Ukrainian Military Specialists Train in Nuclear Forensics at U.S. National Labs

21 November, 2024 Illustrative photo of a Ukrainian Armed Forces CBRN specialist. Photo credits: ArmyInform Members of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and officers of the Security Service of Ukraine have completed a nuclear forensics training course in the United States on collecting debris.

This was reported by Defense One on November 20, 2024. It is reported that 10 military servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and 10 members of the Security Service of Ukraine took a week-long course at the Idaho National Laboratory. Experts with many years of experience in training nuclear forensics specialists from Argonne National Laboratory, Kansas City National Security Campus in Albuquerque and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, provided assistance during the training.

Illustrative photo of a Ukrainian Armed Forces CBRN specialist.

Photo credits: ArmyInform

In addition, experts from the Los Alamos National Laboratory, a national security facility in Nevada, and the U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration were also involved. Ukrainian military personnel worked at various facilities of the research and education campus, learned techniques for sweeping areas, collecting dust and debris, placing them in radiation-protected storage casks, and loading packages into vehicles.

The Ukrainian delegation noted that the training was effective and useful. "We would like to thank you for inviting us to this training and for hosting us in your city," said one of the participants.

Illustrative photo of a Ukrainian Armed Forces CBRN specialist. Photo credits: ArmyInform

The instructors from the U.S.

National Laboratories and the NSA, who conducted the training, are members of the U.S. Department of Energy's Forensic Science Task Force. These experts collect samples of nuclear detonation debris for analysis year-round and are available to respond at any time during an emergency.

Nuclear forensics, which includes the science of determining the origin of nuclear materials used in an explosion, is an important element of the United States' deterrence strategy. The ability to trace the source of the material used in a nuclear object allows the United States to reliably prosecute any state involved in an act of nuclear terrorism. Although Ukraine has practiced nuclear forensics previously, as part of its efforts to combat nuclear smuggling.

However, after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Ukrainian officials sought to learn more about how to apply nuclear forensics in a post-explosion scenario.

Militarnyi recently reported that on the morning of November 21, Russia attacked the city of Dnipro with missiles of various types, including an intercontinental ballistic missile.