The United States and Russia are “on the brink” of a new agreement to provide U.S. funding to transfer Russian-origin, highly enriched uranium fuel from research reactors worldwide back to Russia, U.S. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham said Friday (see GSN, Sept. 22).

The first operation under the new program, the Russian Research Reactor Fuel Return Initiative, occurred Sunday when a joint U.S.-Russian operation recovered stockpiles of highly enriched uranium from a Romanian research reactor facility.  The new program is intended to complement a U.S.-effort to recover highly enriched uranium provided by the United States to foreign research reactors, Energy Daily reported (George Lobsenz, Energy Daily, Sept. 23).

Abraham also announced U.S. funding for a new project to construct a $9 million nuclear imaging center in the closed Russian city of Snezhinsk as part of the Nuclear Cities Initiative (see GSN, Sept. 22).

“I am proud of NCI’s accomplishments and recognize that it serves a vital nonproliferation goal by assisting in the transition of Russian nuclear scientists and engineers to nondefense, commercial efforts,” Abraham said.

The NCI program has expired because of U.S. concerns over a lack of liability protections for U.S. officials and workers involved in activities conducted through the initiative.  U.S. and Russian energy officials last week, however, signed an agreement to continue 69 NCI projects until completion (U.S. Energy Department release, Sept. 19).

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