Soviet Nuclear Chief Says All Russian Polonium is Shipped to U.S.
by MosNews Monday, Dec. 04, 2006 at 11:17 PM

Russian nuclear energy chief stated officially that a radioactive element of Polonium 210 which had caused death of former FSB agent Alexander Litvinenko could not be obtained illegally in Russia, the Reuters news agency reported Friday.

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Traces of polonium have also been found in several passenger aircraft and at several places in London, some of which Alexander Litvinenko —- a fierce critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin —- visited before his death. In his last note, made public by friends after his death, Litvinenko said Putin was behind his murder. The Kremlin and Russian secret services have denied any connection with his death.

The head of Russia’s state atomic energy agency Rosatom, Sergei Kiriyenko, told the government daily Rossiiskaya Gazeta that Russia produces only 8 grams of Polonium 210 a month. “All this amount goes to U.S. companies through a single authorised supplier, Tekhsnabexport company,” the newspaper quoted Kiriyenko as saying.

Kiriyenko refused to say how polonium was produced, but said nuclear reactors like the Russian RMBK or the Canadian CANDU were needed to make it.

“In Russia all nuclear reactors, including those used for research, are government property tightly controlled by federal authorities,” he said.

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