Voice of America 4/28/97
COHEN/RUSSIA DEFENSE
BYLINE=DAVID GOLLUST
DATELINE=PENTAGON
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: DEFENSE SECRETARY WILLIAM COHEN
SAYS HE WILL PLAY HOST TO RUSSIAN DEFENSE
MINISTER IGOR RODIONOV FOR PENTAGON TALKS
MAY 12TH AND 13TH. A KEY ISSUE WILL BE THE
SECURITY OF RUSSIAN NUCLEAR FORCES AMID
THE COUNTRY'S ECONOMIC CRISIS. DAVID GOLLUST
HAS DETAILS FROM THE PENTAGON.
TEXT: IT WILL BE SECRETARY COHEN'S
FIRST MEETING WITH MR. RODIONOV SINCE
HE ASSUMED THE PENTAGON JOB. IT IS ALSO
THEIR FIRST MEETING SINCE THE RUSSIAN
DEFENSE CHIEF WARNED TWO-MONTHS AGO
BECAUSE OF A CRUMBLING MILITARY
INFRASTRUCTURE, THE RELIABILITY OF
RUSSIA'S NUCLEAR COMMAND AND CONTROL
SYSTEM CANNOT BE GUARANTEED.
MR. COHEN ANNOUNCED THE DATE FOR
THE RODIONOV VISIT AT A CONFERENCE ON
TERRORISM AND WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION
AT THE UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA. HE TOLD A
QUESTIONER MR. RODIONOV'S FEBRUARY
REMARKS WERE APPARENTLY A GAMBIT IN
BUDGET NEGOTIATIONS, BUT U-S OFFICIALS
CANNOT NOT BE ENTIRELY SURE ABOUT THE
NUCLEAR SAFETY ISSUE:
/// COHEN ACTUALITY ///
THE HONEST ANSWER IS WE DO NOT KNOW,
BECAUSE WE DO NOT HAVE THAT KIND OF
TRANSPARENCY AND OPENNESS IN OUR
RELATIONSHIP WITH THEM TO GIVE YOU AND
UNQUALIFIED ANSWER. WE HAVE BEEN
ASSURED THAT THEY HAVE VERY STRICT
COMMAND AND CONTROL. SECONDLY, WITH
RESPECT TO THE STATEMENTS FROM MINISTER
RODIONOV, I CAN ONLY SPECULATE. AT THAT
TIME HE WAS TRYING TO GET MORE MONEY FOR
THE DEFENSE DEPARTMENT, BECAUSE THEY
ARE IN PRETTY POOR SHAPE.
/// END ACT ///
MR. COHEN SAID THE ADMINISTRATION IS READY
TO PROVIDE MORE AID TO RUSSIA UNDER THE
NUNN-LUGAR COOPERATIVE THREAT REDUCTION
PROGRAM TO HELP IT DISMANTLE SOVIET-ERA
NUCLEAR WEAPONS AND TO CARRY OUT
ITS STATED COMMITMENT TO ELIMINATE
ITS CHEMICAL WEAPONS ARSENAL.
BUT HE SAID PERSUADING CONGRESS TO
SUPPORT ADDITIONAL FUNDS IS COMPLICATED
BY RUSSIA'S DEFERRAL OF RATIFICATION OF
THE CHEMICAL WEAPONS TREATY, AND
REPORTS IT IS WORKING ON NEW TYPES OF
CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL ARMS.
ONE OF THE AUTHORS OF THE DISARMAMENT
PROGRAM -- RETIRED SENATOR SAM NUNN --
TOLD THE SAME GATHERING THERE IS AN
URGENT NEED TO FIND WORK FOR THE MANY
WEAPONS SCIENTISTS WITHOUT JOBS YEARS
AFTER THE SOVIET UNION'S COLLAPSE:
/// NUNN ACTUALITY ///
TENS-OF-THOUSANDS OF SCIENTISTS, AND
ENGINEER, AND TECHNICIANS IN THE FORMER
SOVIET UNION THAT KNOW HOW TO MAKE
THESE WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION ARE
WONDERING HOW THEY ARE GOING TO FEED
THEIR FAMILIES BECAUSE OF THE DESTITUTE
CONDITION OF THE GOVERNMENTS IN THOSE
FORMER SOVIET STATES. SO THIS IS AN
UNPRECEDENTED CHALLENGE. AND ONE
THING I CANNOT RESIST SAYING WITH SO
MANY PEOPLE HERE FROM UNIVERSITIES
AND REPRESENTING UNIVERSITIES. I CAN
NOT THINK OF ANYTHING MORE PRODUCTIVE
FOR THE SECURITY OF OUR NATION THAN
EVERY RESEARCH UNIVERSITY IN THE UNITED
STATES HIRING ONE, OR TWO, OR THREE, OR
FOUR FORMER SOVIET SCIENTISTS OR ENGINEERS.
/// END ACT ///
SINCE ITS INCEPTION FIVE-YEARS AGO,
THE NUNN-LUGAR PROGRAM HAS PROVIDED
NEARLY TWO-BILLION DOLLARS IN DISARMAMENT
FUNDS TO RUSSIA, BELARUS, KAZAKHSTAN, AND
UKRAINE. ONLY LAST WEEK, THE
ADMINISTRATION SAID IT WILL REQUEST
ANOTHER 214-MILLION DOLLARS IN NUNN-LUGAR
MONEY FOR RUSSIAN NUCLEAR AND CHEMICAL
WEAPONS DISPOSAL PROJECTS. (SIGNED)
NEB/DAG/RAE
28-Apr-97 1:14 PM EDT (1714 UTC)
NNNN
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