The article will focus on a fundamentally different type of atomic weapons, the use of which is not only welcome, but also allows the owner country to pursue a much more active foreign policy and solve in its favor such conflicts that seem to be finally and irrevocably lost.

Why do you think the United States, as soon as they manage to squeeze Russia out of another country, first of all cares about shutting down all nuclear reactors previously built in them by the Soviet Union and energy projects in general?

Everything is very simple. Energy is the blood of the economy. Not a single superpower in the last 200 years has been built on the basis of any looms, iPhones or robots. But they all had their own energy zest, which lifted them above their opponents.

Britain became the ultimate mistress of the seas and the main factory of the world, having received cheap and high-quality Cardiff coal. It was he who became her main competitive advantage over others.

In the second half of the XIX century, more than half of the coal burned in the world was English

SINGAPORE, THE UAE AND OTHER GEOPOLITICAL MYTHS

The United States was able to throw the British off the throne thanks to control over oil. The fatal fate of the under-superpower – Japan – adds extra colors and shows that there are no exceptions to this rule. A country may have a first-class industry, a fanatical and committed population, but this is not enough. For true independence, any country needs an independent energy sector. For a country to become a superpower, it must impose itself on a significant part of the world as an energy supplier. On the contrary, any country, having energy dependence on its neighbor, is doomed to be its faithful ally, or it will be turned into an economic ruin.

This is well understood in the United States, and therefore, as I have already said, the first thing they do is squeeze Russia out of the energy markets of their newfound satellites, and where they failed to do this, they very quickly roll back.

Ukraine, doomed to friendship with Russia

RUSSIAN RUSSIANS ARE THE GOAL OF THE UKRAINIAN EVENTS – TO DESTROY THE RUSSIANS BY THE HANDS OF THE RUSSIANS THEMSELVES”

Ukraine was supposed to be the main prize for the United States in its campaign to the East, which began 30 years ago. Before the decisive throw and destruction of Russia, it was Ukraine that was destined to play the role of a springboard and supplier of expendable military materials (I mean people who are ready to die in a war with the Russians). During this time, the country was involved in all imaginable and unthinkable anti-Russian projects, the elite was bought, the population was periodically brainwashed. Time after time, Washington made attempts to strengthen itself and invariably rolled back. The last and hopefully final attempt was made in 2013. Kiev and the rest of Ukraine, with the exception of Crimea and several eastern cities of the country, were quickly taken under control. And then, once again, Washington was disappointed.

Let’s leave aside the military campaign and look at the energy aspects of the confrontation. Already at the beginning of the winter of 2014, Ukraine had to be saved. To save it so that it does not collapse ahead of time. That is why in that difficult winter for Ukraine she was helped from Moscow. They helped because they were not ready to return to Kiev yet.

The same thing happened next winter, and I am sure that next winter will once again show that Russia will not let Kiev fall until it is ripe for its absorption. If Moscow had returned Ukraine at the end of 2014, in a few years it would have been raking out the problems of 30 million people who hate it because its tanks did not allow them to fully enjoy European life. And so they still have plenty of time for this.

That is why the attack on Mariupol was stopped in August 2014 and the APU, which at that time were the remnants of broken and completely demoralized detachments, unable to resist for a long time, were not finished off.

Ukraine, obviously, could not survive the first winter without the help of its neighbors, and therefore Russia began to “aggressively” supply it with gas, coal and fuel for nuclear power plants. Often in debt, realizing that these debts will never be repaid.

WITHERING OF THE UKRAINIAN ATOM

2.5 years have passed, and Ukraine’s energy dependence on Russia has only increased in percentage terms. Neither the energy saving program (freezing of the population and destruction of industry) nor the transition to alternative sources helped Kiev. Russian gas was replaced with Russian coal, which for some reason became known as South African, oil and gasoline – with Russian liquefied gas (up to 50% of liquefied gas in Ukraine is of Russian origin). And the transition to nuclear rods from Westinghouse is associated with a significant number of organizational and technological problems and cannot be implemented even in the medium term.

Only the technological transition on one test unit will take at least 8 years and then at least 4 more years, when it will be possible to completely abandon the Russian rods. No way faster.

