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Russian government to allocate 15 mln rub to nuclear safety measures

MOSCOW, February 18. /ITAR-TASS/. The Russian government has pledged to allocate almost 15 million rubles to the Federal Service for Environmental, Technological and Nuclear Supervision for measures to ensure nuclear and radiological safety in the application of nuclear technologies, following a decree signed by Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.

Russia is planning to carry out a series of nuclear and radiological safety measures during its G8 rotating presidency this year.

In the same decree, published at the Internet portal of legal information, Medvedev ordered the environmental, technological and nuclear watchdog known as Rostechnadzor to make a target contribution worth 2.6 million roubles to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to finance expenditures linked to participation of representatives of nuclear and radiological safety bodies in counties that are planning to use Russian projects to build nuclear power stations in their territories in a series of actions designed to ensure nuclear and radiological safety in the application of nuclear technologies during the work of the G8 group.

The G8 working group for nuclear and physical safety will hold its first meeting in Moscow on February 26-27, assembling experts from the G8 group of countries, the IAEA, the European Commission and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. The Russian delegation will include representatives of the Federal Service for Environmental, Technological and Nuclear Supervision; the Rosatom State Corporation for Atomic Energy and Federal Medical-Biological Agency.

G8 has paid considerable attention to ensuring nuclear and physical safety in the use of atomic energy.

“The working group was formed in 2002 following a decision passed by the G8 leaders at the summit in Kananaskis (Canada). Its members report directly to sherpas, which they use to give advice to the presidents and prime ministers of the G8 countries both on technical and strategic aspects related to safety of atomic energy used for peaceful purposes.

All countries should stick to the following priorities in the development of atomic energy: safety regulation and reduction of risks of heavy accidents at nuclear facilities and their impact on human health and environment; the provision of openness and transparency in the work of operating companies and bodies that supervise and regulate safety issues.

The Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear disaster in Japan in March 2011 gave a new impetus to developing this direction.

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