LONDON, November 18. /TASS/. Starting next year, Western countries will not allow Russia to participate in the Generation IV International Forum, an international project to develop 4th generation nuclear reactors, the UK Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) said in a statement.

"The Generation IV International Forum will no longer include Russia - ensuring future collaborations remain among mutually willing parties who respect nuclear safety norms," the statement reads.

The report highlights that UK Energy Secretary Ed Miliband and US Deputy Secretary of Energy David Turk signed an agreement on cooperation in nuclear research and development on the sidelines of the 29th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29) in Baku. The agreement will enter into force on March 1, 2025. London expressed hope that Australia, the European Atomic Energy Community, Canada, China, France, Japan, South Korea, South Africa, Switzerland, and the European Union would also join the new treaty.

The US initiated an international project to develop 4th generation nuclear reactors in 2000. It has now identified six reactor technologies recognized as promising for development, including the gas-cooled fast reactor, lead-cooled fast reactor, molten-salt reactor, sodium-cooled fast reactor, supercritical water reactor, and high-temperature gas-cooled reactors.