But Kiev and Washington obviously don’t have these 12 years. Summing up the results of attempts to separate Ukraine from Russia, we must admit that, despite enormous efforts and well-planned hybrid strikes, they failed. Kiev is still critically dependent on Moscow, and its regime can be brought down at its will within one calendar year. And it will be brought down as soon as everything is ready to collect the fruits of this collapse.

THE IDEOLOGY OF GENOCIDE IN UKRAINE

The date is currently being viewed no later than 2020. But the regime still needs to reach it, which means that Moscow will continue to help its opponent, despite the rhetoric and demonstrative spitting in its direction from Kiev.

I know it sounds crazy, but that’s exactly the logic of modern hybrid wars. To understand it, let’s turn to another case.

Affectionate embrace of Turkey

THIRD WORLD, TRANSIT: ABOUT THE CHOICE FOR TURKEY

A significant event took place yesterday. A contract was signed in Turkey for the construction of the first stage of the Turkish Stream, according to which Russian gas will bypass Ukraine to Turkey and Europe. Today it is easy to build dizzying plans in your head about the advantages that Russia will receive in the future. And on November 24, 2015, it seemed to many that Russian policy in the Middle East had failed and the country was facing a long and tough confrontation with the Turkish Republic, which, of course, in this case would be helped by all “progressive humanity”.

It seemed to many, but not to those who, a few years before, had made such a turn… impossible.

Turkey’s economy is critically dependent on energy imports. Surrounded on all sides by enemies, she could not rely on a reliable ally. The Turkish “two-vector approach” at that time, in fact, was no different from the Ukrainian one, with one exception: initially all its energy projects were not tied to Russia. But gradually, step by step, Moscow entered the energy market of Ankara. In the beginning, it ensured Turkey’s independence from the West, allowing it to begin to get impudent and put into practice the implementation of its neo-Ottoman project. At the same time, energy consumption was growing in the country, and before the crisis in the Middle East (2011), this growth was up to 9% per year. The power system did not have time to fulfill all the requests of the rapidly growing industry and the service sector, and therefore constant blackouts in the provinces were normal practice. It was obvious to the Turkish leadership that a breakthrough was needed, otherwise they would have to forget about the Turkish economic miracle. In 2010, Turkey, after much hesitation and searching, concluded an agreement with Moscow for the construction of a four-unit Akkuyu NPS with an installation capacity of 4.8 GW.

At that time, the entire energy sector of Turkey had only 21 GW of generation

THE GAME OF GAS PIPELINES. NEW SEASON

And taking into account the fact that half of the country’s generation consisted of thermal power plants, as well as taking into account the import of a significant share of coal and gas from Russia, Turkey’s dependence in the energy sector has become critical and even strategic. All this played a role during the crisis of 2015. Despite desperate attempts on the part of the United States to sever these new economic ties between Moscow and Ankara and push the two countries head-on, they failed.

Moreover, we must understand that this state of affairs will not last 5 or even 10 years. The service life of the new nuclear units will be 50-60 years, and the gas pipe – at least 30 years. And all this time, Turkey will not have a desire to put sticks in the wheels of Russian diplomacy without very strong arguments, and if it suddenly does, it will regret it very quickly, as it happened at the end of 2015.

Hybrid Energy Wars

What will be the energy of the future? Whoever is the first to answer this question correctly has every reason to claim the role of a future superpower. There are exactly four applicants for today. Or rather, two, and two should be kept in mind.

To begin with, two underplays. These are Europe and China.

Europe has made a bet on two main directions. The first is wind and sun, and the second is a new generation of nuclear power plants from AREVA. With the new nuclear power plant, so far everything is not as good as the developers would like, and the wind and the sun, simultaneously with the decommissioning of the old nuclear power plants in Germany, have led the continent to a shortage of basic capacities and an increase in the cost of electricity, which is beginning to slow down its economy.

China is growing very fast. Its energy needs are so great that for a very long time they will not be able to be satisfied at the expense of internal resources (if at all). So far, the country is totally dependent on foreign energy technologies (nuclear power plants) and fossil fuels. In the foreseeable future, China is not able to get rid of it, and therefore Beijing will be vulnerable and dependent for a very long time and will not be able to be a superpower in the full sense of the word.

