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Weapons of Mass Destruction: Effort to Reduce Russian Arsenals May Cost More, Achieve Less Than Planned

NSIAD-99-76 Published: Apr 13, 1999. Publicly Released: May 05, 1999.
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Highlights

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the cost and realization of national security objectives at Russia's Mayak nuclear complex and Shchuch'ye chemical weapons storage depot, focusing on whether the: (1) Mayak project will be completed on schedule and within past Department of Defense (DOD) estimates of its total cost to the United States; (2) United States has made progress in ensuring that the completed Mayak facility would achieve U.S. national security objectives by safely and securely storing retired materials taken only from dismantled nuclear weapons; (3) Shchuch'ye project will be completed on schedule and the status of DOD efforts to estimate its total cost to the United States; and (4) completed Shchuch'ye facility will achieve U.S. national security objectives by helping Russia destroy the Shchuch'ye depot's stocks and accelerate elimination of all Russian chemical weapons under the Chemical Weapons Convention.

Recommendations

Matter for Congressional Consideration

Matter Status Comments
Since substantial international assistance is essential for achieving the Shchuch'ye project's broader objectives, Congress may wish to direct the Secretary of Defense to report to it regarding the specific sources of funding for the four additional facilities needed to eliminate Russia's nerve agent stockpile. If the Secretary of Defense cannot identify these likely sources with specificity, Congress may wish to consider seeking further justification for the project from the DOD.
Closed – Implemented
In response to the report's matter for congressional consideration, the House Armed Services Committee inserted a provision in the FY2000 National Security Authorization bill to bar all funding in current and future years for the Shchuch'ye project (roughly $600 million). The House Armed Services Committee language was included in the version of the bill that was approved by the House-Senate conference. The conference-approved bill was signed by the President on October 5, 1999.

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Topics

Arms control agreementsChemical warfareChemical weaponsFederal aid to foreign countriesForeign technical aidHomeland securityInternational cooperationNuclear fuel plantsNuclear materialsNuclear proliferationNuclear weaponsProperty disposalSchedule slippagesWeapons of mass destructionPlutonium