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Lithuania still concerned about nuclear power plant project

Belarus' report assessing the possible environmental impact of the country’s nuclear power plant has left some questions unanswered, Lithuania's foreign ministry said on Monday.

Vilnius denied a claim by a top Belarusian government expert who said earlier this month that the Lithuanian government had dropped all of its objections to the report.

Yakaw Kenihsberh, head of the National Commission on Radiation Protection under the Council of Ministers, said on November 24 that all differences between the two countries on the yet-to-be-built plant's environmental safety had been resolved during the latest round of talks in Minsk. "We replied to all questions that concerned the Lithuanian side and all contradictions were ironed out," he said.

Mr. Kenihsberh added that Lithuania was planning to build a nuclear plant of its own close to the Belarusian border.

But in its statement the Lithuanian foreign office warned that Vilnius was still concerned about some environmental aspects of the project and expected more discussions on the subject.

According to the statement, "Lithuania has not received answers to presented questions about the design of the Belarusian nuclear power plant, about why the Astravets site, which is just 50 kilometers away from the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius, has been selected for the project."

The Lithuanian ministry said that the Belarusian government had failed to provide timely and full information regarding the project, organize public discussions and secure other procedures required by the UN Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context. //BelaPAN