VINCA NUCLEAR INSTITUTE: CAS STAFFING, VIND

UNCLAS BELGRADE 000236

SIPDIS


DEPARTMENT FOR OES/STC
DOE FOR BRIAN WAUD, GREG HERDES, DOUG DAHL, AND IGOR
BOLSHINSKY
UNVIE FOR IAEA

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ENRG KNNP PARM EAID OTRA SR
SUBJECT: VINCA NUCLEAR INSTITUTE: CAS STAFFING, VIND
PROGRAM, AND OTHER UPDATES

REF: A) 05 STATE 215031; B) 05 BELGRADE 1980


1. (SBU) Summary: Embassy has been informed by
Vinca Nuclear Institute direction that the Department
of Energy (DoE)-built Central Alarm Station (CAS) will
be staffed in the near future. After the institute
and the Ministry of Interior (MUP) reached an
agreement on CAS staffing, Vinca identified
individuals to staff the CAS and scheduled training to
begin around February 20. Additionally, the
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) continues to
identify funding for the Vinca Institute Nuclear
Decommissioning (VIND) program, and preparations for
the repackaging and transportation of the spent fuel
are underway. End summary.


2. (SBU) Staffing of the CAS: During a meeting at
Vinca on January 23, Vinca Director Dr. Jovan
Nedeljkovic informed Econ Chief and ESTH officer that
a compromise had been reached with the MUP on staffing
of the CAS. MUP police officers would remain at the
institute, but some would be pulled from gate duty to
patrol the compound, while others would help man the
CAS (MUP had planned to remove police officers from
the institute completely.) Vinca agreed to designate
some of its staff to also man the CAS. The Director
believed that the Ministry of Science would fund part
or all of salaries for those who staff the CAS. Below
is the staffing schedule agreed upon by Vinca and the
MUP:

(V = Vinca employee; P = MUP police officer)

0700-1500:
Reactor buildings: In use by Vinca staff
CAS: 1 V and 1 P
Gates: 1 V and 1 P each gate
Mobile: 2 P
1500-2300:
Reactor buildings: Closed at 1500
CAS: 1 V and 1 P
Gates: 1 V and 1 P each gate
Mobile: 2 P
2300-0700:
CAS: 1V and 1P
Gates: 2 P each gate. Gate towards Belgrade
shut at 2300; gate towards village of Vinca remains
open all night.
Mobile: 2 P

On weekends, the institute is closed, and staffing is
handled as with the night shift.


3. (SBU) Dr. Milan Orlic, who was hand picked by the
new Director to be his Assistant Director, also
handles security at Vinca. ESTH officer met Orlic
during a site visit on February 6, and he and the
Director both repeated their conviction that training
would begin very soon. On February 13, the Director
telephoned ESTH officer to inform her that final CAS
equipment checks would take place on February 16, and
that training would begin on February 20. CAS
staffing has been a long-term priority for Post
(Reftel b),and ESTH officer has been pushing the
issue since shortly after arrival at post in March

2005. In July 2006, the Ambassador wrote the
Ministers of Science and Interior to encourage the two
to cooperate in reaching a solution.

IAEA Pushes on Security
--------------


4. (SBU) On February 24, ESTH officer met with
Miroslav Gregoric, Section Head, and Pierre Legoux,
Physical Protection Specialist, from the IAEA's Office
of Nuclear Security (ONS). The ONS officers were
likewise keen to see the CAS staffed, and informed
ESTH officer that they had driven home that point
during a meeting held with the Vinca Director the day

before. IAEA's VIND program manager Mike Durst made
the same point. They claimed that staffing of the CAS
had also been one recommendation from the
International Physical Protection Advisory Service
(IPPAS) survey they conducted early in 2006.


5. (SBU) The ONS officers said that they were
disappointed in the Director's timeline for CAS
staffing; they were sure that the "weeks" that had
been promised, already too long of a delay, would in
fact become "months." They told ESTH officer that if
there would be a significant delay in re-opening the
DoE contract to fund training for CAS staff, then the
IAEA would fund the training itself (although the
preference was for DoE to pay, to leave the IAEA funds
for another project). Claims from the Vinca DIRECTOR
that CAS staff could not begin work until a new
government was formed are questionable; the ONS
officers were informed by the Ministry of Science and
Environmental Protection (MOS) that as soon as the
Director signed the annual contract for Vinca staff,
Ministry money would be forthcoming.


