Chornobyl on agenda of meeting between Ukraine and Group of Seven (10/12/97)

Chornobyl on agenda of meeting between Ukraine and Group of Seven

Eastern Economist

KYIV - The regular meeting between delegations of Ukraine and the G-7 took place in Kyiv on October 7 to discuss problems related to the shutdown of the Chornobyl nuclear power station. The main issue on the agenda will be preparations for the international conference in New York whose aim will be to attract private funds to finance work on the Chornobyl sarcophagus and Shelter Implementation Plan.

Yurii Kostenko, minister of environmental protection and nuclear safety, revealed on October 6 that Ukraine requires $750 million (U.S.) to transform the Chornobyl plant into an ecologically safe system. Mr. Kostenko confirmed that G-7 countries will contribute $300 million and that Ukraine will provide appropriate technical and organizational support for the set of forthcoming projects.

It is hoped that the remaining sum will be raised at a special conference to take place in November in New York. Ukraine is ready to start work on the station from the end of 1997. Work is expected to take seven years and will focus on extracting the remnants of nuclear fuel still lying underneath the sarcophagus.

Ukraine signed three documents at the 41st session of the International Atomic Energy Agency on September 29-October 4. The documents covered the safe handling of nuclear waste and fuel, additions to a convention on nuclear safety and a protocol on the level of fines imposed for releasing nuclear waste.

Mr. Kostenko said that "the signing of these documents shows that the government understands its responsibilities and the Cabinet is controlling the situation in relation to the production of atomic energy in Ukraine."

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