MOSCOW. Jan 27 (Interfax-AVN) - Great Britain is assigning 12 million pounds ($22.59 million) in partnership with the United States to stop the production of war-grade plutonium in Russia.
British Trade and Industry Minister Nigel Griffiths signed an agreement with the United States on Wednesday to assign 12 million pounds to close one of the last Soviet plutonium-producing reactors, says a press release from the British Embassy in Moscow.
The agreement will help to shut down the plutonium-producing reactor in the restricted area of Zheleznogorsk in Siberia, the embassy said.
This will be Britain's contribution to an American program to close plutonium-producing reactors in Russia. The reactors also generate electricity for the Russian towns of Seversk and Zheleznogorsk, which have a total population of over 215,000, the press release said.
In particular, Great Britain will take part in the design and construction of a replacement power plant that is to be commissioned in 2011. According to the press service, the Russian government agreed to shut down the reactors completely, if this power plant starts operating.
Commenting on the agreement with the U.S., Griffiths said that Great Britain is involved in major programs related to solving Cold War heritage problems in the former Soviet Union. The former Soviet reactors generate about 1.2 tonnes of plutonium annually, which is enough for creating 300 atomic bombs. This is one of the biggest non-proliferation problems for the global community.
Paul Longsworth, Deputy Administrator for Defense Nuclear Non-proliferation at the U.S. Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration, welcomed the British initiative. The goal of the program is to guarantee that no new plutonium is generated, he said. This is important, because the plutonium that is not generated does not require registration or guard, and it will not be available for terrorists, he stressed.