6. (SBU) The ONS officers said they had pointed out
the fact that no rules of engagement for the police
had yet been determined, and questioned what the
officers would do if they do found someone trying to
illegally access sensitive buildings. The ONS
officers also criticized the lack of "housekeeping" at
the facility, with miscellaneous debris scattered
about the rooms, citing it as a problem not just for
physical safety, but also radiation protection. Other
complaints included the lack of safety and security
culture on site at the Reactor "A" (RA) building when
steel cut from the fuel pool was being offloaded, and
the lack of a clearly marked control point where all
who exit must stop for a radiation contamination check
before leaving. Additionally, Vinca is apparently not
a "critical asset" under the law on critical assets to
be given priority protection by the state in case of
an emergency, whereas embassies, for example, are.

VIND program slowly moves ahead
--------------

7. (SBU) VIND program: During a meeting on January
22, IAEA officers Mike Durst and Ira Goldman informed
Econ Chief and ESTH officer that they had learned from
the European Agency for Reconstruction (EAR) (via a
letter and a personal meeting in Belgrade) that the EU
intended to provide some funds for the VIND program.
The Instrument for Pre-Accession (IPA) came into force
on January 1, 2007, to cover all projects funded in
countries with candidate and potential candidate
status, and Durst said the EU officials indicated
that, from one particular EUR 20 million fund, as much
as EUR 5.4 million had been earmarked specifically for
the VIND project, to cover transport of spent fuel
from Vinca to Russia. However, they were advised in a
meeting with the Belgrade EAR office that funding may
not be available before 2008. Durst and Goldman
intend, therefore, to push for bridge funding in the
meantime. Durst and Goldman also said that they would
seek a donation from Norway or other interested
parties to pay for the environmental remediation
projects demanded by Russia, which account for $3
million of the $19.5 million in spent fuel
reprocessing costs. They also continue to seek G-8
Global Partnership funding from Canada, funding from
other European nations, and increased funding from
DoE. They hope to schedule another donors' conference
later this year.


8. (SBU) According to the IAEA officers, in addition
to the U.S. promise of funding and equipment for the
VIND program, the UK and Hungary will donate equipment
and in-kind services, and Slovenia has promised
regulatory expertise and perhaps a cash donation. It
is anticipated that the total donations will soon
reach more than USD 1 million, thereby reducing the

amount of overall project dollars required. To help
with fundraising, ESTH officer has, at the request of
IAEA officers, individually approached representatives
from a number of Belgrade-based missions to give an
informal briefing about the project and encourage
donations. ESTH officer held meetings with Japanese,
Israeli, French, and South Korean diplomats.


9. (SBU) Durst and Goldman informed Embassy officers
that the contract for repackaging and transport of the
fuel rods was signed with a Russian company in
September 2006. Preparations were ongoing, and they
expected that transportation could take place in
approximately 24-36 months. Incidentally, the
radiation leak in the spent fuel pool is greater than
was originally believed. Steel structures in the pool
are being removed in preparation for repackaging
operations. The contamination and dose levels
observed are several times higher than anticipated;
this implies that the fuel leakage may be much higher
than the 30 percent predicted.

GOS Control over Vinca Strengthened
--------------


10. Because of the problems experienced in convincing
the GOS to fully implement the CAS project, Econ Chief
and ESTH officer inquired about how the Vinca Director
General was chosen, and whether the position came
under the ultimate authority of the Government of
Serbia (GOS). Vinca is a semi-autonomous institute,
earning approximately half of its budget from private,
commercial activity, and the MOS had indicated that it
had little control over the Director.


11. However, a new law governing scientific institutions
in Serbia was passed in 2006. During the January 23
meeting, new Director General Nedeljkovic informed Embassy
officers that 70 of the 400 scientists at Vinca are elected
to the institute's Scientific Advisory Board, and that this
board chooses the new Director. The scientific board's
decision is presented to the institute's managing board,
comprised of four members of Vinca and four employees of
the MOS, who must confirm the choice, which is then
presented to the MOS. The MOS has final authority, but its
policy is generally to agree with the managing board's
recommendation, the Director said. The Director serves a
four-year mandate, and is free to run again in the next
elections. The Managing Board can dismiss the Director
before his mandate expires for various specified reasons,
such as poor performance. Incidentally, Nedeljkovic, an
optical chemist by education, received his PhD from
Clarkson University in upstate New York, and worked for
seven years at Argonne National Laboratory.


12. Comment. As we understand results of the February
9 conference call, DoE and other Washington agencies
are now willing to go forward on providing equipment
for the VIND program, given positive movement on CAS
staffing. We endorse such a move, as well as
continued USG involvement in helping to round up
sufficient funding to cover total costs of the VIND
project. We will keep tabs on the CAS staffing and
other security issues to make sure the GOS is doing
its part. End comment.

POLT