Beginnings of The Program
Soviet physicist Georgy Flyorov noticed that in spite of the progress German, British and American physicists had made in research into uranium fission, scientific journals had ceased publishing papers on the topic. Flyorov deduced that this meant such research had been classified in the countries concerned, and wrote to Stalin in April 1942. He cited the lack of response he had himself encountered trying to generate interest in similar research, and warned Stalin of the consequences of the development of atomic weapons: "...the results will be so overriding it won't be necessary to determine who is to blame for the fact that this work has been neglected in our country". By September 1942, Stalin, who had already been presented with evidence of the Western nuclear programs, decided to launch a Soviet program to develop an atomic bomb headed by Igor Kurchatov.
In the wake of the atomic bombing of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and Japan's surrender, Stalin took the decision to accelerate research and development, expanding the development military nuclear reactors and research facilities all over the country.
Read more about this topic: Soviet Atomic Bomb Project
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