New Zealand, US help Kazakhs stop nuclear smuggling

WASHINGTON, April 7 (Reuters) - New Zealand will give about $350,000 to prevent nuclear smuggling by setting up radiation monitors on Kazakhstan's borders under an agreement with the United States, the U.S. State Department said on Tuesday.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and New Zealand Foreign Minister Murray McCully signed an agreement for the two nations to work together to secure nuclear and radioactive materials that could be used in a nuclear weapon or a "dirty" radiological bomb.

In a statement, the State Department said the funding for equipment on Kazakhstan's borders follows a deal signed in May 2007 under which New Zealand gave similar aid to help secure Ukraine's borders.

Since the end of the Cold War and, in particular, since the Sept. 11 attacks on New York and Washington, the United States has sought to prevent the proliferation of nuclear materials, technology and expertise to avoid atomic terrorism. (Editing by Alan Elsner)