Chernobyl Nuclear Accident Congressional Hearings Transcript

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up of the Consequences of the Accident" held in Vienna recently, on April 09, the
following proposals:
a) to set up a Joint Scientific Interstate Center on the problems of
Chernobyl to coordinate efforts of scientists, which would allow for increased
efficiency of their work and cooperation;
b) to arrange financing of the Chernobyl projects on equal and mutually
acceptable terms and for that purpose to set up the Fund of the Planet Protection
which could accumulate a part of profits of the nuclear machine-building and
power engineering industries in order to use these funds for the mitigation of the
consequences of nuclear catastrophes and prevention of further disasters;
c) to create a viable and enforceable international legal framework of the
responsibility of states for causing nuclear damage to other countries which would
specify appropriate guarantees and compensations. The IAEA is already
undertaking practical steps in this direction. We welcome this and call for the
speediest elaboration of such international instruments.
Belarus also considers that the disproportionate share of Chernobyl
sacrifice and damage which Belarus has to sustain warrants international
contribution to sustainable socio-economic and environmental development of the
Republic of Belarus.
step by step
During 10 years already the international community have been realizing
the bitter lessons of one of the most tragic events of the 20th century
when a creation of human mind built for the benefit of people went out of control
and scorched our earth with a radioactive tornado never seen before. And these
lessons should be learnt from for many more years to come.
For those who did not face directly the radiation disaster it may seem that
the problem of Chernobyl has lost its intenseness and topicahty. But not for the
people of Belarus, Russia, the Ukraine.
We will never agree with dehberately understated estimates of the disaster
consequences, which are presented from time to time by certain representatives of
international organizations.
For us this tragedy has a clearly expressed beginning, but unfortunately has
no foreseeable end.