw, then attend a bull-riding performance at Cheyenne Frontier Days, one of the region's biggest and best-known rodeos. Return to Menu E. Submarine Dismantlement 1. Russia's Defence Ministry Not to Flinch from Environmental Disputes: Ivanov Russia's Defence Ministry is willing to discuss environmental issues in public, reassured minister Sergei Ivanov as he was addressing the media following routine conference with Valentina Matvienko, presidential plenipotentiary representative in federal district Northwest. The ministry set up an environment protection board fairly long ago. It has been exchanging information and making partnership agreements with its overseas analogues ever since the early 1990s, said Mr. Ivanov. Russia owes its worst environmental problems to the Soviet past-it has to dispose of nuclear submarines, IBMs and poisonous fuel. The ministry is not interested in shelving the matter, he reassured. Allocations to respective efforts are coming, for the most part, from the Defence Ministry purse. Mr. Ivanov does not think that is a just arrangement-environment protection concerns the entire nation, he stressed. Return to Menu F. Russian Nuclear Forces 1. Defence Minister Arrives at Northern Fleet Main Base Touring units of the Leningrad military district and the Northern Fleet, Russia's Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov described upon arrival at Severomorsk the purpose of his journey. "The chief aim of my work here is, as before, to see on the spot the state of affairs in the naval forces in the country's north, to look into the problems of daily life of army and navy collectives, to work out ways of solving them to assist the fleet's command, and to carry out measures concerned with military build-up," the minister said. According to him, "the specific features of the Northern Fleet are its complex climatic conditions of basing - practically all its principal forces are located in the Far North areas, and the depth of its operations zone is 6,000 miles, or 11,600 kilometres". As Ivanov noted, "the fleet's zone of responsibility covers Russia's biggest centre of nuclear shipbuilding, and the largest fire ranges for testing new systems of naval weapons, including nuclear ones". "Besides, the Northern Fleet has the most powerful grouping of naval strategic nuclear forces, which make up more than 80 per cent of all their combat potential," the minister said. Return to Menu 2. Russia to Have Sufficient Number of Submarines Russia will have enough submarines to ensure its national security, federal Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov has assured. When asked about development prospects of Russia's strategic naval nuclear forces, the minister said the designs of the new subs had been worked out already. "There is a programme to build new submarines and outfit them with latest weapon systems. The plans to arm the subs are mentioned in the federal armament programme," said the minister. "The first tests of the missile complexes that are planned to be installed on the subs will be launched in the foreseeable future," assured the minister. The leading sub will be built in 2006, the rest vessels will follow, according to Mr Ivanov. This is not about a race or a competition of a sort with the United States or another other country, he insisted. "Russia will have enough submarines, though not as many as in the Soviet times, but enough to ensure national security," said Mr Ivanov. The minister is currently on a routine tour of the Leningrad military district and the Northern Fleet. Return to Menu 3. Troops` Combat Readiness Has Increased Defence Minister Tells Putin Russian President Vladimir Putin has been in conference with the top leaders of the Defence Ministry, discussing the state of the country's armed forces and their financing in the year to come. Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov told the state leader that the combat readiness of the armed forces had grown "both qualitatively and quantitatively." The country's land forces, airborne troops and navy conducted more exercises in 2003 than in the previous year, the minister said. The Russian army was being financed strictly in accordance with the plan, he added. He also told Putin about the joint exercise the submarines of the Russian and French Navies had recently conducted in the Norwegian Sea. During this exercise, the submarines of the two countries established underwater communication for the first time in their history, reported Ivanov. According to him, the exercise proved that the Russian Navy and the fleets of some of the NATO countries are able to communicate under water. Return to Menu G. Nuclear Trafficking 1. U-238 Sales Attempt Cut Short in Ussuriisk In Ussuriisk, Russia�s Far East, FSB and MVD (Ministry of Home Affairs) Organized Crime Agency for Primorski Krai officers cut short an attempt of illegal sales of 4.5 grams of radioactive uranium-238 with a criminal case on illegal handling of radioactive material laid. This, reportedly by ITAR-TASS, was said by the agencies� spokespersons at a briefing in Vladivostok. The press were not told who had attempted to sell the radioactive substance and to whom. Return to Menu H. Russia-Iran 1. Russian Diplomat Warns US Not to Use Force Against Iran A Russian diplomat warned the United States against attacking Iran, saying in an interview published Tuesday that the use of force against Tehran "would have more serious consequences than in the case of Iraq." Russia cannot rule out that the United States, which angered the Kremlin by invading Iraq without support from the U.N. Security Council, might use force against another country, Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Losyukov said in an interview with the newspaper Vremya Novostei that was posted on the Foreign Ministry's Web site. "Iran is a very mobilized country. It is a tougher nut to crack than Iraq," Losyukov said. "Forceful actions against Iran would create more problems than the would solve." "In Iraq you see how the situation is developing. And with Iran it would be even more difficult," he said, referring to the disorder and persistent attacks on U.S. forces in postwar Iraq. The Interfax news agency quoted Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov as saying Tuesday that the political, economic and humanitarian situation in Iraq "is continuing to worsen rapidly." Losyukov emphasized Russia's traditionally close ties with Iran and said that "today too, Iran is for us the key country in the region." He said Russia sees "no clear proof" of the U.S. claim that Iran supports terrorism. The United States also believes Iran is seeking to develop nuclear weapons and fears Russia's US$800 million contract to build a nuclear power reactor there Iran will hep it achieve that goal. Russia insists the U.S. concern is unfounded but has recently called on Iran to sign an agreement called the additional protocol, which would allow the U.N. nuclear agency to conduct unfettered inspections. Losyukov reiterated that Russia believes it would be in Iran's interest to sign the protocol. He said that Iran's government has refrained from signing it for internal political reasons but that there is a chance it may do so. Return to Menu 2. Russian Duma Official Calls for Expansion of Ties With Iran Deputy Chairman of Russia's State Duma Vladimir Zhirinovski in a meeting with Iran's Special Envoy for Caspian Affairs Mehdi Safari here on Tuesday, stressed the need for broadening mutual ties. The meeting mainly focused on bilateral cooperation as well as regional and international issues. Turning to his meetings with Russian officials in the past days, Safari called on Russia to expedite the project on Bushehr Nuclear Power Station. In the meeting, Zhirinovski underlined that Russia is seriously determined to complete the project and declared the readiness of his country for further expansion of ties with Iran in various fields. He also called of bolstering inter-parliamentary cooperation between the two states and announced the will of Russia's State Duma to invite Iran's Majlis speaker to Moscow. Safari and Zhirinovski discussed political developments and security in Afghanistan, Iraq, Central Asia and Caucasus and underlined the need for mutual cooperation towards establishment of regional stability. The two parties also called for efforts to blocking the interference of extra-regional powers in the region. Return to Menu 3. Iran, Russia Call for Expansion of Bilateral Ties Iran's Special Envoy for Caspian Affairs Mehdi Safari here on Monday in separate meetings with a number of Russian diplomats, explored avenues for bolstering of bilateral and regional cooperation between the two countries. In a meeting with State Duma Deputy Speaker Artur Chilingarov, the two sides underlined the need for joint efforts to settle the existing regional crises particularly those in Afghanistan, Tajikistan and the Karabakh region. Voicing Moscow's support for completion of Bushehr nuclear power plant, the Russian official emphasized his country's determination to fulfill its commitments regarding completion of the project. He announced the State Duma's readiness to dispatch a parliamentary delegation to Iran to visit Bushehr nuclear power plant. At the end of the meeting, the two officials called for further expansion of Tehran-Moscow political, economic and military relations. Meanwhile, Safari and Konstantin Shovalev, an official at Russian Foreign Ministry in charge of Central Asia, reviewed the latest regional developments and called for promotion of all-out cooperation between the two states. Bilateral cooperation within the framework of regional and international organizations as well as anti-drug campaign were among other issues discussed by the two officials. The two sides also called for further consultation between the two countries in order to confront intervention of foreign powers in the region. In another development, Safari met and conferred with Vladimir Godiev, an official at Russian Foreign Ministry for the Caucasus affairs on Monday. Return to Menu 4. Russia Good on Pledge to Build Bushehr Power Plant for Iran: Duma Vice-Speaker Russia will be good on its pledge to build a nuclear power plant in Bushehr, Iran. Its construction must be brought to final success, and Russia fully realises that point, reassured Arthur Chilingarov, Deputy Speaker of the State Duma, Russia's lower parliamentary house. He made the statement while in conference with Mehdi Safari, Iranian presidential envoy for the Caspian issue. Russian parliamentarians are willing to visit the Bushehr construction site, added Mr. Chilingarov. As RIA Novosti was subsequently informed by the Iranian Embassy press service, the conference also concerned prospects for further bilateral partnership on a satellite launching project, and Russo-Iranian team efforts to extinguish regional conflicts, with an emphasis on Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Karabakh. Messrs. Chilingarov and Safari emphasised the importance of closer bilateral political and economic ties-in particular, military-technological. Mehdi Safari is in Moscow for a 10th session of the Caspian ad hoc team, which opens tomorrow. Return to Menu 5. Russian Official Denies Differences Between Iran, Russia Over Nuke Fuel Spokesman of the Russian Foreign Ministry Alexander Yakovenko denied any differences between Russia and Iran over the nuclear fuel that Russia would provide for Iran's Bushehr Atomic Power Station. Talking to reporters, Yakovenko said there are no differences between the two neighbors over the provision of the Bushehr power plant's fuel by Moscow and the return of the used fuel by Tehran. The Russian official stressed on the transparent nature of the Moscow-Tehran nuclear cooperation and underlined the strong political will of both sides for the expansion of the mutual nuclear cooperation. He appreciated the stands adopted by Iran in the nuke cooperation between the two states which he said were fully transparent. There are no obstacles on the way of providing the required nuclear fuel for the Bushehr Plant by Russia and the return of the used fuel to Russia, he reiterated. He said Russian remains committed to fulfill its pledges toward Iran regarding the completion of its Bushehr Nuclear Reactor and putting it in operation. Russia and Iran are to fix a date for the delivery of nuclear fuel to Iran shortly with the delivery to be made for the Unit 1 of Iran's Bushehr Power Plant. Return to Menu I. Russia-North Korea 1. Russia Sees N Korea Nuclear Talks in September Talks on North Korea's nuclear program may be held in the first half of September, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Losyukov reported on Friday. However, Losyukov added that it has not been decided yet whether the talks will take place. The U.S. has suggested to China that the negotiations be first held in Beijing in a trilateral format (the U.S., North Korea and China), and after that, probably the next day, in an expanded format (North Korea, South Korea, Russia, U.S., China and Japan), Losyukov said. "It is important for this initiative that these two talks take place immediately one after the other," Losyukov said. "Beijing should now pass this proposal to the North Koreans, and it is impossible to say at this point what their response will be," he said. Losyukov said that if this proposal is accepted, the talks will likely be held in the first half of September in Beijing at the level of deputy foreign ministers. Losyukov said that if North Korea agrees to these two-stage negotiations, Russia will doubtlessly take part in the expanded format. "We have expressed a wish to take part in this format. North Korea also considers our participation a condition of such negotiations, if they are to take place. Beijing believes Russia's participation is expedient, and the other countries are not against it," Losyukov said. Return to Menu 2. Whole World to Run Danger With North Korean Nukes, Warns Russian Expert If Pyongyang officially declares North Korea a nuclear state, critical consequences will spread worldwide, warns Alexander Konovalov, President of the Moscow-based research Institute of Strategic Studies. If North Korea gets hold of nuclear arsenals, Japan, its close neighbour, will have to become a nuclear country, too. That will drastically change the arrangement of forces not only throughout Asia but in the whole world, and will certainly have an impact on Russia's national interests, he said in a RIA Novosti interview. As Mr. Konovalov assumes, North Korea possesses several nuclear charges even now, or will obtain them quite soon-within a few months or even weeks. It has every chance for that, what with its available stock of weapon-grade plutonium and ready cores. The situation demands concerted global efforts led by the USA, China, Russia, South Korea and Japan. Russia may play a part as no other country, what with Moscow's unique recent experience of contacts with Kim Jong-il. The United Nations, too, ought to join the Korean settlement cause. Mr. Konovalov does not rule out prospects for an US preventive strike on North Korean nuclear projects. The more aggressive Pyongyang is as it brandishes its nuclear sword to intimidate America, the more chance for America to use force on it, stressed the expert. Return to Menu 3. Russian Foreign Ministry On Situation With North Korea Escalation of tension around North Korea is fraught with "negative consequences," Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Yury Fedotov told journalists on Wednesday. According to him, Russia regards the nuclear subject dealing with North Korea as "a very serious problem." "Everything is happening near the Russian border, which means escalation of tension is fraught with the most negative consequences," he stressed. Efforts are being made to "solve the problem peacefully, by political means," reported the diplomat, adding, "We hope the problem can be solved by diplomatic means." Return to Menu 4. Russia Calls for Negotiations Soon on N. Korea Nuclear Tensions Russia called Monday for urgent negotiations on the North Korea nuclear tensions and is assessing its civil defense strength in the region in connection with the crisis, news reports said. The South Korean president's national security adviser Ra Jong-il said North Korea, China and the United States are "in the final stage of arranging a new meeting" on the dispute over North Korea's nuclear program. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Losyukov said "it is necessary to start negotiations as soon as possible. Only that can ease the tension," the Interfax news agency reported. "Signals from the main participants, primarily the United States and North Korea, are needed to ease tensions," he was quoted as saying. Also Monday, the ITAR-Tass news agency quoted Losyukov, currently in South Korea, as saying that Russia had issued instructions to check civil defense capabilities in the country's Far East in connection with "the gradually deteriorating" Korean situation. Return to Menu 5. Russia Urges N. Korea Talks to Avert ''Hot'' Conflict Russia urged the United States and North Korea to start talks on Pyongyang's nuclear weapons programme, warning that a standoff between them was boiling over, Interfax news agency said on Monday. "Signals from the main participants, primarily the United States and North Korea, are needed to ease tensions," it quoted Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Losyukov as saying. "So far this is not happening, which is preventing the start of talks in any form. Meanwhile, the situation continues to deteriorate and is slowly sinking into a state of conflict which could get hot." Return to Menu 6. Russia Tightens Security Measures in Case of Nuke Conflict on Korean Peninsula Russia is taking steps to protect itself from the possible use of nuclear weapons on the Korean peninsula, Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Losyukov said Thursday, according to the Interfax news agency. Losyukov said that other countries, including China and South Korea, were also taking measures to increase security in the region, where tensions are strained over North Korea's alleged nuclear program. "These efforts concern the possible eruption of a conflict there, during which nuclear weapons might be used," he said. He did not elaborate what sort of measures were being taken but said that they did not involve a military buildup, Interfax reported. North and South Korean troops traded gunfire across the demilitarized zone between their two countries early Thursday morning, South Korean military officials said. "This confirms our assumptions that the situation continues to worsen," Losyukov said. Return to Menu J. Russia-China 1. China May Credit Construction of First Floating Nuclear Unit in Russia The Russian-Chinese peaceful nuclear cooperation goes in many areas producing sizable results in the atmosphere of true friendship, mutual trust and support, said RF minister for atomic energy Alexander Rumyantsev, as Nuclear.Ru was informed by Minatom�s of Russia press-service, summarizing the 7-th meeting of the Russian-Chinese subcommission on nuclear issues under the Commission on preparing regular meeting of Russia and China Heads of States held July 23. The Russian delegation was headed by Alexander Rumyantsev and the Chinese delegation was led by Chairman of the Committee for defense science, technology and industry Zhang Yunchuan. It was noted that Taynwan-1 and 2 construction is on schedule with Tyanwan-1 having completed the construction, being very close to complete assembling, and