Implementation of Russia's obligation to destroy chemical weapons in the Udmurt Republic

Abstract

The territory of the Udmurt Republic (UR) there are two arsenals with chemical weapon (CW). The total volume of stored chemical warfare agents is more than 12,000 tons (more than 30% of the Russian CW stockpile) which the Russian Federation (RF) is to destroy in compliance with the international obligations of the Convention on the Prohibition of CW. The safety not only of the Udmurt Republic but also the contiguous regions - Tatarstan, Bashkortostan and the Kirov Oblast - depends on the safe storage of the chemical warfare agents and timely and competent destruction of these arsenals. It has been almost six years since Russia joined the Convention on Prohibition of CW. During this period Russia has been able to advance along the path of chemical disarmament. The advance is perhaps not as far as we wish, but the positive dynamics are evident. Yet, many issues connected with the provision of environmental safety during work with CW have not been solved, or are in the first stage of their realization. The objective of the Government is to prevent emergency situations of global character while carrying out this work, the consequences of which - according to the experts' appraisal - may be significant losses of population and extensive damage to the environment. © 2006 Springer.