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Thursday, 25.04.2024, 14:53
Lithuanian government gives cautious opinion of Astravyets NPP tests
"They have been pledging to conduct the tests for six years and the
pledge is still running. New pledges are made before every meeting of
committees of the Espoo Convention, therefore, we should be cautious here. Of
course, we demand that this is done in accordance to methodology of the
European Union. We will see, if this is done but I want to underline that this
is not the only request or demand," Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius told BNS.
In his words, Lithuania continues criticizing the selection of the
construction site, consultations and coordination with neighbors. The minister
said the nuclear plant is being built some 50 km from Lithuania's capital
Vilnius without taking account of the population density.
Energy Vice-Minister Simonas Satunas
says that the stress tests do not solve the key issues of the power plant.
"Lithuania's position on the so-called stress tests remains the same –
they should be conducted in full extent and they should be implemented in full
extent, i.e., in accordance to European methodology. At the same time, we are
noting that this does not solve the key problem – the location of the
Astravyets NPP site and the selection of the site, as their selection was wrong
and in violation of international requirements," Satunas told BNS.
Belarus has pledged to provide in October the European Commission with a
report of Astravyets NPP stress tests conducted by Belarusian nuclear and
radiation safety regulator Gosatomnadzor. Belarus maintains the tests were
conducted back in December of 2016.
The Belarusian plans of submitting the tests results to the EC were
applauded by Germany's Ambassador to Belarus Peter Dettmar.
Asked whether the support of foreign diplomats to the stress tests
undermined Lithuania's positions, Foreign Minister Linkevicius said he was
cautious about reporting by Interfax news agency. In his words, officials
directly in charge of Astravyets safety issues are fully aware of the situation
and Lithuanian fears in this respect.
"Those who are directly responsible, for instance, Commissioner Maros Sefcovic, are well informed, I
have met him on more than one or two occasions, he is familiar with our fears
and the issues we raise. I met with EC First Vice-President Frans Timmermans a
few days ago, we discussed this in great detail, he is well informed. I believe
that those who are interested are well informed," said Linkevicius.
Lithuania is the main critic of the Astravyets NPP, pledging to block
imports of electricity from the utility and thus burden the construction
project.
Some 65% Lithuania's residents see Astravyets as a national security
threat, an opinion poll conducted by RAIT
company for BNS has shown.