As Belarus gears up to launch Astravyets Nuclear Power Plant, Lithuania is trying to ensure rapid response to any possible accident, according to the country’s Environment Minister Kęstutis Mažeika.
The country is establishing a system to monitor radiation and any leakages, as well as "measures to ensure rapid notification of people, decision-making and the maximum shortening of the response time”, he told Žinių Radijas radio on Thursday.
Read more: ‘We're not where we want to be’. EC president vows to continue discussions on Belarus NPP
Mažeika also spoke about ongoing cooperation and exchange of information with competent authorities in Belarus.
“We have information exchanges among the specialists and coordination of relevant mechanisms at the agency level,” he said. “Also, we seek to have radiation sensors installed not just on our border but also at the nuclear facility, which would let us shorten the response time even further as well as [to] monitor the situation.”
The Lithuanian government says the Astravyets plant, located some 50 kilometers from Vilnius, fails to meet international safety standards, an allegation that Minsk denies.
Since 2016, Lithuania has been trying to convince its neighbours and the European Commission to block access for Astravyets electricity to the EU market, but has achieved limited results so far.
Talks with Latvia and Estonia on a joint boycott of Belarusian nuclear energy are still ongoing.
Read more: 'No common ground' in Baltics, as Latvia fails to back Lithuania over Belarusian nuclear plant
Newsletter
Every Friday morning.