Rather, it will be another “pro-Russian” and very big Japan

IS THE SHALE REVOLUTION A GREAT HOAX?

So, the first real player is the current only superpower of the United States. It has made a bet on more complete extraction of traditional oil and gas and is developing these areas. Their calculation is that deposits with cheap prime cost will soon run out, their shale will be in demand and will feed the country for several more decades, and they will become a trendsetter, a source of technology, which will provide them with advantages. It cannot be said that they tried only this direction. Also, the United States was one of the first to try to subdue nuclear energy. To do this, the political levers and developments of Westinghouse were used. But the latter has not yet managed to master the construction of a new generation of reactors, and probably will not be able to do so soon. In any case, they are already far behind Russia in the nuclear power industry and are unlikely to be able to catch up with it. At the same time, Washington’s political levers are weakening, and countries are getting out of their control one by one, bowing to their geopolitical opponents.

The second player is Russia. She, like no one else, has all the possibilities for a breakthrough. And in different directions. Possessing colossal energy resources (from hydro to coal, oil and gas) and having made a qualitative breakthrough in nuclear energy (having overtaken competitors at the same time), it currently provides the world (primarily Eurasia) with a lot of unique energy projects.

Asian Super-ring: creation of a new 15 kW energy cluster in the Far East for looping the energy systems of Russia, China, Japan and South Korea into one. This will not only tie the three leading Asian economies to it, but will also allow them to deploy infrastructure for future projects in their Far East at their expense.

Development of traditional gas and oil fields in the Arctic and the Far East. By doing this, the Russian Federation will be able not only to bind new consumers to itself, but also to prevent the American shale strategy from working (the fight against which is being waged today on all fronts)

And finally, the construction of new nuclear power plants around the world. Today, contracts have been signed and 36 nuclear power units are being built (plus 8 units are being built in Russia). This is about half of the world market (if we count American and European long-term construction projects). Moreover , the geography of construction is remarkable: Turkey, Hungary, Belarus, Iran, India, Vietnam, Bangladesh, China, Finland. Agreements have also been concluded with Egypt and Jordan. There are several more projects on the way.

What does this mean for Russia

The construction of stations and their maintenance are projects for 60-70 years (with the extension of the life of the blocks – up to 100 years). For a hundred years, the country that built the nuclear power plant will be like Ukraine dependent on Russia in the energy sector.

And it will also bring her money. A lot of money.

RUSSIA HAS A CONTROLLING STAKE IN NUCLEAR ENERGY

PUTIN’S NUCLEAR SURPRISE

And all this time, the probability of a conflict between Rosatom’s partner countries and Russia, thanks to the construction of nuclear reactors, will decrease. The example of Turkey today is very indicative. If we look again at the geography of nuclear construction sites, we will see that Russia surrounds itself with countries that are atomically dependent on it, and also builds new nuclear power plants in regions that are critically important to itself. This is the atomic hybrid weapon that can and should be used. And it’s already in use. The current gain in the new nuclear market allows Moscow to pursue an increasingly offensive policy in the world and is an important lever for solving its geopolitical tasks. Today we see this very well in the examples of Ukraine, Turkey, Iran, Hungary and Finland. Tomorrow it will be other countries in Asia and the Middle East, and the day after tomorrow Rosatom will begin to work actively in Africa and South America.

Even the United States has not escaped this fate. Very soon, Russian nuclear fuel will begin to conquer the market of its main political opponent.

Meanwhile, a new ambitious project is coming to the finish line in Russia: the closure of the nuclear cycle, which in the future a couple of decades will allow the industry to develop rapidly without increasing the raw material base, dramatically reduce the problems with spent nuclear fuel and the cost of electricity. And also, if this concept is successfully promoted in the world, it will not only provide the country with huge financial revenues for decades, but will also become another strategic nuclear shield of the country.

The post HYBRID NUCLEAR WEAPONS OF RUSSIA first appeared on Global Policy.

