U.S. signs civilian nuclear pact with Russia

Deal provides access to state-of-the-art technology in return for spent fuel

MOSCOW – Russia and the U.S. signed a key agreement on civilian nuclear power Tuesday that will give Washington access to Moscow’s nuclear technology and potentially hand Russia lucrative deals on storing spent nuclear fuel.

U.S. Ambassador William Burns and Russia’s top nuclear official, Sergei Kiriyenko, signed the deal the day before Dmitry Medvedev succeeds Vladimir Putin as president.


Cooperation on nuclear issues between Russia and the U.S. had cooled in recent years because of disagreements over how to handle Iran’s perceived nuclear threat.

The new agreement signed Tuesday will formally allow nuclear deals between U.S. and Russian companies. The U.S. has similar agreements with other major economic powers, including China.

MSNBC