Japan crisis deepens Europe's nuke rift

BRUSSELS: Japan's atomic crisis widened a gulf in Europe between the old critics calling for a world free of nuclear weapons and advocates who see it as a vital source of energy for decades to come.

Shaken by the images of Japanese workers scrambling to avoid another Chernobyl, the European Union decided to test the capacity of 143 on the continent of nuclear reactors from earthquakes, floods and terrorist attacks.

Energy ministers of the EU will now discuss the details of these "stress tests" that called for an extraordinary meeting in Brussels on Monday that was convened to assess the impact of events in Japan on the block of 27 nations.

Critics of nuclear energy say it is not enough.

Sigmar Gabriel, head of Germany Social Democratic opposition, predicted "the end of the atomic age," as he announced plans supported by the Chancellor of Austria free of nuclear weapons in order to gather million signatures to demand the EU legislation in this area.

Under a new law approved by Parliament in December, citizens can force the European Commission to draft legislation, if enough signatures are collected.

The incident at No. 1 plant in Fukushima, caused by an earthquake and tsunami, has raised public fears about nuclear energy in Germany with 100,000 protesters demanding the closure of nuclear plants in this country.

The emergency situation in Japan has brought bad memories in Europe of a disaster that hit close to home, nuclear fusion Chernobyl in the Soviet Union in 1986. (AFP)