The investigation of the causes of the disaster in Japan involved 6 different commissions: TEPCO (Tokyo electric power company), the Commission of the Cabinet of Ministers, the Commission of Parliament (NAIIC), the Japanese research and investment Fund (RTIF), the Nuclear society of Japan (AESJ), the Commission of independent experts Professor Omae. Their conclusions are incomplete and often contradict each other. The main cause of the disaster is considered an earthquake and tsunami. In 2011, the IAEA hosted a Fact Finding Expert Mission. The findings of the mission were also very General.

According to the official version, the tsunami caused by the tremors disabled the diesel generators of the Fukushima-1 nuclear power plant, located almost on the ocean shore. This led to the shutdown of reactor cooling systems and the subsequent melting of nuclear fuel in the active zones of three of the six reactors with significant radiation leakage. This fact has long been hidden. Only a year later, the President of the Tokyo electric power company (TERCO) admitted to withholding information that as a result of the tsunami that flooded the Fukushima-1 nuclear power plant in March 2011, the active zone of nuclear reactors melted.

Initially, the accident was assigned the 5th level on the international scale of nuclear events INES (“accident with risk to the environment”), but on April 12, 2011 it was upgraded to the highest – 7th (“major accident”, previously assigned only to the 1986 Chernobyl disaster).

According to some estimates, TEPCO, the total emissions of radioactive substances in March 2011 amounted to 900 thousand terabecquerels (1/6 of the Chernobyl figure), most of them had a half-life. Emissions of cesium-137 (half-life about 30 years) made up 40 thousand terabecquerels (1/5 Chernobyl figure).

At present, works on liquidation of consequences of the accident continue on the territory of the station. Japanese nuclear engineers estimate that bringing the facility to a stable, safe condition may take up to 40 years. The nuclear power plant periodically leaks radioactive liquid that flows into the ocean. This is very dangerous for the environment, and the power plant workers are fighting it with the help of 1.5 meter ice wall, which is designed to freeze the earth around all reactor buildings.

Radioactive substances were found in seawater near the power plant. For the first time water samples were taken in the afternoon of March 21 at a distance of 100 meters from the emergency nuclear power plant.

In the sea water were heavy isotopes of cesium and iodine with a small half-life

If the reactors did not explode, but simply depressurized with the release of steam, then the light isotopes of cobalt, which in the decay products are many and long-lived isotopes of strontium, and short-lived cesium and iodine formed after nuclear explosions, live for a relatively short time. This suggests that a powerful underwater nuclear explosion was carried out in the sea. This can be easily seen by taking water samples about 100 km from the shore, and then integrated throughout the water area. The Fukushima accident could not provide such a level of radiation in ocean water. It allowed only to somehow explain the appearance of radionuclides off the coast of Japan. With a high probability of the tsunami was of artificial origin. It is very characteristic that American scientists strongly recommended to fill the reactors with sea water to increase the level of radiation around the station, otherwise it would be difficult to explain the appearance of radionuclides off the coast of Japan in such concentrations. Therefore, Fukushima reactors were filled with water, not boric acid or cadmium powder.

However, full coordination in the dissemination of information was not achieved, as at the same time the media published a map of the distribution of radioactive iodine off the coast of Japan. The maximum concentration was recorded in the zone of maximum amplitude of shocks in the epicenter of tsunami formation, i.e. 100-200 km from the coast. It is contrary to the directions of the currents in the area. Explain how these radionuclides in such quantities were at this point, if the reactors are not depressurized and did not explode, it is absolutely impossible.

SABOTAGE AT NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS “FUKUSHIMA”

That is, instead of filling the reactors with cadmium or filling the reactors with boric acid, the “liquidators” for a long time tried to extinguish the nuclear reaction with water, with the obvious goal of increasing radionuclide emissions into the atmosphere. Within ten days of these procedures, the water in the reactor would have evaporated long ago, and the high thermal conductivity of the melt upon contact with the reactor vessel would reduce the temperature below the melting temperature. The top would form a crust of alloy of zirconium and cadmium, which would reduce the emissions of radionuclides to the atmosphere. Cooling the reactor vessel from the outside would not lead to an increase in radiation. Reactors could not be saved, but they just had to be transferred to a safe state, in a mode in which there is no concentration of uranium due to its melting and flowing down to the bottom of the body.

