Buffett giving $50 million to stop nuke spread

Saying weapons of mass destruction are the biggest problem facing mankind, billionaire Warren Buffett on Friday said he was putting up $50 million for a new initiative aimed at preventing the spread of atomic bombs as more countries seek nuclear energy.

His donation was matched by the United States and other governments, bringing the total to $150 million for the plan, which was approved by member states of the U.N. nuclear agency in Vienna on Friday.

"Throughout my lifetime I will be interested in this subject and I will back that interest up with money," Buffett told Reuters. "If the project sounds like a good one and has any real chance of reducing the probabilities of the terrible use of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons, I'm prepared to put up significant money."

"Something can come up that requires a million dollar or something can come up that requires a $100 million," he added.

Proponents say the initiative could help meet growing demand from dozens of countries, some in the conflict-prone Middle East, for technical help in launching nuclear energy programs without increasing the risk of weapons proliferation.

The uranium needed as fuel for nuclear reactors can also be enriched to high levels and provide material for bombs, making the technology especially sensitive.

Approval of the plan was a priority for the Obama administration, which has set itself an ambitious nuclear disarmament agenda and has a declared vision of eventually ridding the world of atomic weapons.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCBP leaders cut out of Trump ad buy decision

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAmerican passenger drafted goodbye texts to her family as Flydubai plane plummeted

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation pushes embattled New York prosecutor into national spotlight

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

It comes at a time when the new START nuclear arms reduction treaty with Russia faces an uncertain future in the U.S. Senate.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCBP leaders cut out of Trump ad buy decision

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAmerican passenger drafted goodbye texts to her family as Flydubai plane plummeted

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation pushes embattled New York prosecutor into national spotlight

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

Buffett, one of President Barack Obama's closest defenders in the business community, said the pact was "enormously important" and he believed it would be ratified.

Asked about Obama's vision of a world free of nuclear arms, he said: "It has to be achievable over a very long period of time ... it is the number one problem of mankind."

"We really have to prevent weapons of tremendous potential harm being used by these people who have evil intentions," he added. "This is not a problem that we can wish away."

The chairman and chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., Buffett unexpectedly announced in 2006 he would give away the bulk of his fortune, worth about $40 billion, mostly to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.