Today, there are 34 countries with operational nuclear power plants—but there are dozens more working on building a nuclear plant of their own. While progress on these projects inevitably ebbs and flows, broadly, momentum seems to be building on the international stage.

That growing momentum manifested last week in Kazakhstan’s announcement that it has officially partnered with Russia on a new nuclear power plant project. Prior to these new agreements, Russia, which borders Kazakhstan to the north, was already engaged in extensive preliminary work on the project.