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Obama extends term of executive order on payments for Russian HEU

He ordered to ensure the preservation and proper and complete transfer to the Government of the RF of all payments due to it under the HEU Agreements
Photo EPA/ITAR-TASS
Photo EPA/ITAR-TASS

WASHINGTON, June 21 (Itar-Tass) - U.S. President Barack Obama has extended the term of his executive order on payments for Russian uranium extracted from nuclear weapons for one more year.

In a notice to Congress issued on Thursday, June 20, Obama said that in June 2012 he had declared a national emergency to deal with the “unusual and extraordinary threat” to the national security and foreign policy of the United States constituted by the risk of nuclear proliferation created by the accumulation of a large volume of weapons-usable fissile material in the territory of Russia.

He stressed that “full implementation of the Agreement Between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of the Russian Federation Concerning the Disposition of Highly Enriched Uranium Extracted from Nuclear Weapons, dated February 18, 1993, and related contracts and agreements is essential to the attainment of U.S. national security and foreign policy goals.”

Obama ordered to ensure the preservation and proper and complete transfer to the Government of the Russian Federation of all payments due to it under the HEU Agreements.

The president also ordered the blocking of all property and interests in property of the Russian government directly related to the implementation of the HEU Agreements to be null and void.

Since the risk of nuclear proliferation created by the accumulation of a large volume of weapons-usable fissile material in the territory of the Russian Federation “continues to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States”, Obama said he was continuing for 1 year the national emergency declared with respect to the disposition of Russian highly enriched uranium.