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Metsamor nuclear power station – a permanent danger to the South Caucasus and Europe

Motion for a resolution | Doc. 12925 | 04 May 2012

Signatories:
Ms Ganira PASHAYEVA, Azerbaijan, EDG ; Mr Aydin ABBASOV, Azerbaijan, SOC ; Ms Pelin Gündeş BAKIR, Turkey, EDG ; Mr Mevlüt ÇAVUŞOĞLU, Turkey, EDG ; Mr Arcadio DÍAZ TEJERA, Spain, SOC ; Mr Şaban DİŞLİ, Turkey, EPP/CD ; Mr Tuur ELZINGA, Netherlands, UEL ; Ms Tülin ERKAL KARA, Turkey, EPP/CD ; Ms Sevinj FATALIYEVA, Azerbaijan, EDG ; Ms Sahiba GAFAROVA, Azerbaijan, EDG ; Mr Sabir HAJIYEV, Azerbaijan, SOC ; Mr Andrej HUNKO, Germany, UEL ; Mr Rafael HUSEYNOV, Azerbaijan, ALDE ; Mr Burhan KAYATÜRK, Turkey, EPP/CD ; Mr Haluk KOÇ, Turkey, SOC ; Mr Fazil MUSTAFA, Azerbaijan, ALDE ; Ms Elsa PAPADIMITRIOU, Greece, EPP/CD ; Mr Rovshan RZAYEV, Azerbaijan, EPP/CD ; Mr Samad SEYIDOV, Azerbaijan, EDG ; Mr Elkhan SULEYMANOV, Azerbaijan, EPP/CD ; Mr Tuğrul TÜRKEŞ, Turkey, EDG ; Mr Ahmet Kutalmiş TÜRKEŞ, Turkey, EDG
Thesaurus

Metsamor nuclear power station, situated in Armenia, is one of the great dangers to the South Caucasus and Europe. The question of the immediate shutdown of Metsamor, which is located in a seismically active zone, has repeatedly been raised in the Parliamentary Assembly.

Should a serious incident occur, the Government of Azerbaijan would have less than 24 hours to evacuate the population. In addition, an incident at Metsamor, which is located in an area with an 11-intensity earthquake risk, would cause widespread destruction of human lives over much of the South Caucasus in a short time. Armenia rejected the European Union’s call for Metsamor to be shut down by 2011 at the latest and its offer of 100 million euros to help meet the country’s energy needs. On the contrary, the Yerevan authorities decided that the power station, built in 1974, would resume operations in 1995.

Metsamor power station is a great danger not only for Azerbaijan but also for other countries in the region; it is located 16 kms from the border with Turkey, 60 kms from the border with the Islamic Republic of Iran and 120 kms from the borders with Azerbaijan and Georgia.

For the sake of the present and future safety of the region and of Europe, and considering that Metsamor nuclear power station does not meet modern siting constraints and technical standards, the Assembly should:

  • appoint a rapporteur to conduct an urgent and detailed investigation into this issue;
  • set up a fact-finding team of parliamentarians with appropriate specialist knowledge;
  • hold on an urgent basis a colloquy among recognised experts on the issue.