June 22, 2007 (LPAC)--Russian state-owned nuclear fuel producer TVEL will supply nuclear fuel for the Uzbekistan's research reactor located at the Institute of Nuclear Physics of Uzbekistan, 30 km from Tashkent. The reactor is currently used for research and to produce isotopes for medical purposes. TVEL will deliver nuclear fuel in accordance with the joint Russian-US program, Reduced Enrichment for Research and Test Reactors (RERTR), aimed at converting the highly-enriched uranium (HEU) fuel-run reactors to low-enriched uranium (LEU) reactors. TVEL also plans to deliver nuclear fuel for a research reactor in the nuclear center Dalat, Vietnam, in September under the RERTR program.

In May 2002, President Bush and Russian President Putin issued a joint statement calling for accelerated efforts to reduce stockpiles of weapons-usable nuclear material, and in September 2002, Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham and Russian Minister of Atomic Energy Alexander Rumiantsev issued a joint statement announcing that the joint expert group established by the Presidents' statement had completed its work, and had recommended, among other steps, "accelerated development of LEU fuel for both Soviet designed and United States-designed research reactors." The Uzbek reactor earlier used highly-enriched uranium, or HEU.