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Bellona nuclear digest. May 2024
A survey of events in the field of nuclear and radiation safety relating to Russia and Ukraine.
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Publish date: December 18, 1998
Written by: Igor Kudrik
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Duma Deputy Shokhin told Interfax on 17 December that the left faction in the Duma would use the Iraq bombing to further delay a decision on ratification of the START-II treaty. The same day, Duma Deputy and member of the Liberal Democratic Party faction Mikhail Gutseriev told ITAR-TASS that the U.S.-British air strike "might worsen prospects for ratification of START-II." Communist leader Gennady Zyuganov, whose party has the largest faction in the Russian Duma, said the 1999 budget should now be revised to increase defence spending, reported Reuters. Zyuganov rejected any perspective for START-II ratification.
"The START-II must be ratified despite the crisis in Iraq," quoted ITAR-TASS communist Deputy Prime-Minister Yuri Maslukov. Nevertheless, other pro START Russian officials feared that the communist-dominated Duma will never return to this issue.
The perspectives for ratification of the START-II agreement by the State Duma were better than ever earlier this month. Now, the Russian President and the Government will have to apply quite heavy argumentation in favour of START-II. But nobody dares to predict success in this issue after the outrage expressed by the Duma.
A survey of events in the field of nuclear and radiation safety relating to Russia and Ukraine.
But it’s unlikely to impact emissions from shipping along the Northern Sea Route.
In this news digest, we monitor events that impact the environment in the Russian Arctic. Our focus lies in identifying the factors that contribute to pollution and climate change.
The following op-ed, written by Bellona’s Charles Digges, originally appeared in The Moscow Times. In recent months, the Russian nuclear in...