§ Mr. SheermanTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has made to the CIS countries regarding the safety of their nuclear power installations. [7718]
§ Sir Nicholas BonsorSince the 1992 G7 Munich summit, we have been active in promoting improved levels of nuclear safety throughout the former Soviet Union and in central and eastern Europe. Together with our G7 and EU partners, we take full opportunity of meetings with Ministers and officials from these countries to encourage nuclear safety improvements. The closure of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant by the year 2000 was one of the issues which my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister and my right hon. and learned Friend the Foreign Secretary discussed with President Kuchma during his recent visit to London. The recently agreed memorandum of understanding between the G7 and Ukraine on the closure of Chernobyl is an example of the successful 53W international efforts in this area. Preparations are now under way for the G8 nuclear safety summit in Moscow in April. This will focus on a range of nuclear safety and security issues.