Uranium exports fuel Russian war

Rosatom protest

Ironically, some of the finances fueling Russia’s war on Ukraine are coming from the very countries that decry Russia’s invasion. European Union countries continue to purchase Russian raw uranium and nuclear fuel for their nuclear reactors — to the tune of almost $455 million a year if Kazakhstan is included — funds that in turn bolster Russia’s war chest.

The U.S. is even more reliant on Russian uranium than Europe, importing about 14 percent of its uranium and 28 percent of all enrichment services from Russia in 2021 compared to 20 percent and 26 percent for imports and enrichment services, respectively by the EU.

The US and EU countries’ reliance on nuclear power can therefore be directly seen as a contributor to protracted war. Despite widespread sanctions by the EU against Russia, nuclear fuel has never been included even though the European Parliament passed a resolution last April that called for an “immediate” embargo on Russian imports of nuclear fuel. Rosatom currently dominates the international nuclear export market according to the 2022 WNISR.

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