Nuclear plant project wins support

  • 2006-06-28
  • From wire reports
TALLINN - Christian Poncelet, chairman of the French Senate, hailed the Baltic states' plan to develop a new nuclear power plant, which was announced at a meeting with Estonian politicians last week.

"In a situation where non-renewable sources of energy are becoming ever more scarce and environmental requirements are becoming increasingly strict, more and more attention is paid to nuclear energy as a resource all over the world," Poncelet told Toomas Varek, speaker of Estonia's Parliament, on June 23.

France possesses big experience in the use of nuclear energy and is ready to share it with the Baltic states, Poncelet said.
Varek and the chairman of the French Senate also spoke about green energy, with Poncelet highlighting Estonia's experience in using wood for energy production. Poncelet said he weighed sending a representative to Estonia who would look at Estonia's experience, as this renewable source of energy should be used significantly more widely in France.

As France is a leading manufacturer of water supply systems, the two sides also discussed the deepening problem of water supply all over the world, along with the need for the EU to pay more attention to research and development.
Varek and Poncelet spoke about the growing importance of parliamentary diplomacy, and the speaker of the Riigikogu thanked France for the support it extended to Estonia and the other Baltic states. He specifically mentioned close cooperation in national defense.

"France has taken part in all of the projects of defense assistance to the Baltic states 's we are very grateful for that," Varek was quoted by spokespeople as saying. He pointed out that a liaison officer from France is currently working at the Baltic Defense College in Tartu.