The UN secretary-general added that since 1986 the organization has been helping people who live in areas adjacent to the Chernobyl nuclear power plant
UN Secretary-General António Guterres has pointed to the efforts of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine to rehabilitate areas affected by the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear accident. His message was published on Monday on the UN official website.
“This anniversary [the 35th anniversary of the accident] is an occasion to pay tribute to the efforts of the governments of Belarus, the Russian Federation and Ukraine to restore the surrounding areas, and to acknowledge the work of scientists who carefully analysed data on the tragedy, which proved necessary for emergency planning purposes and reduced the risks of emergencies”, – stressed Guterres. He also recalled that human suffering due to the accident “should not be forgotten”.
The Secretary General added that, since 1986, the UN had been helping people who lived in areas adjacent to the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. He noted, in particular, that since 2002 the number of small and medium-sized enterprises operating in places directly affected by the accident had risen from 2,000 to 37,000.
“Thousands of local residents, community leaders and doctors have been trained on possible health hazards and educated on the need to adopt healthy lifestyles”, he stressed.
Guterres also noted the importance of the experience of state authorities working with different public institutions to deal with the consequences of the accident in today’s environment.
“We succeeded in containing the spread of radiation after Chernobyl thanks to the joint efforts of national governments, the scientific community, civil society and others who worked for the common good. All of this has provided us with lessons for the COVID-19 pandemic efforts under way today”, – he concluded.