Putin signs law on ratification of ITER agreement

Moscow, July 23 (UNI) President Vladimir Putin has signed the Federal Law on ratification of the agreement on the establishment of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) Organisation, and the agreement on the privileges and immunities of the ITER Organisation, signed in Paris on November 21, 2006, the Kremlin press service said today.

The law was passed by the Sate Duma, the lower house of Russian Parliament, on June 27, 2007 and approved by the Federation Council, the upper house, on July 6, 2007.

The agreements lay the legal groundwork for implementing the ITER project, which is expected to create the research and technical foundations for thermonuclear power engineering, promising virtually inexhaustible fuel supply and high safety and environmental standards.

The ITER was first signed in Paris on November 21, 2006 by the United States, Russia, China, India, Japan, South Korea and the European Union to fund the construction of the experimental reactor.

The agreement provides immunity and privileges for the organisation overseeing the international project's joint implementation.

Mr Putin has also signed a Federal Law on the Russian Nano-Technology Corporation, the Kremlin press service reported today.

The law was adopted by the State Duma on July 4, 2007, and approved by the Federation Council on July 6.

UNI