start-up and alignment rapidly progressing. They have installed 176 out of 274 process and auxiliary systems and the unit�s systems� integrated tests will start October 1. Nuclear fuel fabrication is closing the completion with its shipment planned for the second half of 2003. The sides have agreed to discuss future possibilities of further cooperation in this area basing on successful construction of Tyanwan Phase 1 and provided the Chinese government makes a decision to construct Phase 2. The subcommission appraised the cooperation in construction of the first three phases of the gas-centrifuge uranium enrichment plant. The Russian side is ready to consider the issue of constructing the fourth phase of 500,000 SWU/year. It also proposed to broaden the cooperation between the Russian and Chinese enterprises in space nuclear power. The cooperation in development of a 10 MW thermal emission reactor-converter to power spacecraft will be continued. The sides were satisfied with the progress achieved in China in construction of the experimental fast neutron research reactor (CEFR). Last year the seismic tests of CEFR were completed, the Chinese operating personnel did relevant training, and the core detailed design documentation was handed over. The preparation for nuclear fuel fabrication is under way. The sides exchanged opinions on possible joint work to create a floating nuclear power plant basing of the Russian nuclear marine technologies. Oleg Saraev, the president of Rosenergoatom Concern, stated to the meeting that the effort should be put to have an international cooperative agreement between Russia and China in this field prepared and signed already next year. He thinks that the 150 million USD floating nuclear plant project could result in a commercially promising plant capable of producing 70 MW of electricity and 50 Gcal of heat and, if necessary, desalinating 240,000 cubic meters of seawater daily. Meanwhile, at the meeting between Rosenergoatom and Chinese governmental delegations held July 22 the Chinese delegation stated that it is ready to credit construction of a leading floating nuclear power unit with KLT-40C reactors for Severodvinsk. Return to Menu 2. Russia Says Construction of Nuclear Reactor in China on Schedule Russia will finish construction of the first of two energy-generating units at a nuclear power plant in China in December 2004 as planned, the Interfax news agency quoted the head of the Russia company building the plant as saying Tuesday. Viktor Kozlov, director of Atomstroiexport, said the Russian side confirmed the construction schedule during a meeting of a bilateral subcommission on nuclear issues, Interfax reported. The contract to build the plant in China is estimated at US$3 billion, Interfax said. It said the plant will have two energy-generating units with 1,000-megawatt VVER-1000 reactors, which used pressurized water to cool the fuel rods. The Chinese power plant is located in Lianyungang, a coastal city about 800 kilometers (500 miles) north of Shanghai. Russia's Nuclear Energy Ministry is also building reactors in India and Iran. Return to Menu 3. Russia, China May Cooperate in Building Floating Nuclear Power Plants Russia hopes to win a Chinese loan for a project to build a floating nuclear plant, and the two nations may cooperate in building more such plants in the future, officials said Wednesday. A spokesman for the state-run Rosenergoatom company, which operates Russian nuclear power plants, said that it would cost about US$145 million to build the floating plant and Chinese officials had offered a loan to finance the construction. China could finance from 50 to 100 percent of the cost, said the spokesman, who asked not be named. The plant would be capable of producing electricity and heat and desalinating water. A statement posted on Rosenergoatom's Web site said the floating plant would be built at a shipyard in the city of Severodvinsk in northern Russia. This and other plants that might be built in the future would be operated by Rosenergoatom and remain its property. Floating nuclear power plants could claim a large share of the fast-growing global desalination market, the statement said. Their mobility would allow them to provide fresh water and electricity to coastal areas in Asia and Africa. China wants to see Russia build and safely operate the first floating plant before it commits to further cooperation, according to Rosenergoatom's statement. In the future, China could build barges for such plants at its shipyards, the Rosenergoatom spokesman said. Russian and Chinese officials were to discuss details of the deal Wednesday, he said. Russia has long been interested in using such plants to supply electricity to remote northern and eastern regions where severe weather makes construction on land difficult and expensive. But despite frequent announcements that the project had the green light, construction