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FOLLOWING THE MEETING WITH THOMAS KLESTIL, PRESIDENT OF AUSTRIA
Statement by the President of the Republic of Slovenia, Milan Kucan
Vienna (Austria), 22 July 1999
“The nuclear power station in Krıko is constructed in accordance with all safety standards known and required by the International Atomic Energy Agency based in Vienna. This station has technology supplied by the American company Westinghouse, which also provides ongoing checks. In this the internal Slovene standards are stricter than the standards I spoke about and which are checked not only by the IAEA in Vienna, but also by Slovenia’s Jozef Stefan atomic institute. The geological and seismic safety of this station is built to a high standard, and there are no nuclear power stations in Western Europe built to a higher standard. Finally, a decommissioning programme has been adopted for the station, and the means necessary for closure of the facility are being gathered in a special fund. No power station – not in Switzerland, France or Germany – has such a programme. It would be right for us also to view the facility in this context,” said President Kucan in his statement following the meeting with President Klestil.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am here today in Vienna on other business, but the Federal President has been kind enough to find time for a friendly talk. Unfortunately, such talks cannot simply be a pleasant chat about the holidays, but also about issues that affect the two countries, about south-east Europe and bilateral relations.
The Federal President and I are investing great hope in the fulfilment of the Stability Pact and the Sarajevo conference. We are both convinced that the governments of our two countries will do everything to ensure that these hopes will indeed be fulfilled. Very careful consideration must be given to the right timing for elections, which should express the democratic will of the inhabitants of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, especially Serbia. It will also be necessary at the earliest opportunity to remove the barrier that calls itself a law and which limits media freedom in Serbia.
With regard to bilateral relations, the Federal President confirmed the frequently stated Austrian position that bilateral questions will not be a reason for Austria placing conditions upon Slovenia’s accession to the European Union.
We spoke about a cultural agreement. We are both convinced that it will be beneficial for both countries and also for settling European relations if the cultural agreement were concluded as soon as possible, and if the points where there are still differences of opinion are removed.
As regards the nuclear power station in Krıko, I entirely understand that Austria wishes to be – and not just Austria itself, but its surroundings – a nuclear free zone. Slovenia also wishes to be able to move to such a position. There exists one difference, however, and that is the Krsko nuclear power station. I do not wish this to become an issue not only in the pre-election period in Austria, but also an issue that might disrupt our relations. In this connection I would like to state several things. Firstly, the nuclear power station in Krıko is constructed in accordance with all the safety standards known and required by the International Atomic Energy Agency based in Vienna. Secondly, this station has technology supplied by the American company Westinghouse, which also provides ongoing checks. Thirdly, the internal Slovene standards are stricter than the standards I spoke about and which are checked not only by the IAEA in Vienna, but also by Slovenia’s Jozef Stefan atomic institute. Fourthly, the geological and seismic safety of this station is built to a high standard, and there are no nuclear power stations in Western Europe built to a higher standard. Finally, a decommissioning programme has been adopted for the station, and the means necessary for closure of the facility are being gathered in a special fund. No power station – not in Switzerland, France or Germany – has such a programme. It would be right for us also to view the facility in this context. There remains one problem, the fact that the facility is co-owned by Slovenia and Croatia, and Croatia is clearly studying the possibility of selling its share.
Aside from these discussions, the Federal President and I wished each other pleasant holidays and a good rest.
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