Wednesday, May 19, 2004
Russia keen to build second nuclear reactor in Iran
By Vladimir Radyuhin
MOSCOW, MAY 18. Russia may build a second nuclear reactor in Iran, a Russian official here said as Moscow threw a top-level reception to Iran's Foreign Minister, Kamal Kharrazi.
The Russian atomic energy chief, Alexander Rumyantsev, will visit Iran to discuss the construction of another reactor at the Bushehr power plant, where Russia is building a 1000-MW nuclear reactor, a spokesman for the Russian Atomic Agency said on Monday.
The news was announced as the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, received Iran's Foreign Minister in the Kremlin saying he was happy with the ongoing cooperation between Russia and Iran.
"Iran is our old and stable partner and results of our interaction cannot but evoke satisfaction," Mr. Putin told Mr. Kharrazi. Trade between the two countries has soared by 70 per cent since 2002, the Russian leader said.
Russian plans to build another nuclear reactor in Iran is bound to enrage the United States, which has been urging Moscow to halt the construction of the first $1-billion reactor at Bushehr, saying it would help Iran build a n-bomb.
The Russian atomic energy spokesman, Nikolai Shingarev, said the first nuclear reactor at Bushehr should become operational next year.
Copyright © 2004, The Hindu.