U.S. and European experts are expected to discuss difficulties in funding Russia’s chemical weapons disposal efforts during a Russian Red Cross-sponsored conference scheduled to begin today in Moscow (see GSN, Oct. 31). 

One-third of the funds for Russia’s chemical weapons destruction program come from international aid, according to ITAR-Tass.  Russia has complained, however, that such aid has not been regularly provided as promised.

“All the participants in the arrangements should supply the stipulated amounts of funds to reprocess chemical weapons stockpiles and to keep up with the schedule of funds allocations,” the Red Cross said in a press release (Anatoly Yurkin, ITAR-Tass, Nov. 10).

Russia plans to increase funding for its chemical weapons destruction program, but still needs foreign aid, Sergey Kiriyenko, chairman of the Russian state commission on chemical disarmament, said yesterday.  Russia plans to allocate $190 million for chemical weapons disposal next year, up from $16 million this year, he said (ITAR-Tass/BBC Worldwide Monitoring, Nov. 10).

Zinovy Pak, general director of the Russian Ammunition Agency, said today that Russia plans to destroy its chemical weapons in several stages with an end date of 2012 (see GSN, Oct. 15).  Russia plans to have 2 percent of its weapons stockpiles destroyed by 2007, 45 percent by 2009 and the remainder destroyed by 2012, he said (RosBusinessConsulting, Nov. 11).

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