U.S. Helps Russia Repatriate Weapons Usable Reactor Fuel

WASHINGTON, DC, November 7, 2003 (ENS) - Highly enriched uranium of Russian origin that has been used in research reactors around the world is being sent back to Russia with financial help from the United States, Russian and U.S. energy officials announced today.

Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham and the Minister of the Russian Federation for Atomic Energy Aleksandr Rumyantsev signed a joint statement today to repatriate high-enriched uranium (HEU) research reactor fuel of Russian origin back to Russia.

The United States will provide financial assistance to the program, but a specific price tag was not mentioned.

"Under this program, we are focusing our efforts on repatriating Russian-supplied fuel from more than 20 research reactors in 17 countries," Secretary Abraham said. "Moreover, we plan to convert these targeted research reactors so that they use low enriched uranium (LEU) fuel instead of HEU."

HEU can be directly used in manufacturing nuclear weapons, but when blended with natural uranium it becomese low enriched uranium (LEU), which cannot be used in weapons.

U.S. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham addresses the International Atomic Energy Agency annual conference in September. (Photo courtesy IAEA)

The signing concludes a four day visit by Minister Rumyansev with Secretary Abraham which included trips to the Partnerships for Prosperity and Security Trade Show in Philadelphia and to the United Nations First Committee on Disarmament and International Security in New York City.

In a joint appearance at the UN on Wednesday, Abraham told the delegates that more than 170 tons of Russia’s HEU has been converted to non-weapons grade material for use in American commercial reactors. "Altogether, 500 metric tons of Russia’s HEU will be converted and used to support civilian nuclear power," he said.

The Bush administration is committed to creating a stockpile in the United States of low-enriched uranium derived from Russian HEU, further reducing HEU inventories, Abraham told the UN delegates. "This stockpile will be used to augment our strategic uranium reserve to enhance our domestic energy security."

The United States has identified 174 tons of excess HEU that will be blended down and used for civil purposes, the secretary said. "To date, over 40 metric tons have been downblended and like Russia, we remain committed to disposing of 34 metric tons of excess plutonium."

"The goal of minimizing international commerce in HEU has long been a pillar of U.S. nonproliferation policy," Abraham said today at the signing ceremony in Washington. "This program exemplifies the strength of the U.S. and Russian Federation partnership to reduce the threat of terrorism and prevent the spread of weapons of mass destruction."

The U.S. and the Russian Federation, in cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), began work on fuel return in December 1999. The program was designed to support the return of Soviet or Russian supplied fresh and irradiated HEU fuel, currently stored at foreign research reactors, to the Russian Federation.

Russian Minister for Atomic Energy Aleksandr Rumyantsev at the IAEA annual meeting in September (Photo courtesy IAEA)

In Romania, the United States will provide up to $4 million for the purchase of low-enriched uranium for a research reactor that will be converted from HEU to LEU. "This is key to reducing the reactor’s attractiveness to terrorists or other threats, even as the reactor will continue to be used for peaceful purposes," said Abraham, who stressed that these conversions must take place "on an urgent basis."

The U.S. and Russia also reached an agreement on the next fresh fuel shipment, which is planned to be implemented by the end of this year.

Preparations are also in progress for the transfer of spent HEU fuel from Uzbekistan to Russia.

"Our governments have completed negotiations on a bilateral agreement under which more then a dozen other countries will become eligible to ship their fresh and spent research reactor fuel to Russia for safe and secure disposition," Secretary Abraham said today. "I am delighted to report that this agreement will soon be finalized and signed."

As part of the global campaign to minimize commercial use of HEU, Abraham told the 2nd annual Carnegie Nonproliferation Conference in Moscow September 19 that the United States has converted half the research reactors using HEU of U.S. origin to LEU.

The United States has "completed a campaign in which 38 research reactors in 22 countries using HEU of U.S. origin have been converted to LEU, keeping over 3,300 kilograms of weapon usable material off the market," Abraham said.

The U.S. Energy Department is developing a new low enriched uranium fuel, which can help replace HEU fuel in additional remaining reactors, Abraham told conference delegates in Moscow.

In their joint statement today, the two energy officials said their cooperation on the research reactor fuel is a "mutual contribution to the reduction of global stockpiles of weapons usable nuclear materials and, therefore, to reducing the threat of international terrorism and preventing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction."

Their agreement comes just in time for the International Conference on Research Reactor Utilization, Safety, Decommissioning, Fuel and Waste Management taking place next week in Santiago, Chile. Organized by the International Atomic Energy Agency the conference will focus on the 278 research reactors now operating in 59 countries.