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Map of
Uzbekistani
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Political
Map of
Uzbekistan
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According to Hasan Yunusov, head of Uzbekistan's Nuclear
Observation Inspectorate, Uzbekistan has never deployed or produced nuclear
weapons, nor does it ever intend to do so.[1] HEU and LEU are present in
Uzbekistan at one operational nuclear research
reactor at the Institute of Nuclear
Physics (INP) in Ulugbek. Nuclear material from
the nonoperational Photon
Radioelectrical Technical Plant in Tashkent is stored at INP.[2]
The INP reactor ran on
90% HEU fuel until 1998, when it was converted to use 36% HEU fuel. Both
fresh and spent fuel are present at the site. The US Department of Energy
completed physical protection upgrades at INP in August 1996. (See the DOE
INP brochure for more details.) During the Soviet era, Uzbekistan provided the lion's share of
uranium to the Soviet military-industrial complex.[3] The
state-owned Navoi Mining and Metallurgy Combine
(NMMC) in the city of Navoi oversees three in-situ leaching operations in
Uzbekistan that produce U3O8. In 1999, NMMC produced
2,130 metric tons of product, or 6.8% of the total world
output.[4] All uranium production facilities in Uzbekistan are under IAEA
safeguards.[5]
Since independence in 1991, Uzbekistan has passed laws
and participated in international efforts that support the nonproliferation of
weapons of mass destruction. The 1992 Law on Defense commits Uzbekistan to adhere to
the following three principles: non-deployment, non-production, and non-acquisition of
nuclear weapons.[6] A 1995 Uzbekistani draft military doctrine reiterates
Uzbekistan's commitment to nuclear nonproliferation; a global ban on nuclear
testing; the elimination of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons; and
reductions in conventional armed forces. It also calls for the creation of
a nuclear-free zone in Central Asia and seeks to strengthen the UN's role in ensuring
regional security.[7] Uzbekistan signed the
Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty in 1992 and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty in
1996. Uzbekistani President Islam Karimov was the first to formally
propose the creation of a Central Asian
Nuclear Weapon Free Zone (CANWFZ) at the 48th session of the UN
General Assembly in 1993.
Sources:
[1] Sergey Kurbanov, "Only A Peaceful Atom," Narodnoye slovo,
11 September 1997, p. 1; in "Head of Uzbeki Atomic Observation Inspectorate
Interviewed," FBIS Document FBIS-TAC-97-255.
[2] NISNP Interview with Uzbekistani nuclear physicist,
June 2001, UZB010600.
[3] Takhir Dzhalilov, "Tashkent's Strategic Resource,"
Nezavisimaya gazeta, 5 June 1996, p. 3; in FBIS-SOV-96-110.
[4] "1999 World Natural Uranium Production," Nukem Market Report,
April 2000, p. 30.
[5] Burkhard Conrad, "Regional (non-) Proliferation: The Case of
Central Asia," Report distributed at the Nonproliferation Treaty Review
conference, April-May 2000.
[6] Presidential
Bulletin, 7 August 1992; Central Eurasia, 12 August 1992, p. 19, FBIS
Document JPRS-TND-92-028.
[7] OMRI Daily Digest, Vol.1, No.112, 9 June 1995.{Entered 4/17/2001 KB, Updated
6/27/2001 KB}
Please see the links below for additional information.
Last updated 26 July 2001 Comments or questions? Contact Kenley Butler at
MIIS CNS: Kenley.Butler
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