November 15, 2002	Friday	Ramazan 9, 1423

MOSCOW, Nov 14: Several kilograms of low-enriched uranium and a few grams of weapons-grade material have been stolen from various Russian nuclear sites over the past decade, a top Russian official said on Thursday.

The head of the federal nuclear and radioactive security oversight agency said massive new investments were needed to strengthen safeguards at Russia’s nuclear sites and keep the dangerous material out of the wrong hands.

“There have been cases of leakage” over the past decade, said Yury Vishnyevsky, using a slang term for material being stolen by thieves.

“We are talking about grams of weapons-grade materials, and kilograms of low-grade uranium used as fuel by nuclear power plants,” the official said.

He said the losses were most frequently recorded at secretive industrial plants like Electroplate, near Moscow, and the Novosibirsk chemical plant.

Both of these sites are believed to be used for both civilian and military purposes.

Vishnyevsky said Russia needs to invest some six billion rubles (190 million dollars) to make these and other sites safe from thieves.

The investment is needed “to modernize technical defence equipment, as well as for preparing and arming the security services at nuclear sites”.

Russian officials have in the past denied a series of Western press reports alleging that radioactive material has been stolen from Russian nuclear sites.—AFP