During the accident, little was said about radioactive iodine-131. Its source could not be the reactor, because this isotope has a half-life of only two weeks. This isotope could only have been the result of a recent explosion. The reactors were shut down almost immediately and did not develop this isotope. In spent fuel, this isotope has long since disintegrated. In addition, there were no large leaks from the reactors. But, nevertheless, in Tokyo the level of radiation was less than in Kiev. And everywhere recorded iodine-131. Therefore, the source of iodine could be only recently resulted (no more than 2-3 weeks) intense nuclear reactions. Japanese iodine has been registered in the States and throughout Europe. That’s how an underwater nuclear explosion was supposed to manifest itself.
The version of a nuclear explosion at sea in the Fukushima area is confirmed by the analysis of seismograms

The first figure shows typical nuclear test and earthquake seismograms

In a nuclear test in a zone where the seismic activity is small, there is one powerful push and weak subsequent, rapidly damped oscillations. As it was, for example, during the test of a nuclear device in India in may 1998. In a typical earthquake, relatively weak tremors are first observed, gradually increasing and reaching maximum amplitude only after some time.

THE MAGNITUDE OF THE EARTHQUAKE IN INDIA AFTER CONDUCTING AN UNDERGROUND NUCLEAR EXPLOSION IN 1998

In a nuclear explosion in a seismically active zone, these two processes overlap. The first powerful jolt from a nuclear explosion followed by continuous oscillations of the earth’s surface. In the case of the Fukushima earthquake, it is significant that the magnitude of the earthquake was 9, which corresponded exactly to the explosion capacity of 100-200 MT TNT.

THE MAGNITUDE OF THE EARTHQUAKE AT FUKUSHIMA

Immediately after the earthquake, Chinese information resources reported that the earthquake in Japan was caused by an unsuccessful secret underground nuclear test conducted by the Japanese, and the accident at the Fukushima-1 nuclear power plant was staged to hide the true causes of the spread of radiation caused by a nuclear explosion at a remote site deep under the ocean floor.

In Russia “nuclear incident” was recorded too

“March 31, at the Institute of nuclear physics of Novosibirsk Akademgorodok for the first time in many years sounded the alarm. Service radiation safety Institute (division of radiation research and radiation safety – Originb) recorded an increase of background radiation on the territory of the Institute. The natural background was exceeded 3.7 times. This was not a danger to humans, but it could indicate some kind of radiation leak from the Institute’s facilities. Work on the accelerator VEPP 2000, VEPP-3 and VEPP-4 was suspended. On-duty personnel from the control rooms of these installations were evacuated. After that, work was carried out to find the source of radiation. What was the surprise of the employees of the service, when it turned out that the source of increasing the background radiation is outside the walls of the Institute! And, as explained by the senior researcher of the Institute, candidate of physical and mathematical Sciences, Viktor Nikolayevich zhilich, radiation emissions as a result of the accelerators are impossible in principle:

“During operation, the radiation background is determined by synchrotron radiation (due to the curvilinear motion of the beam in magnets), bremsstrahlung radiation (showers in the substance from beam losses) and the radiation of resonators. In this case, the radiation occurs only when the accelerator is running. After switching off the residual radiation is not left, except for the place where the conversion of electrons into positrons. Such places are additionally limited to, the time of decay of induced radioactivity 10-15 minutes.”

NUCLEAR EXPLOSION AT FUKUSHIMA WAS A PLANNED

It turned out that the source of radiation is the atmosphere itself – it revealed minor traces of the radioactive isotope cesium-137, which had not previously been recorded. More precisely not recorded since the late 60-ies, when the USSR conducted underground tests of nuclear weapons at the site in Semipalatinsk.

These suspicions were dispelled only after the analysis of data from satellites, which were done in cooperation with the Rhine Institute of environmental problems, University of Cologne. And they gave an even more amazing result – the source of radiation was Japan, the disaster at the Fukushima-1 nuclear power plant. Radioactive clouds with cesium-137, however, did not come from the East, but from the West, making almost a complete revolution around the Earth, passing over the Pacific ocean, the US and Canada, the Atlantic ocean, Europe and the Urals. Of course, the increase in radiation was recorded, and the fact that the us coast was in the area of radioactive emissions of Fukushima was reported in the media. There were also reports from the French Institute for radiation protection and nuclear safety that a Nuclear cloud from Japan had reached Western Europe. However, no one expected that passing over the Atlantic traces of these emissions will reach Siberia.

