Belarus may be prohibited to build the nuclear power station

Belarus fears a European anti-nuclear lobby in the Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context, or Espoo Convention, the Ministry of Nature reports.

The European Union countries that have 27 voting members in the Espoo Convention can influence the Committee’s decision on whether to prohibit Belarus to build the nuclear power station, Interfax reports.

”If two-thirds of the countries that have ratified the Espoo Convention vote for a decision, it should be obeyed. We understand that if the European Union countries, and they have 27 out of 42 votes in the Convention, agree on something, we cannot resist it,” head of the Department of the State ecologic expertise of the Belarusian Ministry of Natural Resources Aliaksandar Andreyeu said during a press-conference in Minsk on Friday.

He remarked that Lithuania calls upon Belarus to abolish all previously taken decisions that concern the nuclear power station construction.

According to Andreyeu, it is also possible that the Convention Committee suggests discussing Lithuania’s statement during the Bureau session, and after that the statement will be discussed during a meeting of the parties that have ratified the Espoo Convention.

“Theoretically, in the worst case the same scenario as the one with the argument of Ukraine and Rumania regarding the construction of the canal Bystraya will repeat. Four years ago the Committee placed this issue on the parties’ meeting agenda and decided on prohibition of the construction,” Andreyeu said.

According to him, the argument between Ukraine and Rumania has not been settles yet, but Ukraine hasn’t started the construction.

“However I can’t see any circumstances that would hinder us (in the construction of the nuclear power station – Interfax),” the Ministry of Nature official said.