Russia has placed additional security personnel at its chemical weapons storage and destruction sites, Interfax reported Friday (see GSN, June 18).
"Military guards and paramilitary security units with special gear and guard dogs will be in charge of our facilities," said Russian chemical weapons official Nikolai Khlebnikov. "Antiterror forces, armed with automatic weapons, grenade launchers and sniper rifles, have been formed to tighten the defense in line with the General Staff's instruction."
The sites are also to be placed under continuous watch through use of security technology, he said.
Khlebnikov ruled out the possibility of "unauthorized entry ... into the storage facilities."
Russia did not report any security breaches or other emergencies at its chemical weapons storage or treatment sites last year, according to Interfax. The nation holds its remaining chemical arsenal in six facilities across its Bryansk, Kirov, Kurgan, Penza and Udmurtia regions (Interfax I, June 26).
The Kirov region's Maradykovsky destruction site is expected to eliminate more than 230 metric tons of chemical-weapon agents in 2009, the area's government announced.
In total, Russia plans to destroy 6,054 metric tons of chemical warfare material this year, according to the announcement.
"The capacities of chemical arms destruction facilities in the Kirov and Penza regions are expected to be increased in order to achieve this goal. The Maradykovsky facility will dispose of 232.6 [metric tons] of chemical agents, mostly ammunition containing sarin" nerve agent, the government said in its statement.
Russia has already destroyed 12,000 metric tons of the deadly chemicals in its stockpile, and it is obligated to increase that total to 18,000 tons -- 45 percent of its total original stockpile -- by the end of the year, according to Interfax (Interfax II, June 26).