special conditioning of the material
land transport to a Venezuelan port
maritime transfer on a specialized British vessel
final reception at the Savannah River Site nuclear complex
Washington confirmed the extraction and transfer of highly enriched uranium from Venezuela in an operation coordinated with the IAEA and British experts.
special conditioning of the material
land transport to a Venezuelan port
maritime transfer on a specialized British vessel
final reception at the Savannah River Site nuclear complex
Experts from the IAEA technically supervised the entire mission.
The U.S. government described the removal as a "key milestone" in global nuclear security.
Additionally, from the Trump administration, they emphasized that the extraction strengthens international efforts to reduce nuclear proliferation risks.
The operation also occurs amid rising global tensions linked to the nuclear programs of Iran and other actors hostile to the West.
The NNSA reported that since 1996, the United States has removed or eliminated more than:
16,250 pounds of highly enriched uranium
sensitive plutonium
potentially dangerous nuclear material
from dozens of countries around the world.
Washington maintains that such operations are essential to prevent proliferation risks and strengthen international security against emerging nuclear threats.
The United States confirmed that it completed an operation to remove highly enriched uranium from the only nuclear reactor that operated in Venezuela, in a mission coordinated with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), British experts, and Venezuelan authorities.
The radioactive material, originally used for scientific research and nuclear physics, was transported in recent weeks to a secure facility located in South Carolina.
According to the State Department, the uranium came from the RV-1 reactor, located at the Venezuelan Institute for Scientific Research (IVIC), on the outskirts of Caracas.
Washington detailed that the nuclear material had originally been supplied to Venezuela under the historic U.S. program "Atoms for Peace."
The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) specified that it involved approximately:
13.5 kilograms of enriched uranium
material enriched above 20%
fuel considered sensitive from a nuclear perspective
The RV-1 reactor was inaugurated in 1960 and represented the first and only operational nuclear reactor in Venezuela.
Built by General Electric during the civil nuclear program promoted by the United States during the Cold War, the reactor ceased operations in 1991.
Since then, the enriched uranium had remained stored in Venezuelan territory.
The operation took place between late April and early May.
The procedure included: