The Megatons-to-Megawatts program helped create appropriate conditions for future joint efforts in the nuclear energy sector, according to Sergei Kiriyenko, the director of Rosatom, the Russian state atomic energy corporation. Mr. Kiriyenko noted that in the course of the program’s two-decade-long history, various political, commercial, and technical problems came up that could have at any one instance lead to the project’s termination. At the same time, Rosatom’s administrator stated that the fact the program continued for such a long time reflected the tenacity of the two sides in working through the differences that came up.
Specifically, according to Mr. Kiriyenko, the Megatons-to-Megawatts program demonstrated that Russia and the United States can accomplish big tasks together, regardless of how difficult they are. The program also gave Rosatom and its American counterpart agency a steady platform of mutual trust, from which to launch further projects. In the course of December, Sergei Kiriyenko conducted discussions as to what these new projects could be with his American colleague Ernest Moniz, the United States Secretary of Energy.