Russia and Saudi Arabia ink nuclear energy agreement pact for first time

DUBAI: Russia and Saudi Arabia have for the first time signed an agreement on cooperation in the field of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.

For the first time in the history of Russian-Saudi relations the document creates a legal basis for cooperation between two countries in the field of nuclear energy on a wide range of areas, including construction of nuclear power reactors, provision of cycle of nuclear fuel, including for nuclear power plants and research reactors.

According to a statement released here, the agreement includes the issues of spent nuclear fuel and radioactive waste, production of radioisotopes and their applications in industry, medicine and agriculture.

The agreement was signed in Russia during St Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) last week.

The document was signed on behalf of two governments by general director of the state corporation ROSATOM Sergey Kiriyenko and president of the King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (KACARE) Hashim Abdullah Yamani.

"It is planned to exchange of experts, scientific and technological information, organisation of seminars, symposiums, cooperation in the preparation of scientific and technical personnel. All this became possible for the first time in the history of Russian-Saudi relations," the statement said.

"They really began to show their interest. And this is also interesting to us," said Kiriyenko in the beginning of the year.

Saudi Arabia has not developed nuclear power plants yet. However, the country has ambitious plans to develop nuclear energy.