MFA on Britain’s initiative to supply enriched uranium to Ukraine for the operation of a nuclear power plant

Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova’s answer to a question from Rossiya Segodnya on Britain’s initiative to supply enriched uranium to Ukraine for the operation of a nuclear power plant.

Question: It has been reported that Britain plans to deliver enriched uranium to Ukraine for the operation of a nuclear power plant. Is there a risk of transfer of components for “a dirty bomb”? Does this procedure violate the standards of nuclear non-proliferation? Should such supplies by monitored by the IAEA? What does the Foreign Ministry think about this sort of aid?

Maria Zakharova: As far as we understand, this concerns certain plans to supply low-enriched uranium for the production of nuclear fuel for Ukrainian NPPs. The British company URENCO is currently one of the largest suppliers of this product. We are not aware of any industrial facilities for the independent production of nuclear fuel in Ukraine. Therefore, we presume that instead of Ukraine, the uranium will be technically supplied to a nuclear fuel production plant (most likely, a Westinghouse plant) in a third country.

Judging from London’s statement, the deal is not related to the production of a radiological dispersal device (RDD), also known as a dirty bomb. Naturally, it largely depends on the ability of the exporting country to ensure Kiev’s strict adherence to its obligations under the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), and to make sure that Ukraine strictly uses the supplied commodity according to initially stated purposes. In this case, it will be reasonable to say that these supplies do not violate the international non-proliferation regime established by the NPT. It is mandatory that this nuclear material be supplied on guarantees from the IAEA.

At the same time, it is obvious that Britain’s decision is driven not only and not so much by purely commercial considerations but rather by an intention to score further dubious political points on the promises to continue the support of Zelensky’s criminal regime regardless of the atrocities it commits. It would be enough to mention that the information was leaked from the former UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s office exactly at a time when the Ukrainian armed forces continue its precision strikes at the Zaporozhye NPP and Energodar where the staff of this NPP reside with their families. London has expressed neither condemnation nor concern about these strikes, which is certainly indicative, including in terms of its approach to nuclear security. Therefore, we do not have and cannot have any illusions as to the actual motives and the essentially improper rationale behind this notorious British aid to Ukraine.

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