STATEMENT BY U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESMAN RICHARD BOUCHER ON THE 15th ANNIVERSARY OF CHORNOBYL ACCIDENT

For the last 15 years, the world has paused on April 26 to remember the torment that thousands suffered and the horrors that were released on the natural environment when the Number Four Reactor at the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant exploded on this date in 1986. April 26 has become an occasion to reflect on the consequences of that catastrophe, to pay tribute to the heroes and victims of the day, and to resolve that such a disaster will never happen again.

We mark the occasion again this year, on the 15th anniversary of the accident. The permanent closure of the Chornobyl nuclear power plant on December 15 of last year, however, has dramatically changed the very nature of the remembrance. April 26 now serves not only as a reminder of the dark stains that communism left on so many countries but also as a tribute to an independent and sovereign Ukraine and a recognition of the accomplishments possible when nations cooperate.

In the 15 years since the Chornobyl disaster, the United States has been the leading bilateral donor of assistance to Ukraine to ameliorate the effects of the accident and to enhance nuclear safety throughout the country. We have donated more than $500 million in a wide variety of technical assistance, project and structural adjustment loans, and humanitarian aid. We will continue to stand by the people of Ukraine and other countries of the region in their recovery from the legacy of this terrible accident.

On May 20, in commemoration of the 15th anniversary of the disaster, Operation Provide Hope will send another $2 million in humanitarian assistance donated by the Children of Chernobyl organization to hospitals in the affected region.