The respective resolution was signed by Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov yesterday, RIA-Novosti reported. The agreement was signed on November 5, 2003 in Rome. Deputy Foreign Minister of Russia Sergei Kislyak and deputy head of the Federal Agency for Atomic Energy (Rosatom) Sergei Antipov have been appointed as official representatives of the Russian government in the State Duma and the Federation Council during the discussion of the issue of the agreement’s ratification.

“Italy intends to spend 300 million euros on the disposal of nuclear submarines,” Sergey Antipov told RIA Novosti. He added that Italy had not signed the agreement on multilateral nuclear and environmental program in Russia, which had been ratified in 2003 by some European countries, Russia and the USA. This program deals with the handling of spent nuclear fuel and radioactive waste and the disposal of nuclear submarines in the northwest of Russia.

“Italy has prepared a bilateral agreement with Russia, which basically repeats all the approaches of the multilateral nuclear and environmental program in Russia towards the solving of problems of nuclear and radiation safety. However, owing to the fact that it contains the rules differing from the Russian legislation, the Russian government has introduced it into the State Duma for ratification,” Antipov noted. According to a Rosatom representative, “after the agreement is ratified, eight Russian-Italian projects that have already been prepared, can be launched.”