has not yet begun. Environmentalists have criticized the plans as too risky, and questioned Russia's ability to safeguard such a facility from terrorists. Critics have also expressed concern about Russia's ability to safely build and manage a floating nuclear power plant. The Soviet Union was the site of the world's worst nuclear disaster, in 1986, at Chernobyl, Ukraine. Return to Menu 4. Zhan Yunchuan is to Discuss Prospects of New N-Units Construction In China The visit of Zhan Yunchuan, the Chair of the Chinese committee on defense science, technology and industry to Russia has started July 21 to discuss the issues of cooperation in the peaceful uses of atomic energy, as Nuclear.Ru was informed by Minatom of Russia press-service. The meeting of the Russian-Chinese sub-committee on nuclear matters of the Commission on preparing regular summits of heads of states of Russia and China will be held July 23. The meeting will be chaired by Alexander Rumyantsev, the Russian Minister of Atomic Energy, and Zhan Yunchuan, the Chair of the Chinese committee on defense science, technology and industry. The meeting is to discuss the progress in Tyanwan N-plant construction and prospect for cooperation in construction of subsequent units; the progress in construction of a fast neutron research reactor in China and prospects of cooperation in design and application of research reactors; the current status and prospects for development of scientific and technical cooperation; the cooperation in development of spacecraft nuclear power installations; the cooperation in joint development a floating nuclear power plants; and other matters of Russia-China nuclear cooperation. During the visit, which will end on July 27, the Chinese delegation, besides negotiations with their Russian colleagues, will be taken to a number of Minatom�s enterprises in Moscow and St. Petersburg. Return to Menu K. Spent Nuclear Fuel Imports 1. Bulgarian Nuclear Waste to be Stored in Urals Indefinitely, But Not Permanently A trainload of spent nuclear fuel from a Bulgarian nuclear-power plant has arrived at the Mayak facility near Chelyabinsk, ITAR-TASS reported on 21 July. Facility spokesman Yevgenii Ryzhkov told the agency that the fuel will now undergo recycling, during which 90 percent of its valuable components will be extracted for future use. The leftover radioactive waste will be sent to special storage. In an interview with Ekho Moskvy earlier this month, Ryzhkov said the waste "will remain at the facility for an undetermined period." "We are talking not about burying, but about temporary storage," Ryzhkov said. "Such a procedure is perfectly legal." Local environmentalists maintain that according to an earlier agreement between Russia and Bulgaria, Russia agreed to recycle the fuel, but not to store it, the radio station reported on 11 July. Return to Menu L. Official Statements 1. Joint Statement of the U.S.-Russia Working Group on Counterterrorism (excerpted) [�] The WMD subgroup focused on concrete measures to counteract possible use of biological, nuclear and radiological material for terrorist purposes, including through scientific, research, and health cooperation. On bioterrorism, the subgroup agreed to explore a range of cooperative programs in the areas of prevention, immediate response and consequence management. It also agreed to explore collaboration to strengthen overall public health systems to combat bioterrorism. The WMD subgroup also agreed to pursue a collaborative review of nuclear material from smuggling cases. We believe this effort will improve the ability of our governments to cooperate to prevent illicit trafficking in nuclear material and its use by terrorists. [...] Return to Menu 2. Russian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Yuri Fedotov Meets with US Ambassador to Moscow Alexander Vershbow On July 22 Russian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Yuri Fedotov received for conversation the US Ambassador to Moscow, Alexander Vershbow. During the talk, the sides exchanged views on a number of pressing issues in world politics, above all, on DPRK nuclear problems. Both reaffirmed the necessity for efforts to be continued to normalize the situation in the Korean peninsula as quickly as possible while by all means preserving its nuclear-free status. A number of questions of Russian-US cooperation within the UN were also examined. Return to Menu 3. Interview With The Washington Times Editorial Board (excerpted) [...] That is a quick pop around the world for you. The only other place I would touch on is Russia, where I started off with a problem in Russia. You remember the spy caper early on and I bounced 52 people out of the country? The first meeting I ever had with the Russian ambassador, he came in to sit down and say, "Welcome, and I'm going to Moscow tomorrow. What message would you like me to deliver?" (Laughter.) "Well, you may