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Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)


October 2003 Russia Special Weapons News



  • Last group of Iranian shift engineers for Bushehr trained IRNA 29 Oct 2003 -- The last group of Iranian shift engineers for the Bushehr nuclear power plant has completed a course of training at the Novovoronezh nuclear power plant in Russia.
  • Russia, Iran agree to sign spent n-fuel protocol soon IRNA 29 Oct 2003 -- Russia and Iran have agreed to sign a protocol on the return of spent nuclear fuel from the Bushehr nuclear power plant in the near future, a Russian Atomic Energy official said after bilateral talks on the issue on Wednesday.
  • Russian official: No obstacle in sending fuel to Bushehr plant IRNA 29 Oct 2003 -- Russian Minister of Nuclear Energy Alexander Rumyantsev in a meeting here Wednesday with Iranian Ambassador to Moscow Gholam-Reza Shafei said there is no obstacle to sending fuel for Bushehr nuclear power plant.
  • Russia, Iran to discuss protocol on return of spent nuclear fuel IRNA 28 Oct 2003 -- Russia and Iran are to discuss in Moscow on Wednesday a date and place of signing an additional protocol on Tehran`s returning spent nuclear fuel from reactor No. 1 of Iran`s nuclear power plant constructed in Bushehr, a spokesman for the Russian Nuclear Energy Ministry told Itar-Tass on Tuesday.
  • EU: Russia Warned Not To Jeopardize Relations Over Enlargement RFE/RL 28 Oct 2003 -- The European Commission today said Russia must automatically extend its Partnership and Cooperation Agreement with the EU -- which underpins Moscow's relations with the bloc -- to all new member states after enlargement, or risk harming ties.
  • Transparency of Iran-Russia nuclear cooperation confirmed IRNA 27 Oct 2003 -- State Duma`s Security Committee Deputy Chairman Victor Ilyukhin here on Monday stressed the transparency of Iran-Russia nuclear cooperation.
  • Russia may join NATO in future - Lord Robertson IRNA 26 Oct 2003 -- Russia may join the North Atlantic Alliance in the future, NATO Secretary General Lord George Robertson said in an interview with Bild am Sonntag. He said he did not know what the Alliance would be like ten years from now.
  • RUSSIA/ARREST VOA 25 Oct 2003 -- One of Russia's richest men and head of the country's largest oil company, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, has been arrested on charges of tax evasion and fraud. The businessman was detained in Siberia by Russian special forces, and taken to a court in Moscow, which ordered he be held in custody.
  • DUBROVKA ANNIVERSARY VOA 23 Oct 2003 -- Russians are observing the first anniversary of the Dubrovka theater hostage-taking by Chechen rebels that ended in the death of 130 people. A monument to the victims was unveiled in front of the theater.
  • Kyrgyzstan: Putin To Attend Official Opening Of Russian Air Base RFE/RL 22 Oct 2003 -- Russian President Vladimir Putin arrives in Kyrgyzstan tomorrow to attend the official opening of a Russian air base in Kant, near the capital, Bishkek.
  • ROK, Russia Agree to Draw NK Back to Talks Korea-net 22 Oct 2003 -- South Korea and Russia agreed on Tuesday to closely cooperate to restart at an early date the suspended six-party talks on the North Korean nuclear row.
  • Moscow ready to cooperate with Iran in nuclear sphere - FM IRNA 22 Oct 2003 -- Moscow `is ready to cooperate with Tehran in future, including in the nuclear sphere provided international obligations are strictly observed`, said Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov on Wednesday in reply to a request to comment on the latest statements by Iran.
  • Iran says to sign protocol on return of nuclear fuel to Russia IRNA 22 Oct 2003 -- Tehran and Moscow will soon sign a protocol to an agreement on Iran`s returning spent fuel from the Bushehr nuclear power plant, Iran`s representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Akbar Salehi, said.
  • Iran, Russia to sign accord on return of spent nuclear fuel IRNA 21 Oct 2003 -- Iran`s permanent representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Ali Akbar Salehi here on Tuesday said that Tehran and Moscow will soon sign an agreement on return of the spent nuclear fuel to Russia.
  • Russia interested in cooperation with Iran under IAEA control IRNA 21 Oct 2003 -- Russia is interested in cooperation with Iran in the peaceful atom area and does not give it up, Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov told reporters on Monday. "We are interested in cooperation with Iran on peaceful atomic programs, of course under the IAEA control," the minister said.
  • Chechnya: After Kadyrov's Inauguration, Doubts Remain RFE/RL 20 Oct 2003 -- Chechen President Akhmed-hadji Kadyrov was sworn in yesterday, amid tight security. But analysts say doubts remain about Kadyrov's legitimacy and his political record to date. They say it is unclear how capable the Kremlin-backed leader will be of effectively resolving the many critical problems facing Chechnya.
  • CHECHNYA/INAUGURATION VOA 19 Oct 2003 -- In Chechnya, Akhmad Kadyrov, has been sworn in as president. He was appointed by Moscow to rule the province three years ago, and was the landslide winner of an election that critics say was neither free nor fair.
  • Chechnya: Kadyrov Sworn In As President RE/RL 19 Oct 2003 -- Akhmed-hadji Kadyrov (pictured) was sworn in today as the new president of Chechnya, despite various security concerns.
  • Chernobyl victims need coordinated international help, Annan says UN News Centre 15 Oct 2003 -- Seventeen years after the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power station the situation in the area remains "difficult' - as does the coordination of international relief efforts, according to a United Nations report issued today.
