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| Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia |
| Russia suspends plutonium deal with U.S. |
| 2016-10-04 |
| [WASHINGTONPOST] Citing "unfriendly actions" by the United States, the Kremlin announced Monday that Russia would suspend a landmark agreement to dispose of surplus weapons-grade plutonium, yet another sign of deteriorating relations between the two countries. In a decree released by the Kremlin, President Vladimir Putin said Moscow would consider a resumption of the accord only if Washington agreed to several sweeping conditions. Among them: reducing the American military presence in NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A cautionary tale of cost-benefit analysis.... countries near Russia’s border, canceling all sanctions against Russia and compensating Moscow for losses resulting from those sanctions. The largely symbolic move reversed an agreement once hailed as an example of successful U.S.-Russian cooperation, and comes at a low point in post-Cold War relations between Moscow and Washington. The State Department on Monday said it would suspend bilateral contacts with Russia over Syria, a week after Secretary of State John F. Kerry said the United States might do so because of Russia’s aerial assault on the Syrian city of Aleppo. More from the UK Telegraph Putin has scrapped a key nuclear control agreement over the "unfriendly" actions of the United States towards Russia. In an extraordinary series of ultimatums issued on Monday, the Kremlin said it would suspend an agreement to turn weapons-grade plutonium into nuclear fuel unless Washington cancel all sanctions and slash its military commitment to Nato allies. In a presidential decree published on Monday, Mr Putin froze The Plutonium Management and Disposition Agreement (PDMA) because of "a drastic change in circumstances, the appearance of a threat to strategic stability due to unfriendly actions of the United States toward Russia". The document claimed that Washington was "unable" to meet its obligations under the terms of the agreement and that Moscow "must take urgent measures to defend Russian security". A draft law later published on the site of the lower house of the Russian parliament said Russia would only reinstate the deal if the US drops all sanctions, pays compensation for the damage they have caused, and reduces its military infrastructure and man power in Nato countries that joined the alliance after 2000 to the same levels as when the deal was signed. The Plutonium Management and Disposition Agreement (PMDA) was an arrangement for reprocessing weapons-grade material into fuel for nuclear reactors. The deal, first negotiated by Mr Putin and Bill Clinton in 2000 and updated in 2010, committed both counties to disposing of at least 34 tons of weapons grade plutonium, enough to produce around 17,000 nuclear weapons. The US State Department praised the deal at the time as an "essential step in the nuclear disarmament process." Note that in the middle of the source article - Hillary has an ad stating Donald Trump is unfit to have his finger on the nuclear trigger. Didn't her husband sign off on this lost deal? |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #2 President Vladimir Putin said "Нам может понадобиться." |
| Posted by: Skidmark 2016-10-04 08:12 |
| #1 Any bets that USA, at least as long as Obama in office*, will keep it's part pf the bargain? *And I don't mean if Hillary fails to be elected. |
| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2016-10-04 06:23 |