VZCZCXYZ0001
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHUNV #0332 1940631
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 130631Z JUL 09
FM USMISSION UNVIE VIENNA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9820
RHMCSUU/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEANFA/NRC WASHDC PRIORITY
INFO RUEHII/VIENNA IAEA POSTS COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHBW/AMEMBASSY BELGRADE 0001
RUEHSM/AMEMBASSY STOCKHOLM 0268
RUEHNY/AMEMBASSY OSLO 0196

UNCLAS UNVIE VIENNA 000332 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR IO/T, ISN/MNSA, ISN/NESS, ISN/RA 
NA-20 BAKER/LOONEY/, NA-20.1 KOONTZ 
NA-21 BIENIAWSKI/SHEELY/ILIOPULOS/STAPLES/CUMMINS, NA-25 
HUIZENGA/VOLGER, NA-243-GOOREVICH/BRUNNS; NA-241 O'CONNOR, 
LAMONTAGNE 
NRC FOR OIP - HENDERSON, SCHWARTZMAN 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: AORC KNNP IAEA ENRG TRGY
SUBJECT: IAEA DIRECTOR GENERAL HAS NEW PERSPECTIVE ON VINCA SITE 
¶1. (SBU)SUMMARY: IAEA Director General ElBaradei visited the Vinca 
Institute of Nuclear Sciences in Serbia and came away with a new 
level of concern and attention to the repackaging, transportation, 
 
and reprocessing of nuclear fuel from Serbia to the Russian 
Federation.  He has set a new target of signing an agreement for all 
removal activities by the mid-September 2009 General Conference and 
wants full repatriation completed by 2010.  The IAEA is asking 
Russia to further shave its fees for this project and looking to 
several European funders for the necessary resources. End Summary. 
¶2. (SBU) BACKGROUND: The IAEA Department of Technical Cooperation 
(TC) has a project to repatriate spent nuclear fuel from Research 
Reactor RA at the Vinca Institute of Nuclear Sciences, Serbia, to 
the Russian Federation.  The USG has already committed to provide 
funding (estimated at about $5 million) for the repackaging, 
transportation, and reprocessing of 8.6 kg of HEU fuel from Serbia 
to the Russian Federation.  The IAEA assumed the responsibility for 
raising additional funds (estimated at $15 million) to cover the 
costs of the removal of the 2.6 metric tons of LEU fuel. In addition 
to the fuel shipment, several other activities are occurring 
simultaneously at Vinca Institute, under the leadership of the IAEA, 
in order to decommission the reactor facilities.  Many of these 
activities involve waste conditioning for storage and environmental 
clean-up.  The USG has also provided security upgrades (at a cost of 
approximately $1M) to protect vulnerable nuclear and radiological 
materials at the site that meet our mandate; however there are 
numerous other activities in which we do not have the mandate to 
support, given they are environmental in nature rather than for 
threat reduction. 
¶3. (SBU) On July 3, DG ElBaradei visited the site and came away with 
a new sense of urgency to raise all the funding necessary to 
complete the project.  There is currently a pledge shortfall of $3 
million, if the USG contributes another $2 million (see below).  The 
DG has set a new target of signing an agreement for all removal 
activities by the September 2009 General Conference and having full 
repatriation completed by next year.  The IAEA is requesting 
additional funding from Norway and Sweden.  Norway seems more 
willing to give some additional funding than Sweden.  The Agency is 
also willing to look in the Technical Cooperation (TC) budget to 
close the gap,  but is conscious of the standing G77 objection to 
the Secretariat tapping the TC program for HEU/LEU conversation and 
related activities. 
¶4. (SBU) The US Department of Energy has conditionally agreed to 
contribute an additional $2 million for this effort.  The first 
condition is that the Russian Federation lowers the cost of 
repatriation by $3 million.  Currently, the cost is an estimated 
$9.2 million. The second condition is that the IAEA come up with 
additional funding.  Both of these conditions seem to be 
attainable. 
¶5. (SBU) Comment: It is clear that with heightened interest by the 
DG on this project and the end of his term drawing near, the 
Secretariat will push to secure from donors or identify from Agency 
resources the additional $3 million, so that the agreement for 
removal can be signed in September.  We would appreciate any 
insights from Embassies Stockholm and Oslo regarding the likelihood 
of the necessary funds from those host governments and will continue 
to emphasize here in Vienna that additional Department of Energy 
funding is conditional on IAEA's own fundraising success. END NOTE. 
 
PYATT