  • Russia: Moscow Struggles To Clarify Stance On Preemptive Force RFE/RL 14 Oct 2003 -- Russian President Vladimir Putin and Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov in recent days have made vague and sometimes conflicting statements on Russia's position on the use of preemptive strikes. The debate comes as the international community itself is struggling to define preemptive force.
  • Chechnya: Separatists Kill Nine Russian Troops RFE/RL 13 Oct 2003 -- The long, bloody stalemate between Russian troops and Chechen separatists continued in the breakaway republic of Chechnya today, with guerrillas killing nine soldiers and Russian artillery pounding suspected rebel positions in several areas of the republic.
  • Russia continues nuclear cooperation with Iran IRNA 13 Oct 2003 -- Spokesman of Russia Foreign Ministry Alexander Yakovenko said here Monday that Russia is determined to continue its nuclear cooperation with the Islamic Republic of Iran.
  • Iran, Russia review mutual, regional, international cooperation IRNA 11 Oct 2003 -- Visiting Russian First Deputy Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Trubnikov conferred here Saturday with Secretary of Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) Hassan Rowhani on expansion of mutual cooperation.
  • Chechnya: Kadyrov Says Chechens Should Control Internal Security RFE/RL 10 Oct 2003 -- Chechen President-elect Akhmed-hadji Kadyrov said today in Moscow that he will ask as soon as possible for Russian troops to withdraw from Chechnya and turn internal security over to his own forces.
  • Russia: EU Issues Cautious Assessment Of Chechen Elections RFE/RL 06 Oct 2003 -- The European Commission says it doubts yesterday's presidential elections in Chechnya were "free or fair."
  • Chechnya: Elections Go According To Kremlin's Plan RFE/RL 06 Oct 2003 -- Chechnya's presidential election yesterday went much as expected, with Kremlin-backed Akhmed-hadji Kadyrov -- running virtually unopposed -- raking in three-quarters of the votes. Russian authorities, eager to ensure that their candidate is seen as the legitimate winner, went to considerable effort to portray the ballot as free and fair. But critics continue to dismiss the vote as nothing less than a farce. RFE/RL Moscow correspondent Sophie Lambroschini reports on the election results and possible consequences for Chechnya.
  • Russia: U.S. Criticizes Chechen Presidential Election RFE/RL 06 Oct 2003 -- The United States has criticized the presidential elections in Chechnya, saying the weekend poll in the breakaway Russian republic did not meet international standards.
  • CHECHNYA/ELECT VOA 06 Oct 2003-- Kremlin appointee Akhmad Kadyrov appears poised to win Sunday's presidential election in separatist Chechnya. Russian election officials say first results show Mr. Kadyrov has what they call an absolute and unbeatable lead
  • U-S/CHECHNYA ELECTION VOA 06 Oct 2003-- The United States is expressing disappointment over Sunday's presidential election in Chechnya. The State Department says the contest, easily won by the Moscow-backed candidate, Akhmad Kadyrov, did not meet international standards for free and fair elections
  • Russia: Little Seen As 'Normal' In Presidential Vote In Chechnya (Part 1) RFE/RL 03 Oct 2003 -- Chechens are due to head to the polls on Sunday (5 October) to vote for a new president. The election has been touted by Moscow as proof the situation in the war-torn republic is "normalizing." But the race has been dominated by a single candidate -- the Kremlin's hand-picked favorite, acting Chechen President Akhmed-hadji Kadyrov. In a region racked by four years of war and with the election of Kadyrov virtually assured, many say the situation in Chechnya is anything but normal.
  • Russia: EU Official Deplores Moscow's Lack Of Cooperation In Chechnya (Part 2) RFE/RL 03 Oct 2003 -- The European Union's top aid official in Russia says Moscow has done very little -- if anything -- to improve the humanitarian situation in its breakaway republic of Chechnya. Philippe Royan says that four years after the start of the republic's second conflict, Chechnya remains one of the most difficult aid operations in the world.
  • Russia: How Western Attitudes Toward Wars Have Shifted (Part 3) RFE/RL 03 Oct 2003 -- An estimated 200,000 civilians and thousands of Russian troops are believed to have perished in the course of Russia's two wars in Chechnya. The battles -- and the widespread accusations of Russian atrocities that accompanied them -- were once at the forefront of the international agenda, the subject of high-level criticism that overshadowed Russia's relations with Western countries. But if the issue comes up in talks these days, the criticism, if any, is subdued.
  • Russia: Putin Talks Up Power Of Nuclear Arsenal RFE/RL 03 Oct 2003 -- Russia's Defense Ministry has issued a document reaffirming its right to undertake pre-emptive military strikes while warning NATO that the alliance's continued military posture could prompt Moscow to conduct what it called a "fundamental reassessment of Russia's military planning and arms procurement." At the same time, President Vladimir Putin, in a meeting with top military brass, emphasized the power of Russia's nuclear arsenal. Coming so soon after Putin's visit to the United States, the saber-rattling from Moscow took some observers by surprise. Should the U.S. and NATO be alarmed?
  • Chechnya: Maskhadov Vows Armed Resistance, Dismisses Election RFE/RL 02 Oct 2003 -- The last democratically elected president of Chechnya, Aslan Maskhadov, said that armed resistance against Russia will continue until "the occupiers leave."
  • CHECHNYA/VOTE VOA 02 Oct 2003-- Chechen-separatist leader Aslan Maskhadov has dismissed upcoming presidential elections in the southern Russian republic as illegitimate, and vowed to continue to fight Russian federal forces. Violence has flared in the days before Sunday's Kremlin-sponsored election, and concerns by human-rights groups and western election monitors continue to mount



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