Nuclear Material Security Agreement Reached

The United States and Russia have reached agreement on a plan for Russia to sustain and maintain U.S.-installed security upgrades at Russian nuclear material sites, the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) said April 11. But a recent report from a congressional watchdog agency criticizes the lack of a similar plan for sustaining security upgrades at Russian nuclear weapons storage sites.

The agreement outlines a process through which the NNSA, part of the Department of Energy, and the Russian Federal Atomic Energy Agency (Rosatom) will cooperate to sustain the upgrades while gradually allowing Russia to take full responsibility for the storage system’s maintenance. The NNSA said the agreement covers sites with nuclear material but does not include those locations where nuclear weapons are stored, which are subject to further discussion and are much more sensitive.

Indeed, according to the February 2007 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report, both the Energy Department and Department of Defense have complained that they have had difficulty gaining access to the weapons storage sites where they have completed work to verify that the systems are functioning. The report expresses uncertainty over whether an agreement can be reached to allow sufficient access to maintain these more closely guarded programs.

According to the GAO, Russian scientists also report that although the Russian government has claimed it will have no problem in maintaining the systems, some sites have fallen into disrepair and would greatly benefit from continued U.S. assistance.

The report also charges that the current system is not sufficiently precise when it characterizes a site as “secure.” This definition includes both rapid and comprehensive upgrades, a distinction the GAO concludes is too important to ignore.

Rapid upgrades include basic security provisions, such as sealing old windows, replacing locks, and purchasing equipment for security forces and can be completed in six to 12 months. More comprehensive upgrades involve electronic security systems, video cameras, and alarms that can take one to two years to complete.

Nonetheless, the GAO also notes that the Pentagon and the Energy Department have spent about $920 million through fiscal year 2006 to secure (by their definition) 62 nuclear warhead storage sites and make significant upgrades to the transportation system used to transfer weapons from the nuclear sites to storage or disposal facilities.