Germany Reiterates Commitment To Atomic Phaseout Plans - Environment Minister

Germany will go through with its plans to end nuclear power in the country by the end of 2022, Svenja Schulze, the minister for the environment, nature conservation and nuclear safety, said on Thursday, which marked 10 years since the Fukushima nuclear disaster occurred in Japan

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 11th March, 2021) Germany will go through with its plans to end nuclear power in the country by the end of 2022, Svenja Schulze, the minister for the environment, nature conservation and nuclear safety, said on Thursday, which marked 10 years since the Fukushima nuclear disaster occurred in Japan.

Germany first announced its atomic phaseout plans in 2011 in the wake of the Fukushima disaster. Following the decision, the government ordered 17 then-active nuclear plants to be taken off the grid by the end of 2022, eight of them were closed immediately, sparking a series of legal actions.

"Fukushima and Chernobyl clearly proved that what had been previously considered an extremely unlikely disaster could become a reality ... Germany has decided to stop commercial use of nuclear energy by the end of 2022 at the latest," Schulze said at a press conference dedicated to the 10th anniversary of the Fukushima nuclear disaster.

The minister stated that by the end of 2021, three German nuclear plants out of the remaining six will be closed.

"We aim to prevent nuclear risks in Europe and strengthen cooperation ... I respect national nuclear sovereignty, but it is concerning that nuclear plants in European countries become more and more obsolete," the minister noted.

According to the minister, half of Europe never used nuclear energy.

On Thursday, Japan commemorated the anniversary of the tragedy with a moment's silence. On March 11, 2011, an earthquake caused a tsunami that destroyed reactors at the Fukushima nuclear plant. Over 22,200 people died or were reported missing.