Comecon nuclear power plant performance: a comparison with the USA and Japan

The Chernobyl disaster and the process of glasnost has revealed serious shortcomings in the nuclear power programmes of the Comecon countries. However, a detailed examination of the operating records of reactors in these countries suggests that, far from being uniformly bad, in some respects, standards in the Comecon countries may be at least as high as in the West. Assistance from the West to ensure the safe efficient operation of reactors in these countries should therefore be carefully targeted if it is to prove effective. (author)