MOSCOW: Russia on Tuesday sent a first shipment of spent fuel from Soviet-era nuclear-powered submarines to a reprocessing plant as part of an international effort to clean-up a dangerous legacy of the Cold War.
The radioactive fuel from more than 100 reactors of over 50 submarines has been stored at Andreyeva Bay in north-western Russia, closed as a naval base in 1992, for the past 35 years.
It presented a serious environmental risk, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), which helps manage financing for the project, said.
From Andreyeva Bay, the spent fuel will be shipped on board a specially-equipped vessel to Russia’s Arctic port of Murmansk, then on to its final destination, the Mayak nuclear reprocessing plant in Chelyabinsk, near the Ural Mountains.
The project aims to remove all of the 22,000 nuclear fuel assemblies stored at Andreyeva Bay. It is likely to take several years, the EBRD said.
The project, established in 2003, supplements Russian, multilateral and bilateral projects and is funded by the EU and Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Norway and the UK.
“It is particularly pleasing to see that nations put aside their differences to resolve such crucial issues as the legacy of the nuclear-powered fleet in the north of Russia,” Pierre Heilbronn, EBRD vice president for policy and partnerships, said in a statement.
To date, the fund has received €165 million ($186 million) in contributions.
Moscow cleans up Cold War-era nuclear waste
Moscow cleans up Cold War-era nuclear waste
Nobel Institute says Venezuelan leader Machado can’t give Peace Prize to Trump
WASHINGTON: The organization that oversees the Nobel Peace Prize is throwing cold water on talk of Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado giving her recent award to President Donald Trump.
Once the Nobel Peace Prize is announced, it can’t be revoked, transferred or shared with others, the Norwegian Nobel Institute said in a short statement on Friday.
“The decision is final and stands for all time,” it said.
The statement comes after Machado said she’d like to give or share the prize with Trump, who oversaw the successful US operation to capture authoritarian Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro. He is facing drug trafficking charges in New York.
“I certainly would love to be able to personally tell him that we believe — the Venezuelan people, because this is a prize of the Venezuelan people — certainly want to, to give it to him and share it with him,” Machado told Fox News host Sean Hannity on Monday. “What he has done is historic. It’s a huge step toward a democratic transition.”
Machado dedicated the prize to Trump, along with the people of Venezuela, shortly after it was announced. Trump has coveted and has openly campaigned for winning the Nobel Prize himself since his return to office.
When it comes to governing Venezuela after Maduro’s capture, though, Trump has so far backed someone else: acting President Delcy Rodríguez, who served as vice president under Maduro.
He’s called Machado a “very nice woman” but said she doesn’t currently have the support within Venezuela to govern. He told Hannity on Thursday that Machado plans to visit next week and referred to a potential Peace Prize offering as a “great honor.”
A representative for Machado did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.
