Belgium Allocates €2 Million for Nuclear Safety in Ukraine and Approves 18th Support Package
Following a proposal by Defence Minister Ludivine Dedonder, the Belgian Council has approved the 18th support package for Ukraine. The Defence Minister, quoted by the Belgian portal 7sur7, via a press release, stated, 'With this eighteenth package, which will be delivered very soon, we respond to a series of specific requests from the Ukrainian government.'
The new package includes winter clothing, precision weapons with necessary optical equipment, explosive devices for clearing field obstacles, missiles, and communication systems for the already supplied M113 vehicles. Additionally, tankers will be delivered to Ukraine.
Furthermore, the Federal government on Friday decided to allocate €2 million for ensuring nuclear safety in Ukraine through the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Russian forces, occupying Ukraine, regularly target the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant and its surrounding area.
Zaporizhzhia NPP is the largest nuclear power plant in Europe, and the IAEA has repeatedly expressed concern about the situation in this country. Over the past months, the nuclear power plant has experienced several power outages and cooling failures. The International Atomic Energy Agency maintains a constant presence at Ukraine's five largest nuclear power plants and provides protective equipment and technical expertise.
Recall that on the night of December 1 to 2, at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, Europe's largest nuclear power plant still occupied by the Russian army, a complete blackout occurred, posing a threat of a nuclear catastrophe.
The plant switched to powering its own needs from diesel generators, with all 20 diesel generators operating automatically, and 8 of them remained in operation.
However, thanks to the efforts of Ukrainian specialists, communication with the Ukrainian power grid was restored on December 2 at 7 a.m.
The greatest security threat in this situation exists at the 4th power unit, as Russian occupiers had used it in violation of the operational conditions of the NPP's reactor units and kept it in a hot state.
This marks the eighth blackout at Zaporizhzhia NPP caused by Russian occupiers and could have led to a nuclear catastrophe.