ABSTRACT
This chapter provides some critical background information regarding decentralization of Russia's nuclear complex and its relevance to both Department of Defense (DOD) and Department of Energy (DOE) programs. It then analyzes the impact of regional factors specifically on the DOD's Cooperative Threat Reduction (CTR) program, by evaluating the influence of regional and local governmental and nongovernmental entities on project implementation and assessing how DOD has adapted its programs to deal with these issues. The chapter examines DOE's experience in Russia's regions and how has it differed from that of DOD. The experiences of the State Department and other lesser US programs in implementing nonproliferation assistance projects are not considered, due to limits of space and a desire to focus on the major trends in US assistance programs. The experience of US government agencies in implementing nonproliferation assistance projects in Russia has shown the great extent to which regional authorities and other regional actors can influence the course of particular projects.
