$15m US grant for installing radiation detector at Chittagong Port
The United States would provide a grant assistance of $ 15 million to Bangladesh for installing radiation detection equipment and associated infrastructure at Chittagong Seaport.
Additional Secretary of the Economic Relations Division (ERD) Mohammed Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan and US Ambassador to Bangladesh James F Moriarty signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to this effect on behalf of their respective sides at the ERD yesterday.
“I applaud the government of Bangladesh for their commitment to keeping terrorists and their dangerous cargo away from Bangladesh's shore,” Moriarty told the signing ceremony.
Bangladesh's Ministry of Shipping and other government agencies partnered with the US National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) through the agreement.
Under the MoU, NNSA would provide training to Bangladeshi officials to use this equipment to detect and interdict nuclear and other radioactive materials at the port, Bangladesh's gateway to the world.
The US envoy said the shipping companies would gravitate to this port, confident in the secure and efficient handling of the cargo. “Therefore, (this initiative) not only mitigate terrorist activity, but also encourage trade further enhancing economic development,” he said.
The port is a major cargo container hub in South Asia and a strategic transit point in the international maritime trading system while the United States is the largest destination of exports from Bangladesh.
“Considering Bangladesh's strategic South Asian location, this agreement is a major step forward in preventing nuclear materials from being smuggled through maritime cargo container traffic,” said William Tobey, NNSA deputy administrator for defense nuclear nonproliferation, in a statement issued from Washington.
“NNSA appreciates Bangladesh's willingness to cooperate with us in this critical mission and we look forward to continuing our joint efforts,” he added.
The work is part of the Megaports Initiative, a program under the NNSA's second line of defense program, which aims to strengthen the capability of foreign governments to deter, detect, and interdict illicit trafficking in nuclear and other radioactive materials across international borders and through the global maritime shipping system.
The Megaports Initiative provides radiation detection equipment, training, and technical support to key international seaports to scan cargo containers for nuclear and other radioactive materials.
Around the world, the Megaports Initiative is currently operational in 19 ports and work is underway at over 20 additional ports in Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
Established by Congress in 2000, NNSA is a separately organized agency within the U.S. Department of Energy responsible for enhancing national security through the military application of nuclear science.
NNSA maintains and enhances the safety, security, reliability and performance of the US nuclear weapons stockpile without nuclear testing; works to reduce global danger from weapons of mass destruction; provides the US Navy with safe and effective nuclear propulsion; and responds to nuclear and radiological emergencies in the United States and abroad.
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