Azernews.Az

By Sara Rajabova

A campaign has been launched in the Turkish city of Igdir to collect signatures demanding closure of the obsolete Metsamor nuclear power plant in Armenia.

The plant has been operating for more than 40 years and poses a serious threat to the security of the entire region, Turkish Polis Haber website reported.

The signature collection campaign has been launched by the Turkey-Azerbaijan Society (TAD). The collected signatures will be sent to the US embassy in Ankara for Washington to revise its decision to permit the continuation of Metsamor's operation for another 10 years.

Earlier, Turkish media reported that the Armenian government had decided to extend the operation of the nuclear power plant until 2023.

Turkish Energy Minister Taner Yildiz said Ankara has demanded immediate closure of the Metsamor power plant, which is a threat to all countries in the region, TRT Haber TV channel said Wednesday.

Armenia plans to build a more powerful nuclear power plant under a project that is expected to cost $1 billion. The lifespan of Metsamor expired in 2010, but Armenia and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) experts have agreed to continue the operation of the plant until 2016.

According to environmentalists and scientists from all over the region, seismic activity of the area makes operation of the nuclear power plant in Metsamor extremely risky, even if a reactor of a new type is constructed.

Earlier, Turkish MP Sinan Ogan said the activity of the outdated facility is a great threat to the entire region, and Turkey will therefore appeal to all international organizations, in line with international law, to achieve its closure, Trend news agency reported.

Ogan said the activity of Metsamor NPP is tantamount to the risk of a nuclear explosion, not only for Turkey, but also for all regional countries, including Armenia itself.

The MP said the Turkish parliament has launched a campaign to close Metsamor, but it is too early to talk about results of this endeavor. He also noted the role of NGOs in the campaign and cooperation of non-governmental organizations in the region.

"As a member of the Turkish parliament, I encourage all non-governmental organizations in the region to become more involved in the campaign to close the Metsamor nuclear power plant, as its activities endanger the lives of all the inhabitants of the region," the MP said.

The Metsamor plant, which is located in a seismic zone some 30 kilometers west of the Armenian capital Yerevan, was built in 1970 and began operating in 1976. After the devastating earthquake in Spitak in 1988 it was closed, but in 1995 -- despite international criticism -- the work of the facility was resumed and a second reactor was launched.

Given that a large number of minor earthquakes occurred in this area in the past 10 years, as well as the intensification of seismic activity cited in seismologists' research, in the event of a serious accident at Metsamor, not only Armenia, but also all the countries of the South Caucasus and the Middle East would be severely affected.