The Russian and Ukrainian Presidents, Dmitry Medvedev and Victor Yanukovych, have laid flowers at the memorial to victims of the Chernobyl accident, near the nuclear power plant, ITAR-TASS reports.
The memorial is made from red granite and contains 28 names of victims who died in 1986. The memorial has a sculpture of Prometheus, a bell and a cross.
Yanukovych said that 25 years have passed, yet the problem remains topical. Fukushima-1 is an example.
Medvedev said that Chernobyl became one of the biggest accidents of the 20th century. Many were saved by the efforts of specialists. The accident in Japan shows that new measures are necessary. Medvedev said that he had filed a proposal to develop nuclear energy and prevent such accidents.
In his letter Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan said that his country put efforts into clearing up the accident, News Armenia reports.
The accident happened at the 4th block of the nuclear reactor on April 26, 1986, at 01.24 hours. 30 million people in 19 Russian regions on a territory of 56,000 square km were affected by the release of cesium-137. 3 million people lived on the territory covered in cesium.
Over 100,000 civilians were involved in clearing up the damage. A total of 250,000 workers visited the 30 km zone. 116,000 people in 188 villages were evacuated in 1986. The nuclear power plant was fully shut down on December 15, 2000. Hundreds of thousands of people were affected by radiation. Thousands of Azerbaijani citizens were affected.
Azerbaijan adopted a law to support victims of the Chernobyl accident. They were provided with benefits, 1news.az reports.
