Russia eyes US nuke dealRussia eyes US nuke deal
By ELLALYN B. DE VERA
June 8, 2011, 7:01pm
MOSCOW, Russia—Former Russian Prime Minister Sergey Kirienko proposeda partnership with the United States on nuclear energy public awarenessand safety.
Kirienko, director-General of the State Nuclear Energy CorporationROSATOM, advised countries with existing nuclear power plants and thosewho plan to setup their own nuclear plants to take responsibility inworking for the safety of people.
“We are suggesting that Russia should make a partnership with theUnited States on nuclear energy safety awareness issue to ensure thatthe energy is safe,” Kirienko said during the international nuclearenergy forum AtomExpo 2011 being held in Moscow.
United States Energy Secretary Steven Chu said the US and Russiangovernments can work together through a partnership to provide a “brightside” on the issue of nuclear energy safety and emergency response.
"We all must take responsibility to learn from the accident inJapan," Chu said, citing the importance of simulated emergency response,which is also being conducted in other countries.
French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission chairmanBernard Bigot said France is ready to share its expertise in trainingand emergency response with other nations.
Bigot noted that Russian Federation President Dmitry Medvedev hasbeen supported by the G8 on his initiative to come up with “systematicsolutions and decisions with a change in the international law.”
“He is making a more active work. The final documents are beingprepared,” he said, adding that the proposal for systematic solutionswill be further discussed during the IAEA Nuclear Safety Summit inVienna, Austria on June 20-24.
IAEA Director-General Yukiya Amano earlier called for a Vienna Summitto assess the lessons learned from the nuclear crisis in Japan lastMarch.
“The Fukushima incident has changed our approach towards nuclearenergy's safety issues. We have a determined approach to check on andguarantee the safety of our plants even during earthquakes. Our NPPswent through a lot of levels of checking through this new approach,”Kirienko said.
"When you can use it right, it will be of benefit to everybody. Everycountry must have access to this wealth but we have to ensure this issafe. But people will feel secure if we guarantee their safety,” hesaid.
“Russian nuclear power stations are safe from tsunamis andearthquakes because we have already checked and tested our plants.Meanwhile, our new stations will last a lifetime. This is the guaranteeto put atomic stations and this is the advantage of Russia,” he said.
The AtomExpo forum aims to promote nuclear power in the world energymarket and to develop international cooperation in the peaceful uses ofatomic energy.
For the first time, the forum invited media representatives fromcountries with nuclear power, those putting up or planning to usenuclear power plants, and those with a potential for using nuclearpower.
These include Egypt, Jordan, Brazil, Hungary, Slovakia, Vietnam,Thailand, Malaysia, Czech Republic, Cuba, Argentina, United ArabEmirates, Indonesia, and the Philippines.
Kirienko said 47 countries have been represented in the international nuclear energy forum AtomExpo 2011 in Moscow, Russia.