Disarmament Diplomacy

Issue No. 51, October 2000

US-Russia Naval Nuclear Materials Cooperation Continues

On September 29, in a ceremony at the Nerpa shipyard north of Murmansk, US and Russian officials marked a landmark in a series of security upgrades to Russian nuclear-powered submarine service ships. Three such vessels are being upgraded as part of the Russian Navy Ship Project, a joint venture between the Russian Navy and the Department of Energy' Office of Defense Nuclear Non-Proliferation. The ceremony marked the completion of upgrades to the second of the vessels, the PM-12, begun in August 1998 and finished on schedule. In Washington on October 2, US Energy Secretary Richardson heralded the success of the programme: "The physical protection of nuclear materials aboard these Russian Navy ships enhances our national security and global security... The extraordinary cooperation between the Department of Energy and the Russian Navy benefits the United States, the Russian Federation and the international community."

Report: US Energy Department and Russian Navy complete security upgrades of submarine service ship, US Energy Department Press Release R-00-248, October 2.