On July 31 (local time), according to TASS news agency, the Russian government decided not to pay the 2026 membership fee to the Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) under the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
According to a resolution issued by the Russian Government, the amount of 61.3 million rubles (equivalent to nearly 773,500 USD) expected to be used to pay membership fees for the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency will be allocated to Rosatom.
This is the second consecutive year Russia has not fulfilled its financial obligations to this agency. Previously, Moscow stopped paying membership fees from 2025 after its participation status was suspended.
According to TASS, Russia's membership in the OECD Atomic Energy Agency has been suspended since May 2022, shortly after the conflict in Ukraine broke out and Western countries imposed a series of sanctions on Russia. Since then, cooperation between Moscow and many OECD mechanisms has been significantly narrowed.
Russia joined the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency in 2013. This is an organization promoting international cooperation in the field of nuclear energy research, development and application for peaceful purposes. This agency also supports member countries in developing safety standards, sharing management experiences, technology development and research coordination in the nuclear field.
Meanwhile, Rosatom is Russia's national nuclear energy corporation, managing the entire chain of operations of the country's nuclear industry, from uranium mining, nuclear fuel production, operating nuclear power plants to exporting technology and deploying nuclear power projects in many countries.
Rosatom is currently also one of the enterprises playing an important role in Russia's energy and technology development strategy, and participates in many international cooperation projects on reactor construction and nuclear fuel supply.
The new resolution only mentions the adjustment of funding for membership contributions this year and does not mention other changes related to relations between Russia and the OECD Atomic Energy Agency.
