ACTION REQUEST: ENCOURAGING RUSSIAN PARTICIPATION

UNCLAS STATE 057089 SIPDIS SIPDIS SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED - NOT FOR INTERNET DISTRIBUTION E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KNNP MNUC ASEC ENRG KCRM PARM TRGY RS SUBJECT: ACTION REQUEST: ENCOURAGING RUSSIAN PARTICIPATION IN NUCLEAR FORENSICS EXERCISE REF: A. A) STATE 049322 ¶B. B) 2006 MOSCOW 9019 ¶1. Please see action request in para 4. ¶2. (SBU) BACKGROUND: An international group of experts created by the G8, the Nuclear Smuggling International Technical Working Group (ITWG),will be conducting a round-robin practical exercise in the near future. This exercise is the third such round-robin exercise conducted by the ITWG. The first round-robin exercise in 1999 involved the analysis and interpretation of a plutonium sample. The second round-robin exercise in 2002 involved the analysis and interpretation of a highly enriched uranium (HEU) sample. These round robins strengthen scientific support for law enforcement actions to prevent nuclear smuggling and promote necessary international cooperation in the field. ¶3. (SBU) PURPOSE: The purpose of these round-robin exercises is to evaluate and improve the effectiveness of nuclear forensic techniques and methods, including: (1) Prioritizing analytical techniques and methods; (2) Evaluating attribution capabilities; and (3) Examining the utility of existing data and knowledge bases. These goals will be accomplished by the upcoming exercise involving a scenario in which two seizures occur and laboratories then analyze nuclear material. Each laboratory will develop analytical results, interpret the results in the context of available information, prepare a report documenting these results, and participate with the other laboratories in a post-project evaluation meeting. So far, laboratories from ten countries have agreed to participate. ¶4. (SBU) ACTION REQUEST: As a Co-Chair of the ITWG and organizer of the round robin, the United States would like to encourage Russian participation in the upcoming exercise. While Russia laboratories have not participated in the past and RosAtom reps only occasionally attend ITWG annual meetings, the ITWG's efforts directly support the Global Initiative to Combat Terrorism and the International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism. In addition, they build on efforts by experts from A.A. Bochvar All-Russian Scientific Research Institute for Inorganic Materials and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory under the Counter-Terrorism Working Group to advance bilateral cooperation in nuclear forensics (Ref B). Embassy is requested to encourage Russian participation, preferably that of the Bochvar Institute, in the upcoming round-robin. At the moment we do not have specific dates for the next round-robin, but believe it will be held in the upcoming months. If Russia is concerned about p articipating in a multilateral venue, it may be possible to pursue it bilaterally. ¶5. CONTACT: Please contact ISN/CTR Michael Curry at 202-736-7692 with further questions. RICE