Russia 110328 Basic Political Developments

Medvedev meets with rescue workers back from Japan

http://english.ruvr.ru/2011/03/28/48058586.html
Mar 28, 2011 06:20 Moscow Time

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Monday meets with workers of Russia’s Emergencies’ Ministry who participated in rescue operations in Japan.

In the course of a week they managed to find more than a hundred dead victims under the debris. The work was done in inclement weather and conditions of radiation leaks. Russian rescuers, though, were not exposed to radiation.

As a result of a magnitude 9 earthquake and ensuing tsunami over 10,000 people died in Japan, with some 17 thousand missing.

The natural disasters resulted in several breakdowns at “Fukushima-1” nuclear power plant, after which there was a leak of radiation.

Sergei Kiriyenko: "Fukushima-1” no threat to Russians

http://english.ruvr.ru/2011/03/28/48057082.html
Mar 28, 2011 02:04 Moscow Time

The consequences of the accident at the “Fukushima-1” nuclear power plant in Japan do not pose any threat to Russians, says Rosatom head Sergei Kiriyenko.

According to him, even if events unfold according to the worst-case scenario, there is no immediate threat to the Far East and the rest of the country.

Kiriyenko specified that his office had begun work on forecasting the situation on the following day after the accident at the Japanese plant.

Rosatom experts conclude that the danger zone is confined to the territory around "Fukushima-1". The radiation level on site is 100 thousand times above norm.

March 28, 2011 11:39

Russia will lose nuclear shield if nuclear energy industry curtailed – Kiriyenko

http://www.interfax.com/newsinf.asp?id=231935
MOSCOW. March 28 (Interfax) - Russia will not curtail nuclear power generation following the nuclear disaster in Japan, or it will lose not only its competitiveness, but also its nuclear shield.

"Nuclear energy implies not only electric power plants, but also the country's entire nuclear shield," chief of the federal nuclear energy corporation (Rosatom) Sergei Kiriyenko said in the "Pozner"program on Channel One on Sunday evening.

"If the country curtails nuclear power generation, we will lose a competitive nuclear weapons complex in 10, 15, or, with a piece of luck, 20 years," Kiriyenko said.

The construction of nuclear submarines "which today guarantee the strategic balance" directly depends on the development of the nuclear power industry," he said.

"The same is true about future development in general. Space exploration is unthinkable without nuclear power as a source of energy," he added.

"If we are discussing the energy of the future, which will emerge one day, whether thermonuclear or hydrogen, progress towards it, in terms of technology, knowledge and skills, will proceed through the development of nuclear power, which is absolutely clear," Kiriyenko said.

"What matters is a correct energy balance," he said.

March 28, 2011 12:22

Energy Ministry expects no changes to Russia's energy balance following possible nuclear reassessment – Shmatko

http://www.interfax.com/newsinf.asp?id=231956

MOSCOW. March 28 (Interfax) - Russia's Energy Minsiter believes that the country's energy balance will not change following events at Fukushima-1 Nuclear Power Plant in Japan, Energy Minsiter Sergei Shmatko told journalists during the exhibition Russia Power in Moscow.

"It seems to me that no substantial changes will take place in Russia [for the energy balance]," he said.

He said that Russia would stick to its strategy for developing the nuclear sector. However, he added the safety of its fast development would be analyzed. "We will, of course, analyze the issue of nuclear energy's sped-up development," he said, adding that the analysis should be carried jointly with Russia's foreign partners.

"I believe that we will stick to the course already underway for develop nuclear power," Shmatko said. He added that the sector's development vector could be different since it is necessary to wait a bit and see the consequences of the accident at the Japanese NPP.

However, Shmatko noted that a positive attitude should be supported in regards to nuclear energy in the world. "I think that all effort should be applied to maintain a healthy attitude towards the possibilities of developing nuclear power," he said.

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Russia’s Primorye territory toughness control over seafood imports

http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2.html?NewsID=16093115

28.03.2011, 08.19

VLADIVOSTOK, March 28 (Itar-Tass) - Russia’s Primorye Territory has toughened control over the imports of seafood and fish, the press service of the regional agricultural watchdog told Itar-Tass on Monday.

Border checkpoints inspect cargoes for quality, safety and content of radionuclides and toxic elements.

From the beginning of March Rosselkhoznadzro’s labs examined eleven samples taken from the batch of seafood and fish from Japan after the accident at the Fukushima nuclear power plant, mainly saury, trout, shrimps and squids. No radioactive components were found in the batch.

The region takes samples not only of fish, but also water and bottom sediments.

At present, four research vessels are staying at sea – The Professor Kizevetter and The Professor Levanidov are taking samples in the Sea of Okhotsk off the western coast of Kamchatka, the TINRO – in the northwestern part of the Pacific Ocean and The Pofessor Kaganovsky – off the Southern Kuriles. At present, boats are fishing Alaska pollock and herring in the area.

The levels of the radiation background in the air range between 6-10 microroentgen per hour and in Allaska pollock – within 5-10 microroentgen per hour that are within the norm.

Russian activists discussing Chernobyl at USC

http://www.wbtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=14331692

Associated Press - March 28, 2011 4:15 AM ET

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - Two women from Russia are traveling to the University of South Carolina to mark the 25th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear reactor accident and discuss their firsthand experience with disaster cleanup efforts.

The university says it's hosting Natalia Manzurova and Natalia Mironova on Monday at the school's Green Quad in Columbia.

Manzurova is a survivor who now advocates for the rights of victims of radiation exposure internationally.

Mironova, an opponent of nuclear power in Russia, is speaking about lessons learned from Chernobyl and how those can be applied to environmental, human rights and peace advocacy.

Mironova founded the Movement for Nuclear Safety and has written extensively on the role of nongovernmental organizations in abolishing nuclear weapons.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Norway welcomes Russian Duma vote

http://www.upstreamonline.com/live/article250032.ece

Norway welcomed a Russian State Duma vote ratifying a treaty to divide the Barents Sea into clear Norwegian and Russian zones, bringing Norway closer to a new oil and gas drive in the Arctic.

News wires  28 March 2011 02:13 GMT

"The action in the Duma is gratifying, and is a big step toward implementing the agreement," Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Kjetil Elsebutangen said on Saturday, a day after Russia's lower house of parliament ratified the deal.

Earlier this month, Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg said Norway would begin a formal study into offshore oil and gas exploration along the newly delineated boundary in the Barents Sea soon after Russia ratifies the treaty.

Approval by Russia's upper house, or Federation Council, is considered a formality as it regularly rubber stamps initiatives from President Dmitry Medvedev, who helped negotiate the Barents treaty in Oslo and signed off on its terms last September.

Norway's parliament ratified it on 8 February.

Elsebutangen told Reuters the line, running between Norwegian and Russian archipelagos most of the way to the North Pole, would become law 30 days after Medvedev signs it and the two countries formally "exchange documents".

"We hope that won't take long," he said, adding that the deal "will open the way for new rules on new opportunities to exploit resources."

The area to be divided after 40 years of dispute is about half the size of Germany.

Seabed scans conducted by the former Soviet Union reportedly indicated significant oil and gas deposits. Norwegian companies led by Statoil have said finds there could help revive national production that has been declining for a decade.

In the Duma the majority United Russia Party supported the treaty with Norway while the Communist Party objected on grounds that it could hurt Russian fisheries interests, Itar-Tass reported. The final vote count in the Duma was not given.

Published: 28 March 2011 02:13 GMT  | Last updated: 28 March 2011 02:13 GMT