The US’ Department of Defence said that Russia is likely exporting highly enriched uranium to China.
Export Reports
Russian state corporation Rosatom, which specialises in nuclear energy, is believed to be exporting highly enriched uranium for Chinese “fast breeder” reactors, a US official told a hearing on Wednesday at the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Strategic Forces.
“It’s very troubling to see Russia and China cooperating on this,” said Assistant Secretary of Defence for Space Policy John F. Plumb.
“They may have talking points around it, but there’s no getting around the fact that breeder reactors are plutonium, and plutonium is for weapons. So, I think the [Defense] Department is concerned. And of course, it matches our concerns about China’s increased expansion of its nuclear forces as well,” Plumb added.
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Plumb further noted that China and Russia “have placed nuclear weapons, space warfare, and long-range strike at the center of their strategies” to counter the US and its allies, and that China is significantly expanding and diversifying its nuclear forces.
The official went on to say that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “irresponsible nuclear saber rattling” has further highlighted “the importance of the US nuclear deterrent,” which he said is “the bedrock of national security.”
“Our allies and partners are an asymmetric advantage that neither China nor Russia can ever hope to match,” the official concluded.
Implications
US intelligence officials believe that when China’s fast-breeder reactor, which is located on Changbiao Island, is functional this year, it will produce weapons-grade plutonium that could help the country expand its stockpile of warheads as much as four times in the next 12 years.
This would allow China to match the nuclear arsenals currently deployed by the US and Russia.
Pavel Podvig, a nuclear analyst at the UN’s Institute for Disarmament Research, said that although “it is entirely possible that this breeder program is purely civilian,” it is concerning that China has stopped reporting its civilian and separated plutonium stockpiles. “It’s not a smoking gun but it’s definitely not a good sign,” he noted.