Russia is going to build nuclear research centre in Myanmar

Source TASS, 30 May 2007 

 

A next round of talks on the construction of a nuclear research centre in Myanmar with Russia’s assistance will be held in this in Asian country in the second half of this year, the press service of Atomstroieksport company told ITAR-TASS on Wednesday.

"By that time a procedure is to be determined for the preparation of a contract for the construction of the centre, the cost of which is estimated at 200-400 million euros,” it said.
An intergovernmental agreement on cooperation between the Russian Federal Agency for Nuclear Energy (Rosatom) and the Ministry of Science and Technology of Myanmar was signed in Moscow two weeks ago.
Atomstroieksport’s first vice president Alexander Glukhov said that the "agreement envisaged cooperation in design and the construction in Myanmar of a nuclear research centre by specialists of our company”.

The centre is to have a 10-megawatt research light water reactor in which 20 percent enriched uranium 235 will be used as fuel.
The center “will carry out a complex of work in the filed of nuclear physics and biotechnology and to produce a wide spectrum of pharmaceuticals for medicine”.
The center will be complete with an installation for recycling and burial of radioactive waste.
"Such centres are usually built during five years.”

Rosatom’s experts earlier said that the centre in Myanmar would be under the control and guarantee of the International Atomic Energy Agency.
About 350 specialists from Myanmar will be trained in Russia in nuclear technology.
"Russian specialists have a large experience in building such centres in 12 countries,” Atomstroi’s experts said.

CRPP warns military over crackdown on protests

DVB, 30 May 2007

Burma’s Committee Representing the People’s Parliament warned the military yesterday over recent crackdowns on peaceful public protests.

CRPP secretary U Aye Thar Aung told DVB that the opposition would hold the military government responsible for any violence against prayer campaigners or demonstrators.

"We would like to warn the [State Peace and Development Council] authorities that, if they are going to act like thugs and use violent methods against peaceful movements, the consequences will be their own responsibility," U Aye Thar Aung said.
In the past two months more than 60 activists and politicians have been abducted or arrested by unidentified people after attending prayer campaigns for the release of democracy icon Daw Aung San Suu Kyi or public protests.

The military has denied any responsibility for the arrests, claiming they were the work of- the people'.
"The SPDC, which has said it is going to construct a democratic country, is using a lot of different methods to limit, prevent and stop political parties . . . such acts contradict what they have said," U Aye Thar Aung said.