Non Proliferation - Global Threat Reduction Programme - Government Policy
A single terrorist incident using nuclear, chemical or biological materials could have a major impact on the public and the economy of the country where the incident took place as well as neighbouring countries.
The proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) know-how to States of concern would thus also have serious long-term implications for the political stability of many parts of the world. The stocks of WMD related materials created during the Cold War in the Former Soviet Union (FSU) represents the biggest challenge, due to the sheer quantity of materials, the many thousands of people with WMD know-how, and the geographic location of some FSU countries close to States of concern.
In order to enable the UK to work effectively with other countries to address these important challenges, in 2000 the UK Government established new programmes to deal with the nuclear, chemical and biological legacies in the FSU. The establishment of the UK programmes was followed by the decision of G8 leaders at the 2002 summit in Kananaskis, Canada, to launch a major new initiative addressing these Cold War legacies threats.
Under the ’Global Partnership Against the Spread of Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction’, G8 leaders pledged to provide up to $20 billion over ten years to support projects, initially in Russia, to address non-proliferation, disarmament, counter-terrorism and nuclear safety and agreed that the initial priorities were:
• Destruction of chemical weapons
• Dismantlement of decommissioned submarines
• Disposal of fissile materials
• Alternative employment for former weapons scientists
At the Kananaskis Summit, the Prime Minister committed the UK to up to $750 million over ten years (some £385m at current exchange rates - May 2007). Some 80% of the current £36.5 million annual budget is being spent on projects in the Russian Federation which address the priorities identified at Kananaskis.
The establishment of the UK programme in 2000 enabled the UK to start implementing projects in Russia ahead of the Kananaskis Summit statement. It is also enabled the UK to share lessons learnt with other Global Partnership countries and international organisations, thus assisting some of them to start delivering their programme earlier than might otherwise have been the case. The external links section to the right of this text leads to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) website. This website contains details of the Contact Expert Group Radwaste Projects in the Russian Federation.
A characteristic of the Global Partnership is close working relationships among donors, and between the donors and beneficiaries. These have helped enable the completion on time, and to cost, of the projects and programmes as described in Programme Portfolio and also in the UK Global Partnership Annual Reports. However, it is important to emphasise that the UK and other donor countries are not doing this work for altruistic motives.
The establishment of the Global Threat Reduction Programme in 2002 was recognition of the massive scale of the nuclear, chemical and biological legacy in the FSU. The risks from this legacy are a global problem and, if not addressed in a reasonable timeframe, the consequences to our safety and security could be considerable. These issues therefore have to be pursued a ‘Global’ level through working in ‘Partnership’. The UK’s programmes in Russia are also providing valuable lessons which will enable us to learn how to deal with our own nuclear legacy, such as the dismantlement of decommissioned nuclear submarine, and form an invaluable showcase for the UK’s considerable project management and technical expertise.