Luxembourg, Germany ask Belgium to stop two nuclear reactors

Luxembourg joined German and requested Belgium to temporarily stop the operation of two Belgian nuclear reactors as questions about safety of the reactors persisted, reported the Belgian broadcastor RTBF on Sunday.

Belgian reactor Doel 3 and Tihange 2 were shut down in 2012 after the discovery of cracks. But last November, the Belgian Federal Agency for Nuclear Control (FANC) announced restarting the reactors after analysis and consultations with various international experts.

The repeatedly technical problems in the aging Belgian nuclear plants have caused tension with neighboring countries, including Germany.

In January, Germany raised very specific questions about the state of objects in both reactors. The responses of the FANC were "very detailed" but "apparently not sufficient", since those answers did not make Germany satisfied, according to the report.

So far, the Belgian government has not responded to these requests of Germany and Luxembourg.

According to the FANC, there is no reason to worry, as more stringent safety standards are now enforced at both sites.

Source: XINHUA