want to make a phone call first." And I told him we were going to take out 52, send home 52. A day later my new Russia colleague Igor Ivanov called me to say, "You know, this is really, bad, bad, bad and we will also, then, throw out 52." I said, "I understand. I've been in this business for a number of years." Then three days later we did it and then he called and said, "We're not going to do anything else. Are you going to do anything else?" "No. This game is over. Let's go on." And we did. Over the last two plus years, except for the disagreement over Iraq, we have been pretty much on a steady track with Russia. We got out of the ABM Treaty as the President said he would because it was constraining missile defense. We are working on missile defense. And notwithstanding all of that, we got the Treaty of Moscow, which reduced strategic offensive weapons, signed, ratified by both parties, and instruments of ratification exchanged all in a relatively short period of time. We expanded NATO without Russia coming apart as a result of the Baltic States being included in NATO and we expanded the concept of NATO so that it now includes Russia as part of the NATO-Russia Council. I think this is a rather rich and broad agenda that the President has executed over the last two plus years, two and a half years, and you are all well familiar with what he has tried to do with open trade, WTO and lots of other onesies and twosies that I can touch on. I think it is in agenda and performance on an agenda that this Administration and the nation can be proud of. [...] Return to Menu 4. Secretary Abraham Proposes Continuing Defense Conversion Projects In Russian Closed Cities U.S. Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham has acted to ensure that U.S. nonproliferation projects in Russia continue uninterrupted if the 1998 Nuclear Cities Initiative (NCI) agreement is not renewed before it expires in September, the U.S. DOE says in a press release, Secretary Abraham informed Russian Atomic Energy Minister Alexandr Rumyantsev that the U. S. will not be able to renew the NCI agreement until the Russian government approves legal provisions intended to protect American workers and companies working on projects in Russia. Secretary Abraham said, "We are eager to continue our cooperation in this area." He noted that projects underway can be completed even if the current agreement expires. At issue is a 2002 commitment from Russian President Vladimir Putin to take necessary steps to ensure adequate liability protection for foreign projects carried out in Russia. When the G-8 countries accepted a United States proposal to form a Global Partnership, they agreed to negotiate such liability protections. Because of their importance, the United States is not prepared to extend agreements such as that covering the Nuclear Cities Initiative unless the agreements include liability provisions meeting U.S. standards. Secretary Abraham proposed that should it not be possible to renew the NCI agreement by September, the two countries exercise a provision in the existing NCI agreement that allows all ongoing projects continue if the agreement terminates. "We hope that the Russian Federation will accept our broad proposal on liability in time to allow for the extension of the Nuclear Cities Initiative Agreement," said Abraham in announcing his proposal. "Still, it is prudent for us to act now to continue our ongoing projects. We look forward to reinstating the NCI agreement once broader issues of liability protection have been settled." The Nuclear Cities Initiative is a component of the Department of Energy�s Russian Transition Initiative. NCI works in partnership with American industry to transform the infrastructure in the closed cities of the Russian nuclear weapons complex to permanent non-defense uses. The program serves an important non-proliferation goal by re-directing Russian nuclear weapons scientists to non-nuclear efforts. The United States funds similar projects in Russia under the Initiatives for Proliferation Protection (IPP) and through the International Science and Technology Centers. Those projects are administered under separate agreements and will not be affected if the Nuclear Cities Initiative Agreement lapses. Return to Menu M. Links of Interest 1. Just Like Old Times Return to Menu 2. Washington, Berlin, and Moscow: A New Alignment After Iraq? Return to Menu 3. Department of Energy and National Nuclear Security Administration Advances "Weapons Into Plowshares" Efforts at Savannah River Site Return to Menu 4. FY 2004 Annual Report on the Cooperative Threat Reduction Program Return to Menu 5. Book Release: Tactical Nuclear Weapons: Emergent Threats in an Evolving Security Environment Return to Menu 6. An American Security Policy: Challenge, Opportunity, Commitment 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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