The select ministerial committee (kern) has decided to give up building new gas-fired power stations in addition to the two already planned, considering that the extension of the Doel 4 and Tihange 3 nuclear reactors will indeed be effective for the winter of 2026, when that their manager, Engie, only says it is possible for 2027 only, Le Soir and L’Echo report on Friday.
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nuclear
America throws the ball in Iran’s court on reviving the nuclear deal
written by Alexandra Hartman Editor-in-Chief
The United States has announced that it is now up to Iran to make “difficult” decisions in order to revive the 2015 nuclear deal.
State Department spokesman Ned Price said that following nearly a year of negotiations, “the responsibility lies with Tehran to make decisions that it may consider difficult. There are a number of difficult issues that we are trying to find solutions to.”
“An agreement of this kind is neither imminent nor certain, which is exactly why we are preparing during the year for any eventuality,” Price noted. “There are a number of difficult issues that we are still trying to resolve.”
Without giving further details, Price said that Washington has long been discussing “alternatives” with its partners in the Middle East and Europe, stressing US President Joe Biden’s commitment to preventing Iran from acquiring a nuclear bomb, whether with or without an agreement with Tehran.
This statement represents a clear change in the tone of the United States.
In early March, following 11 months of complex negotiations, it seemed almost imminent to reach an agreement in Vienna between the great powers and Iran to revive this agreement, which is supposed to prevent Iran from obtaining the atomic bomb.
However, the negotiations were hampered by new conditions set by Russia in connection with the sanctions imposed by the West in response to its operation in Ukraine. As soon as the Russian demands were achieved, this obstacle was removed, and the road seemed almost straight to reach an agreement to the extent that Washington said less than a week ago that it was “close” to achieving a breakthrough. .
The negotiators hope to conclude the Vienna negotiations following the Nowruz holiday, the Persian New Year celebrated by Iranians on Sunday.
The administration of former US President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from the agreement in 2018, but Democratic President Joe Biden, who succeeded Trump in 2020, his desire to return to the agreement, provided that Tehran returns to comply with all the commitments it retracted in the wake of Washington’s withdrawal from it.
In April 2021 in Vienna, the two sides began indirect negotiations to reactivate the agreement, with the participation of the parties who are still affiliated with it (France, Britain, Germany, Russia and China).
Russia has considered using its nuclear weapons in Ukraine in the face of an “existential threat”
written by Alexandra Hartman Editor-in-Chief
In a message loaded with symbolism, which is focused on lowering pressure but at the same time fueling global alert, Russia clarified on Tuesday that it will only use nuclear weapons in Ukraine if it faces an “existential threat.”
To leave no doubt that it is a direct instruction from Valdimir Putin, one of his highest officials was delegated to clarify.
Indeed, Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov told CNN International that “we have an internal security doctrine, and it is public, you can read in it all the reasons for the use of nuclear weapons.”
And immediately followingwards he launched the phrase that has the world on alert once more: “If it is an existential threat to our country, then it can be used (the nuclear arsenal) in accordance with our doctrine.”
The network got that answer following asking the Kremlin spokesman if he was “convinced” that President Putin – a person very close to him – would not use nuclear weapons in Ukraine.
A few days following the Russian invasion of Ukraine –which began on February 24–, while the Russian army encountered resistance from Ukrainian forces, Putin put all components of the nuclear deterrent force on alert, raising a chorus of complaints international.
Fears are due to the possibility of Moscow resorting to small nuclear weapons.
“We monitor this as best we can on a daily basis. We haven’t seen anything that would lead us to conclude that we should change our strategic deterrence posture,” Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said Tuesday.
According to the Pentagon, the Ukrainian army, which maintains control of the main urban centers, has recently regained the conditions to carry out military counteroffensives that are already allowing it to recover ground, especially in the south of the country.
But, contrary to the US position, Peskov warned that the operations of the Russian forces “proceed strictly as planned”.
According to the spokesman, the Russian army continues to seek to “eliminate Ukraine’s military potential”, one of the “main objectives of the operation” which, in reality, ended up being a premeditated invasion of a sovereign nation.
To do this, the Russian forces “only target military targets and objects on the territory of Ukraine, not civilians,” said the Russian spokesman, despite accusations widely documented and taken up by various governments, in particular the British and the American, of attacks once morest civilians.
An “occupation” of Ukraine is not among the Kremlin’s goals, he added.
Military experts believe that the Russian army suffers from logistical and communication problems and therefore would not have enough ammunition and supplies to get through another three days of war.
Zelensky and the Pope spoke
In his second call to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Pope Francis reinforced what that country has called the “support” of the top leader of the Catholic Church for the end of the war.
According to the Ukrainian ambassador to the Holy See, Andrii Yuash, both authorities “had a promising conversation. The pope said that he is praying and doing everything possible for the end of the war and Zelensky reiterated that his Holiness is the most awaited guest in Ukraine”.
The first conversation, which took place on February 26 when the war was just beginning, also took place in diplomatic terms and with the Pope’s call to travel in peace.
But those have not been the only gestures of the pontiff towards Ukraine. This Saturday, the Pope decided to appear at the Vatican pediatric hospital in Rome to visit Ukrainian children who have fled their country following the Russian invasion.
For now, the UN refugee agency raised 3.5 million Ukrainian refugees in the world, and the number continues to grow by thousands every day.
after twelve years of waiting, the EPR Olkiluoto-3 nuclear reactor commissioned
written by Alexandra Hartman Editor-in-Chief
Published on :
As a symbol of the return to grace of nuclear power in Europe, the new reactor inaugurated this Saturday, March 12 will allow Finland to strengthen its electrical independence and lower the price of the kilowatt-hour.
With our correspondent in Stockholm, Frederic False
Like its French twin of Flamanvillewhich is still not in service, the EPR (Evolutionary Power Reactor) Finnish has known many vicissitudes. After twelve years of delay, this new generation reactor, using French technology, has finally been connected to the electricity grid and should eventually supply 14% of the country’s electricity.
For Finland, it’s a day that will count. The only Nordic country to experience a large energy deficit, it will be able to lower the price of its electricity, limit its imports from Sweden and Norway, and above all reduce its dependence on Russia. Another advantage: Finland will also reduce its CO2 emissions. It is for this reason that environmentalists – a rarity in Europe – are not up once morest this EPR.
« In our new statement of principles, we don’t mention nuclear at all, we just say that we want the development of any technology that is low-carbon and pro-environmental. “, explains Veli Liikanen, secretary general of the Finnish environmental party Green League.
► To read also: Finland starts its EPR nuclear reactor 12 years late
This commissioning also challenges Europe, which is wondering regarding its energy dependence and climate change. This EPR, baptized Olkiluoto-3, when it will run at full speed next July, will then be the most powerful nuclear reactor in Europe. The first to be inaugurated on the continent, for 15 years.
► To read also: Nuclear energy in eight questions