Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant CIA Files - Paperless Archives

"tice'€t
Political FaUout From Chemobyl' (continued)
the mishandling of the evacuation has been laid at his
doorstep I:.. ~
.J he was treating Gorbachev's reported
instructions to keep quiet after the accident,
which came in a cable, as insurance against an
attempt by the General Secretary to force him into
retirement c.....
..::1 Shcherbitskiy
had refused to sign an approval for activating
the Chernobyi' nuclear plant at its completion, requestin2
instead that the permit be signed by Moscow.
This maneuvering may have helped Shcherbitskiy
avoid blame for the catastrophe. Gorbachev could
still use the accident as one point in a bill of indictment,
should he decide to move against Shcherbitskiy
or other officials linked to Chernobyl', but this becomes
pr02r~ively less likely as more time passes.
The Costs of Chemobyl'
In terms of domestic public opinion, the regime
clearly paid a price for the accident. Its handling of
the event, at least initially, created a credibility gap
for the leadership and has heightened public apprehension
about the safety of nuclear power, public
health, and the environment. It also gave new impetus"
to environmental groups, highlighting the strong environmentalist
bent of intellectuals who constitute .a
growing lobby. Moscow's callup of mostly non­
Russian reservists to clean up Chernobyl' sparked
some nationalist dissent. Although the economic disruption
is expected to be only short term, the cost of
cleaning up and safety modifications will have a
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