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Early Retirement of Russian Nuclear Scientists Could Ease Proliferation Concerns, Paper Recommends By Mike Nartker The paper suggests that as many 10,000 Russian nuclear weapons experts could be persuaded to retire early in exchange for receiving additional annual pensions as small as $500. The proposal was made by Jean Pierre Contzen, professor at the Instituto Superior Tecnico in Lisbon and Maurizio Martellini of the University of Insubria and LNCV in Como, Italy. Martellini participates in an international consortium of 20 research groups focused on helping implement the Group of Eight’s $20 billion effort to secure WMD materials and promote nonproliferation measures in the former Soviet Union. The consortium, called Strengthening the Global Partnership, is administered by the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. The Russian Atomic Energy Ministry has decided to cut 35,000 nuclear weapons workers by 2010, according to the report. To aid the downsizing effort, several U.S.-Russian and multilateral programs are working to provide civilian jobs for scientists and technicians, the report says, but it says the success of these programs has been “very limited.” To help accelerate the downsizing process, the report proposes creating an early secure retirement buyout program for Russian nuclear weapons scientists. About 20 percent of Russian nuclear weapons workers are over 50 years old and 5 percent are over 60 years old, the report says, noting that the retirement age in Russia is 55. Many Russian nuclear weapons workers are continuing to work beyond retirement, however, because pensions are too low, according to the report. For example, the average pension in the closed Russian city of Sarov in 2001 was about $37 per month, less than one-fifth of the wage the laboratory’s active employees. According to the report, if a system were established to provide adequate pensions for Russian nuclear weapons personnel, then about 10,000 workers could be persuaded to retire by 2010. The report also says that such a system “would be by far the cheapest way to address the problem of excess nuclear scientists and workers.” It notes that the director of one Russian nuclear weapons facility has said that he could persuade 2000 workers of retirement age to retire early if provided an additional pension bonus of $500 annually per person for 10 years. “An early secure retirement buyout program over 10 years for 10,000 workers might cost only $50 million, rather than the $100 million needed only to start 10,000 new civilian jobs in the territories of the RNCs [Russian nuclear cities],” the report says. An early retirement program would have to include several provisions to ensure that nonproliferation objectives are met. For example, workers who choose to accept early requirement may need to give up their security clearances and access to Russian nuclear weapons facilities to ensure that they do not return to work, the report says. It also proposes that those who accept early retirement also be required to live within the restricted area of the closed cities so that they do no become private consultants for rogue states or terrorists groups seeking to obtain nuclear weapons. To attract the confidence of Russian nuclear weapons workers, funding for an early retirement program should be independently managed, according to the report. It proposes that a fund of $50 million over the next 10 years be created to provide additional pension bonuses. Such a fund could be managed by either the G-8 partnership or the U.S.-Russian International Science and Technology Center (see GSN, July 2). Several nonproliferation experts told Global Security Newswire today that while an early retirement program would be helpful in reducing the number of Russian nuclear workers, it would not fully solve the problem. Kenneth Luongo, executive director of the Russian American Nuclear Security Advisory Council, said that while some workers are at, or near, retirement age, new workers are also being employed at the closed cities who would not be affected by an early retirement program. Luongo also said that there would be implementation concerns in any early retirement program, including determining eligibility and ensuring that retired workers were either not being re-employed or being hired by other countries or terrorists groups. In addition, a multilateral funding mechanism might also hinder implementation, he said. It is also still unclear as to Russia’s position on any type of early retirement program for its nuclear weapons workers, Luongo said.
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