Non Proliferation - Global Threat Reduction Programme - Assistance to Russia with Chemical Weapon Destruction and the Redirection of Former Weapon Scientists
The UK is a key contributor to the Global Partnership against the spread of weapons and materials of mass destruction, and is assisting the Russian Federation in the destruction of its chemical weapons stockpiles.
The Counter Proliferation and Arms Control (CPAC) Directorate of the Ministry of Defence (MOD).
The MOD manages programmes of assistance with chemical weapons destruction and redirection of former weapons scientists. Oversight is provided by a board which is chaired by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and includes representatives of the MOD and the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR).
Russia declared the world’s largest stockpile of chemical weapons, with over 40,000 tonnes stored at seven sites in western Russia. Destruction of these stocks is in process and was over 25% complete by mid-2008. Most of the remaining stocks comprise modern nerve agents (Sarin, Soman and Vx) contained in munitions. Under the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), Russia must destroy all its stocks by no later than April 2012. The focus of the MOD led programme is at Shchuch’ye, a key Russian chemical weapons destruction facility for destroying nerve agents. The site is located close to one of Russia’s seven chemical weapons storage sites, where nearly two million artillery shells and missile warheads filled with lethal nerve agent are stored.
The MOD took the decision to provide assistance at Shchuch’ye because of the security and non-proliferation benefits from the destruction of the nerve agent munitions stored there.
The MOD programme has focused on provision of industrial infrastructure and procurement of equipment, which will contribute to bringing the planned chemical weapons destruction facility at Shchuch’ye into operation. The US is contributing over $1Bn to the construction of the facility, and the MOD is implementing projects there to a total value of some £80M. Of this the UK is contributing some £20M and managing projects worth some £60M on behalf of other countries; Canada is contributing approximately £46M of these funds and other contributors are Belgium, the Czech Republic, the EU, Finland, France, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway and Sweden. The MOD expects to complete these projects around the end of 2008.
On 20 December 2001 in London, the Defence Secretary signed a bilateral agreement with Russia that provides the essential legal basis for UK assistance. In March 2002, the MOD signed an Implementation Arrangement with the Russian agency responsible for chemical weapons destruction, which provides for implementation of UK projects at Shchuch’ye.
Chemical Weapons Destruction Projects
The MOD is implementing seven infrastructure projects at Shchuch’ye:
Water supply:
• The construction of the water supply for the Shchuch’ye destruction facility consisted of the construction of 3 water wells and the laying of twin 9km pipeline. It cost £2.2M and was completed on budget in February 2003.
Electricity Supply (Equipment Procurement):
• The procurement of electricity supply equipment for Shchuch’ye sub-station that will supply power to the facility, including transformers, switchgear and control systems, was completed in Nov 2004, within budget and ahead of contract schedule, at a cost of £7.4M. It was funded jointly by the UK, Norway, the Czech Republic and the EU.
Puktysh Substation:
• The upgrade of Puktysh substation, a small but key substation that will ensure reliable backup electrical power to the destruction facility, cost £926K and was funded by New Zealand and the UK. The project was completed in November 2006, on budget and slightly ahead of contract schedule.
Inter-site Communications System:
• The Inter-site Communications System is to improve communications infrastructure between the Destruction Facility site, the storage depot and local military command posts. The project was funded by Canada at a cost of £1.7M, and was completed to time and cost in October 2007.
Railway:
• Canada is funding the construction of a railway from the chemical weapons Storage Facility to the Destruction Facility some 18km north. The project includes the construction of a bridge over the river Miass (funded by the US Nuclear Threat Initiative) and an Inspection Station. The overall cost of this project, which started in March 2006, is estimated to be approximately £18.1M and completion is expected in autumn 2008.
Local Public Address System:
• The Local Public Address System provides an early warning and announcement system in the event of an incident involving the release of chemical agent from the destruction or storage facilities. The system covers all communities in an area of 750 km2 centred on the Destruction Facility site. At a cost of £1.3M, funded by Canada, it was completed in September 2008.
Electricity Infrastructure:
• A large array of further projects is aimed at completing the upgrade of the local electricity infrastructure to ensure the Destruction Facility receives reliable power. The projects focus on completing remaining work at the Shchuchanskaya substation, installing 110kVpower lines to the facility, and works at several other associated substations. Projects involve equipment procurement and installation. Countries funding these projects are Belgium, the Czech Republic, the EU, Finland, Ireland, The Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and the UK; Works are due for completion in January 2009 at a cost of some £11.5M.
The MOD is also managing projects to provide equipment to one of the operations buildings at the site.
Catalytic Reactors:
• Involving the procurement of some 80 special “filters” which remove any agent vapour that may be present in the process areas of the destruction building, the catalytic reactors were completed in February 2007 at a cost of £6.75M, funded by Canada. France is also contributing £1M for the sorbent fill, for which completion is planned in December 2008.
Metal Parts Furnace:
• The Metal Parts Furnace is a major item of process equipment that decontaminates emptied munitions at high temperatures. The project includes the provision of a spares package, delivery to Shchuch’ye and technical support during installation. It has been funded by the UK, The Netherlands and Ireland at a total cost of approximately £6.26M. The project was effectively completed in July 2008.
Destruction Process Lines:
• The procurement of two process “lines” which drill and drain the chemical munitions has been funded by Canada at a cost of £9.71M. Transport systems and a modular control system were also included in the project, which was completed in July 2008.
Process Equipment for Building 1A:
• There are four packages of process equipment being supplied by Canada and one by France and the UK. The estimated total cost for Canada is £9.6M, for France £4.1M and for the UK £1.4M. Most of the packages are expected to be complete by December 2008, with one final item due completion in February 2009.
The UK greatly values the contributions made by other donors through the UK Global Partnership programme. Arrangements of this sort between donors enable assistance to be delivered more efficiently overall, since separate management and contractual arrangements do not need to be set up by each donor and there is a single interface with the Russian authorities.
Support to Green Cross
Green Cross is a non-government organisation that provides unbiased environmental analysis and expertise, information dissemination, education, objective evaluations for public debate, scientific studies and social and medical support. Through a network of local offices in Russia, the Green Cross helps to raise public and political awareness of chemical weapons destruction programmes. This work is enhanced through conferences and local outreach meetings. For a number of years the UK has funded the Green Cross office at Kizner and supported the annual Green Cross National Dialogue Forum in Moscow. For more information about the work of the Green Cross, please see the link in the External Link section to the right of this page.
Biological Non-Proliferation
The MOD also manages a small non-proliferation programme that aims to reduce the risks of proliferation of biological and chemical expertise, weapons and materials, including by providing former weapons scientists with civil employment. This programme parallels the BERR Closed Nuclear Cities programme to redirect former nuclear weapons scientists. The UK is currently funding two biological non-proliferation projects in Georgia, and is actively engaged with chemical and biological scientists in the former Soviet Union and the Middle East.
