Russia extends ties with Cuba, Finland, Jordan and Tunisia

Sergey Kirienko, director general of Russia's Rosatom, has signed agreements with Cuba, Finland, Jordan and Tunisia this week, covering the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, training and the early notification of nuclear accidents. The agreements were signed on the side of the International Atomic Energy Agency's 60th General Conference in Vienna.

Sergey Kirienko, director general of Russia's Rosatom, has signed agreements with Cuba, Finland, Jordan and Tunisia this week, covering the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, training and the early notification of nuclear accidents. The agreements were signed on the side of the International Atomic Energy Agency's 60th General Conference in Vienna.

Kirienko and Tiippana at the signing ceremony yesterday (Image: Rosatom)

An intergovernmental agreement signed yesterday with Jose Fidel Santana, Cuba's vice minister of science, technology and the environment, provides the legal basis for further bilateral cooperation between Cuba and Russia in a wide range of areas, Rosatom said. These include nuclear medicine and radiation technology; the training of nuclear specialists; fundamental and applied research; and the management of radioactive waste.

A similar agreement was signed on 26 September with Salim Khalbous, Tunisia's minister of higher education and scientific research. This includes, among other areas, assistance in the development of Tunisian nuclear infrastructure in compliance with international recommendations; the design and construction of nuclear power and research reactors, as well as desalination plants and particle accelerators; uranium exploration and mining; research into Tunisia's mineral resources for use in the nuclear industry; nuclear fuel cycle services for nuclear power plants and research reactors.

A memorandum on education and training was signed yesterday with Khaled Toukan, chairman of the Jordan Atomic Energy Commission. Areas of cooperation will include exchange programs for students and academics in nuclear-related subjects, internships, summer schools, Olympiads, the development of educational materials, manuals and workshops, as well as joint nuclear research and development programs.

Petteri Tiippana, director general of Finland's Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK) signed a protocol "on practical measures" for the January 1995 intergovernmental agreement between Finland and Russia on early notification of nuclear accidents and exchange of information on nuclear facilities.

The protocol covers nuclear power plants, propulsion reactors, fresh and used nuclear fuel storage, research reactors and other nuclear facilities that are under construction or which already exist in Finland and are within a 300 kilometres of the border with Russia.

The document also specifies the procedure for exchange of information on various aspects of nuclear and radiation safety, envisages regular joint training and consultation between STUK and Rosatom "as the bodies authorized to fulfil commitments of their states" under the Convention on Early Notification of a Nuclear Accident of 26 September 1986.

Researched and written
by World Nuclear News