U.S., Russia, IAEA Initiate Plan To Secure Radioactive Material
In a major effort to prevent terrorist acquisition of radioactive
material, the United States, Russia, and the International Atomic
Energy Agency (IAEA) agreed June 12 on a new initiative to locate
and secure dangerous, unaccounted-for material in former Soviet
states.
In a press release, the IAEA touted the agreement as “the
first concerted international response to the threat posed by vulnerable
radioactive sources” in former Soviet states.
These sources are a “widespread phenomenon” in these
countries, the agency said, and could present an attractive target
for terrorists seeking to build radiological weapons.
Colloquially known as “dirty bombs,” such weapons utilize
conventional explosives to disperse radioactive material, causing
contamination and widespread disruption. In mid-June, the FBI announced
the apprehension of a U.S. citizen who allegedly conspired with
the al Qaeda terrorist organization to explode such a device on
U.S. soil. (U.S.
Announces It Uncovered ‘Dirty Bomb’ Plot.)
The new initiative will establish a working group to “develop
a coordinated and proactive strategy to locate, recover, secure,
and recycle” sources of radioactive material in the former
Soviet Union that remain outside official regulatory control, according
to the IAEA. The agreement does not cover radioactive sources in
Russia, which will be addressed by a separate U.S.-Russian bilateral
agreement.
The working group’s plan envisions extensive Russian participation,
which will involve developing an initial inventory of radiological
sources and assessing their likely locations, according to IAEA
spokeswoman Melissa Fleming. After an inventory is finalized, the
agency, cooperating with other former Soviet states, will dispatch
teams to find and recover the radioactive sources, Fleming said.
After they are secure, Russia has indicated it might be willing
to either store or dispose of them.
The IAEA has identified “radioactive sources used in industrial
radiography, radiotherapy, industrial irradiators and thermo-electric
generators as those that are the most significant from a safety
and security standpoint” because of the large amounts of radioactive
material they contain, the agency’s release said.
Fleming said that tracking down some of these sources is like “searching
for a needle in a haystack.” But she emphasized that the agreement
is an “absolutely vital, organized, and proactive” effort
that is distinct from the agency’s past endeavors, which have
been purely “reactionary.”
The working group has yet to convene, and no date has been set
for its first meeting.
Washington and Moscow are also cooperating bilaterally to locate
and secure radioactive sources in Russia. At a May 9 press conference
in Washington with Russian Minister of Atomic Energy Alexander Rumyanstev,
Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham announced that the two sides are
establishing a joint taskforce to assess the threat of radioactive
materials in Russia and to recommend appropriate responses. The
U.S.-Russian taskforce is set to meet in mid-July.
An informed source speculated that a separate but parallel initiative
had been set up for Russia because Moscow is reluctant to allow
the IAEA to perform search and recovery operations on its territory.
But Jack Caravelli, assistant deputy administrator of the National
Nuclear Security Administration and the U.S. representative to the
July bilateral talks, noted that given the past successes of U.S.-Russian
efforts to secure nuclear materials, there is “not any requirement
for the IAEA’s presence.” He added that the two initiatives
were mainly motivated by the events of September 11.
The Energy Department and the Russian Ministry of Atomic Energy
will largely fund both programs’ implementation. The United
States plans to allocate $20 million to the projects this year and
anticipates spending an equal amount of money next year. The amount
of Russian funding remains unclear.
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