Lithuania drafts civil defense plan in case of nuclear disaster at Belarusian NPP

September 13, BPN. Lithuania’s interior ministry has prepared a concept for strengthening civil defense, highlighting risks of a nuclear disaster at the Belarusian nuclear power plant (NPP), the ministry’s website says.

The concept sets the direction of civil defense until 2030 and will serve as a guideline for improved cooperation between different agencies and services.

In particular, Lithuanian government has allocated €17.75 million in 2022 for measures to mitigate threats posed by the “unsafe nuclear power plant” in Belarus.

According to the ministry, €91.5 million should be allocated for a five-year period to prepare for a possible accident at the Belarusian NPP. Lithuania’s government approved a plan to prepare for a possible nuclear accident at the Belarusian NPP as a follow-up to the concept.

The Belarusian NPP is located near Astraviec, Hrodna region, some 10 miles away from the Lithuanian border. It has been built with a Russian loan and started generating electricity in November 2020. Vilnius views the plant as unsafe and describes it as a “geopolitical weapon.”