Russia denounces agreement with United States on utilization of plutonium for nuclear missiles
On October 8, the Russian State Duma passed a law terminating the agreement between the US and Russia on the disposal of weapons-grade plutonium.
This was reported by The Moscow Times, according to Censor.NET.
The document was signed in 2000 and ratified in 2011.
The agreement provided for each party to dispose of 34 tons of weapons-grade plutonium for nuclear missiles, which at that time was considered surplus to military programs. In addition, a number of protocols to the agreement are being canceled.
"Maintaining Russia's obligations under the agreement with the US on plutonium is unacceptable," said Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov, commenting on the vote in the Duma.
The explanatory note to the draft law on denunciation states that the reasons for this were "fundamental changes in circumstances," including "the introduction of US sanctions against the Russian Federation," "NATO's expansion to the East," and US support for Ukraine.
The goal of the bill on denunciation is "to prevent threats to Russia's national security," said the Duma Committee on International Affairs.
The start of processing the plutonium specified in the agreement by using it as a component of nuclear power plant fuel was planned for 2018. However, Russia suspended the agreement in 2016, accusing the US of violating its obligations under the agreement.
Putin's decree stated that the decision was prompted by "the emergence of a threat to strategic stability as a result of unfriendly actions by the United States toward the Russian Federation."
In February 2023, Putin unilaterally suspended Russia's participation in the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START), explaining that the US was violating the agreement and that the circumstances under which it was concluded had changed.
