Russia has suspended a cooperation agreement with Japan on the dismantlement of Russian nuclear weapons, according to a government document released Thursday night.
This document, published on the official online portal of the Russian government, indicates that Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin signed a decree on Tuesday suspending the 1993 agreement. The document does not indicate the reason for this decision, but specifies that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Russian inform Japan.
Radioactive waste in the Sea of Japan
Relations between the two countries have deteriorated since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 and after Japan joined other Western nations in imposing sanctions on Moscow.
In 1993, Russia agreed that its Pacific Fleet, based in Vladivostok, would stop dumping liquid radioactive waste into the Sea of Japan in exchange for help processing the waste for burial underground.
Under the suspended deal with Japan, Tokyo helped dismantle weapons, including dismantling nuclear submarines. Japanese media, however, have reported that work has stalled because Moscow stopped sending the necessary data to Tokyo.
Source: BFM TV
