News
Publish date: May 23, 1996
News
Yesterday, despite the lousy weather, the atmosphere in La Closerie des Lilas was at fever heat, due to the mobilisation by the establishment of Paris in favour of some very good causes: The "master of ceremonies", Brice Lalonde was surrounded by Pierre Bergé, Gonzague Saint-Bris, André Glucksmann and by an army of politicians representing the entire political landscape, who all attended the dinner in order to show their support in the Nikitin-case…
Being the president of this supporting-committee, Brice Lalonde had invited the daughter of the prisoner, Anna, and her husband, Igor Kudrik, who is also the co-author of the Bellona-report on the Russian Northern Fleet – Sources of radioactive contamination, a report that is distributed in France by the organisation "Génération Ecologie". "We will launch an international campaign after the elections in Russia, when we know who will be the next president of Russia", Igor Kudrik says calmly. But the guests are impatient and want action: "We have to act immediately", Gonzague Saint-Bris replies … André Glucksmann is also full of indignation against the western countries, which are supporting Yeltsin while the military authorities in Moscow are about to create a new "captain Dreyfuss". "It’s as if Russians are less worth than the fish in Muroroa"…
Throughout the past year, our mission at the Bellona Environmental Transparency Center has focused on two key, but intertwined issues—nuclear and radiation safety as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine drags on, and the worldwide influence of Rosatom, Russia’s state nuclear corporation, which itself is actively involved in the war and has participated in the occupation of a Ukrainian nuclear power plant.
At the beginning of the year, reports in the German and Russian press suggested an approximate 70% increase in uranium imports from Russia to Germany in 2024. But does this reflect broader European trends? It does not. Overall, imports of uranium and nuclear fuel from Russia to Western countries actually dropped sharply in 2024. Unlike the situation in Germany, this is already an established trend.
A Lingen, Germany plant could begin producing nuclear fuel in cooperation with a subsidiary of Rosatom, Russia's state nuclear corporation, which is directly involved in the war in Ukraine and occupying the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.
In this news digest, we monitor events that impact the environment in the Russian Arctic. Our focus lies in identifying the factors that contribute to pollution and climate change.