Defense Environment Alert 06/29/04

Defense Environment Alert

an exclusive biweekly report on defense policies for cleanup, compliance and pollution prevention

Vol. 12, No. 13--June 29, 2004

U.S. PUSHING RUSSIA TO FINALIZE CHEMICAL WEAPONS DISPOSAL

U.S. officials are urging the Russian Federation to sign two pending agreements governing U.S. aid for Russian chemical weapons destruction, saying differences between the two countries on liability, funding and schedule issues are creating significant challenges in meeting international treaty disposal deadlines.

In a June 16 speech to chemical demilitarization industry officials, DOD chemical demilitarization official Patrick Wakefield said, "I think the greatest challenge we have right now on the chemical side in Russia is in fact moving out effectively in their government" and getting agreements signed. Specifically, the United States wants Russia to sign two amendments to an overarching agreement on cooperative threat reduction that will outline liability and other responsibilities between the two countries as Russia moves forward with chemical weapons destruction.

It is important to get the Russians "to sign these documents because we have several hundreds of millions of dollars we have obligated" but cannot disperse them until the amendments are signed, said Wakefield, who is the deputy assistant to the defense secretary for chemical demilitarization and threat reduction.

A source familiar with Russian chemical weapons destruction issues says one of the major disputes between the United States and Russia is over liability. The United States wants Russia to assume all liability for any mishap that may occur at the Western-funded chemical weapons destruction plant at Shchuch'ye, Russia. But the Russians are pushing for a modified agreement similar to ones they have with Canada and the United Kingdom where Russia assumes liability unless there is an intentional action by someone connected with the donor country, the source says. For example, the Russians are wary of assuming liability for the possibility of a U.S. contractor murdering a Russian citizen, the source explains.

The source says that at a recent conference involving Western donor nations and Russia, a Russian official said the G-8 nations are stalling on following through with their funding commitments and that only $42 million has trickled down to Russian contractors. But the United States indicated at this conference it has obligated and continues to earmark hundreds of millions of dollars, and that 75 percent of the funds go to Russian contractors, the source says. Representatives from the United Kingdom and Canada also urged the Russians to improve government transparency and use open contracting methods, indicating Western nations are unwilling to provide additional funding unless they can track how it is used, the source says.

Wakefield said the United States also remains concerned that Russia is unrealistic in its estimations for how long weapons destruction will take.

"I would tell you that it's clear the challenges before us are clearly schedule issues," he said. "The Russian government needs to come to closure on what is the real schedule. We certainly have one for the baseline of this program. We're going to implement it in such a way that we do not take undue risk."

The Chemical Weapons Convention requires destruction of chemical weapons stockpiles by 2007, but allows for a five-year extension. Russia, however, is not expected to meet even the 2012 deadline.

The chemical weapons source says the Russians have had a "terribly unrealistic" schedule for destruction that is three years shorter than the U.S. estimation, and the Russians have had a hard time agreeing to the U.S. schedule, pressing at times to skip systemization of the disposal plant. Systemization is necessary to ensure the plant works in a safe manner, as planned, the source says.

"We need to come up with a proper technical solution that is based on facts, based on appropriate federal relations with the United States," Wakefield said.

The Russians have also pushed for greater involvement in procurement practices, including the use of more Russian contractors and insisting on the need for Russian officials to review all proposals, the chemical weapons source says. This has "delayed the critical path schedule" by several months, the source says, adding that the Shchuch'ye plant is "marching forward" nonetheless.