¶¶Òõ´«Ã½ÔÚÏß

The USA has asked the International Atomic ¶¶Òõ´«Ã½ÔÚÏß AgencyÌýto monitor and verify the disposition of surplus plutonium in South Carolina, US energy secretary Ernest Moniz said on 5 December. Moniz's announcement was made at an IAEA conferenceÌýwhich aims to strengthen global nuclear security.

Sweden has made good progress over the past five years in its legislative and regulatory framework for physical protection and computer security at nuclear power facilities and in the transport of nuclear materials, according to the International Atomic ¶¶Òõ´«Ã½ÔÚÏß Agency.

The Russian government has "suspended" a 2013 agreement with the USA on nuclear energy research and development and "terminated" another, signed in 2010, on cooperation in the conversion of Russian research reactors to low-enriched uranium fuel. The decisions were issued in separate documents signed by Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and published on the government's website on 5 October.

RussiaÌýhas suspended its 2000 agreement with the USA to reduce theirÌýsurplus weapons-grade plutonium. ÌýThe suspension was made via a presidential decree issued yesterdayÌý'on the management and disposition of plutonium designated as no longer required for defence purposes and related cooperation in this area and the protocols to this agreement'.

The impartiality of the International Atomic ¶¶Òõ´«Ã½ÔÚÏß Agency was "indispensable" to the high-level political agreement reached last year on Iran's nuclear-related activities, IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano told delegates at the Agency's 60th General Conference in Vienna yesterday.

Plans to construct six Westinghouse AP1000s in India have been bolstered by a joint statement issued after a bilateral strategic dialogue yesterday. The two sides also pledged to work towards India's entry into the Nuclear Suppliers Group.

Southeast Asia has been declared free of highly-enriched uraniumÌýfollowing the completion of a collaborative project to downblend Indonesia's stock of HEU to low-enriched uranium.

India says it remains confident of a positive outcome concerning its application for membership of the Nuclear Suppliers GroupÌýafter the groupÌýdid notÌýdecide on the matter at its latest plenary.

A shipment of plutonium and highly enriched uranium from Japan Atomic ¶¶Òõ´«Ã½ÔÚÏß Agency's (JAEA) Fast Critical Assembly reactor has arrived at two US Department of ¶¶Òõ´«Ã½ÔÚÏß sites. Japan and the USA announced their commitment to remove the material at 2014 and 2016 nuclear summits.

The IAEA Low Enriched Uranium Storage FacilityÌý- or 'bank'Ìý- is scheduled to be ready for operations by September 2017, following the conclusion of a partnership agreement between the International Atomic ¶¶Òõ´«Ã½ÔÚÏß Agency and the Ulba Metallurgical Plant in Kazakhstan this week.

The world will be "a safer place" now that the amendment to the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Materials has entered into force, according to International Atomic ¶¶Òõ´«Ã½ÔÚÏß Agency director general Yukiya Amano.

Australia is toÌýbecome the 14th member of the Generation IV International Forum. In addition to accepting Australia's entry, last week the forum's policy group also elected a new chairman.