"No resources have been allocated by the United States, although they assumed an obligation," Zinovy Pak told AFP.

US President George W. Bush in January released some 450 million dollars (412 million euros) to help Russia destroy its most theft-prone stocks of chemical weapons, waiving restrictions imposed by Congress on such aid.

Washington has pledged a total of 900 million dollars to build a chemical disarmament plant in the village of Shchuchye in the southern Urals region, according to British defense officials at a ceremony Tuesday marking the completion of a British-funded water pipeline due to service the new plant.

"Just recently, (US President George W.) Bush made the decision to start construction and to provide resources, but nothing has happened," Pak said.

"Bush and Congress just keep on making decisions," he said.

Yet Pak said he hoped the new plant, which is set to be tasked with destroying around 14,000 tonnes of chemical weapons, would be built by 2006.

Russia has promised to destroy one percent of its 40,000-tonne stock by the end of May, while financing concerns have kept it from undertaking the task of destroying more of the stock, which includes tonnes of sarin and VX nerve gas.

Russia has just one factory working full-time to destroy chemical weapons and Pak said that it had destroyed over 310 tonnes since starting up in mid-December.

Dismantling Russia's stocks of military plutonium and chemical weapons has become a main focus of international efforts to halt proliferation.

Russia's chemical weapons stockpile, which is the largest in the world, is seen as particularly susceptible to theft and sale in the corruption-tainted post-Soviet era.

The country's partners in the Group of Eight pledged 20 billion dollars to deactivate its chemical and nuclear weapons during the G8 summit in Canada last year.

Under the initiative, Washington pledged to come up with 10 billion dollars over 10 years, while the other Group of Seven nations -- Britain, Canada, France, Italy, Germany and Japan -- were asked to find another 10 billion.

The British government has pledged 12 million pounds (17 million euros) over the next three years to help build infrastructure for the plant at Shchuchye.

SPACE.WIRE