Stalled nuclear talks set to resume

Date: 11/07/1996

By Elizabeth Wise

WITH Russia's presidential elections behind them, EU nuclear officials are optimistic about ending months of inaction on nuclear trade talks with Russia, the Ukraine and four other former Soviet states.

If Moscow keeps its word, the European Commission could receive, as early as tomorrow (12 July), the signal to resume interrupted talks on nuclear trade in the form of a letter from the second Yeltsin administration.

Nuclear trade is a rising priority in the Union's dealings with trading partners around the world, but proposed negotiating mandates for nuclear trade agreements with Kazakhstan, Kirgizstan, Tadjikistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan have lain dormant for months, awaiting approval from EU governments.

Before the Commission can start talks with the five nations, the mandates must be approved by majority vote in the Council of Ministers.

But some ministers want to see what a nuclear trade accord with Russia might look like before sending the Commission off to negotiate with other nations of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).

A Commission team explored the notion of nuclear trade with President Boris Yeltsin's government in a series of meetings this year with officials from Minatom, Russia's nuclear energy agency. The team made its last trip to Moscow in late March, but, said a team member, “since then, there has been silence from Moscow, despite our informal approaches”.

Five months of electoral campaigning put talks on hold, and Commission officials fretted that if Communist contender Gennady Zyuganov emerged the winner, he might put the whole project on ice.

On 2 July, however, the day before the final election round, Russian officials promised the Commission a letter within ten days outlining Moscow's thinking and goals for negotiations.

“They (Union-Russia talks) are going to take place, the question is how soon,” said one EU official. “We do not know what is going to happen, but the key Commission Cabinets are watching with enormous interest.”

The EU's best-case scenario depicts Union negotiators presenting proposals for a mandate to the Commission in the autumn.

The proposal would then need approval by a simple majority of EU governments before talks could begin with all six ex-Soviet nations. Negotiations completed, each agreement would require approval by qualified majority vote.

Nothing obliges the Union to wait for Russia before establishing partnerships with other CIS nations. But Commission officials hinted that they are trying to avoid upsetting Moscow by offering more appealing deals to its neighbours.