Margarita Sevcik
December 19, 2008
Sustaining Accountancy and Physical Protection Upgrades in Georgia
On November 20-21, 2008, the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies and the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia jointly conducted an international seminar. Financial support for the meeting, held in Tbilisi, was provided by the Global Threat Reduction Initiative (GTRI) of the U.S Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration through Sandia National Laboratories.
Seminar participants
Participants
The meeting gathered about 35 participants, including representatives from the Georgian ministries and other governmental bodies, such as the National Nuclear Safety Service of the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Defense, Ministry of Internal Affairs (Coast Guard and Land Border Defense), Ministry of Finance (Customs Control Department), and Andronikashvili Institute of Physics. Representatives from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) mission in Georgia and the U.S. Embassy in Tbilisi attended the seminar as well. Outside participants included officials and experts from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), Los Alamos National Laboratory, U.S. Department of State, United Kingdom Global Threat Reduction Programme, HM Revenue & Customs (United Kingdom), and Swedish Radiation Safety Authority. Margarita Sevcik represented CNS at this meeting.
Objectives
- Address security concerns posed by radiological sources
- Discuss past and current programs aimed at managing and securing such sources and preventing illicit trafficking of fissile and radioactive materials
- Identify ways to sustain existing programs and identify country-specific needs for future assistance programs
Agenda
Seminar Agenda: Sustaining Accountancy and Physical Protection Upgrades in Georgia
The workshop agenda included a number of technical presentations by US and Georgian experts on the repatriation and recovery of radiological sources; presentations on national and international efforts, legislative and otherwise, to better secure and control radiological sources. Another set of presentations included overviews by representatives from donor countries (United States, United Kingdom, and Sweden) of their countries’ international assistance programs in the field of nuclear and radiological security, physical and border protection, and combating nuclear and radiological terrorism. These reports featured US DOE Global Threat Reduction Initiative activities in Georgia, US Department of State-led nuclear smuggling outreach activities, U.K. Global Treat Reduction Programme’s projects in the Newly Independent States and other regions, and Swedish-Georgian cooperation implemented by the Swedish Radiation Safety Authority.
In addition to presentations, the seminar agenda included two round-table discussions open to all seminar participants. The objective of organizing these sessions was to engage Georgian representatives from various governmental bodies and agencies into a constructive dialogue with each other, as well as their Western counterparts, and to voice concerns and identify needs in improving control of radiological sources in Georgia and how to sustain programs aimed at securing such sources. During the first discussion, a number of issues were addressed including gaps in the existing Georgian legislation on transit, use, and storage of radioactive materials and the need to amend it, looking at long-term disposal solutions for the accumulated radioactive waste, safety upgrades at the existing storage facility, and others. During the second discussion, participants focused on specific needs and priorities and concluded with a recommendation to create an interagency working group and develop a more comprehensive national plan for radioactive waste management.
Speakers & Round-Table Discussions
Deputy Minister David Ioseliani, Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources, delivering his welcoming remarks; (right to left): Kent Logsdon, Deputy Chief of Mission, U.S. Embassy in Georgia; Dr. Alexander Gongadze, Administration of the President of Georgia.
Deputy Minister of Georgian Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources David Ioseliani, Deputy Chief of Mission of the U.S. Embassy in Georgia Kent Logsdon, and Scientific Advisor to the President of Georgia Dr. Alexander Gongadze opened the seminar. In his welcoming remarks, Mr. Ioseliani thanked CNS and DOE for organizing and sponsoring this seminar. He referred to it as a very timely event and a forum for addressing such significant issues as securing Georgian borders, enhancing the country’s capabilities in detecting radiological sources, and amending appropriate national legislation.
The speaker also stressed the importance of international assistance programs in Georgia, especially in the aftermath of August 2008 military conflict with Russia. His speech was followed by Kent Logsdon’s remarks in which he provided a brief overview of US aid programs aimed at securing radiological sources and enhancing border capabilities in Georgia and discussed ongoing efforts in the framework of the U.S.-Georgia Joint Action Plan, part of the Nuclear Smuggling Outreach Initiative. Dr. Gongadze expressed his hope that this seminar would not only address dangers and threats posed by radiological sources but also help develop tools and measures to combat such threats through joint efforts.
Seminar Results
In the course of the presentations and round-table discussions it became apparent that Georgia, with the help of various international programs, has had a number of achievements in securing, detecting and recovering its radiological sources, thus curtailing their illegal movements and trade. However, the seminar also demonstrated that this country still faces problems of managing its radiological sources, some of which have become more acute since the August 2008 Georgian-Russian conflict. All seminar participants agreed that this conflict has jeopardized the security of Georgian borders, especially along so-called conflict zones. The lack of control of borders in these zones could lead to the increase of the illicit trafficking of nuclear and radioactive materials. Seminar participants also stressed a need to promote a constructive dialogue between the various Georgian agencies dealing with radiological sources.
Summarizing the seminar results, a number of participants, including Mr. Zaal Lomtadze, the head of the Nuclear Safety Service of the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources, Brent Eastman from the U.S. Department of State, and Richard Pappas of the U.S. Department of Energy, stated that the seminar was useful and productive in that it allowed representatives of various governmental structures to identify and address problems of securing radiological sources in Georgia, not only from their specific professional perspective but taking into consideration broader aspects of the problems of radioactive waste management. Seminar participants unanimously agreed on the benefits of having such a seminar to reassess the country’s needs after the August 2008 Georgian-Russian conflict. They also spoke in favor of organizing similar working-level seminars on a regular basis to assess what has been achieved and to develop strategies for further actions.