More detailed analysis of satellite data gave another unexpected result

The source of radiation is not at the Fukushima-1 station, it was located tens of kilometers East of the coast of Japan, in the Pacific ocean. Moreover, it coincided with the epicenter of the most devastating earthquake in recent years, which caused the tsunami, which resulted in numerous casualties and destruction in Japan. About the tsunami should be said separately. With this phenomenon, too, is not all right. Judging by the spread of waves, the source of the tsunami in this case was a point. But this is very rare in underwater earthquakes. As a rule, in an earthquake, a sufficiently large surface of the earth serves as a wave generator, as a result of which the tsunami wave has a very wide front. As a result of this earthquake, the wave front was quite narrow, which indicated its local, almost point source near the coast of Japan.”

Another ” mystery “concerns the funnel formed in the ocean after this”earthquake”. Photos of a huge whirlpool that can carry even powerful ships into the abyss, got to all the news agencies of the world. Why it was formed no precise answer and could not. According to Chinese analysts, most likely, the funnel could have arisen due to the subsidence of the bottom after an underground nuclear explosion.

And another interesting fact, pointed out by the Chinese, concerns the us Navy aircraft carrier Ronald Reagan, which was going to a joint naval exercise with South Korea, which, being in the ocean, 100 kilometers East of the radiation-emitting nuclear power plant, “received a monthly dose of radiation. “While on land people were evacuated within a radius of only 20 kilometers from the nuclear power plant. Everything falls into place, assuming that the focus of the main nuclear radiation was actually much to the East of “Fukushima-1″, far out to sea, according to Chinese sources.”

Thus, almost the entire world community understood that the greatest nuclear disaster in the history of mankind occurred as a result of the planned actions of the leaders of the United States and Japan.

However, the real reasons for this action are still different

Back in 2008, the Swiss physicist Michael Dittmar (Michael Dittmar) conducted a study and found that in the next few years the world’s nuclear power will face a shortage of uranium. The Dittmar predicted shortages by 2013 in such countries-importers of radioactive fuel, like Japan (63 reactor NPP). The us (102 reactors at nuclear power plants) also belong to the importing countries of nuclear fuel. The United States did not have an industry for uranium enrichment. In this regard, they are completely dependent on supplies from Russia.

Each year, approximately 435 reactors with a total capacity of more than 370 GW consume 65,500 tons of uranium worldwide. World production in 2009 amounted to approximately 50.772 tons, which is approximately 78% of consumption.

The market was balanced from secondary sources. Secondary sources include fuel refineries, as well as military arsenals, which are being reduced in the disarmament process. For example, Russia sold the us recycled “stuffing” nuclear warheads missiles. The transfer of Russian uranium to the United States took place in accordance with the agreement of Gor – Chernomyrdin under the HEU-LEU (highly enriched uranium to low enriched) program. At the expense of this program in the United States worked about half of all nuclear reactors. By the time the HEU-LEU programme was terminated (2012-2013), approximately 50 reactors in the United States had to be stopped, mainly in the Eastern part of the United States. Their share in power generation in the Eastern States reaches 40%. Of course, this could lead to a world-class disaster. More than 50 reactors in addition to the US are France and Japan. In France, the share of nuclear power generation reaches 77%. So there is a stop just 50 reactors would eliminate that country. Power generation in Japan is characterized by the fact that there each nuclear reactor is reserved by a thermal unit in case of failure of the reactor. Therefore, the shutdown of the nuclear power plant in Japan leads only to additional costs for fossil fuels, but not to a national disaster.

Therefore, it is obvious that Japan was chosen

The financial situation in Japan has deteriorated sharply since these events. It was allowed to include several nuclear units. There is a question of increasing nuclear generation in Japan. In this regard, the HEU-LEU program was continued until 2017. After that, there will again be a sharp shortage of nuclear fuel.

Doctor of technical Sciences, Professor
Igor Ostretsov

The post THE ACCIDENT AT FUKUSHIMA – IT WAS A TERRORIST ATTACK first appeared on Global Policy.