[en] Common approaches and common safety standards, partly with different solutions, have developed in the Western industrialized countries, with the broad acceptance of light water reactor technology providing a sound technical basis. In addition, a safety philosophy has become established in individual countries which, by continuous further development and through the inclusion of current findings and experiences, though practiced differently in each case, helps to advance safety in the future, and supports the process of turning safety approaches into dynamic propositions. In principle, the concepts and standards underlying safety are very similar in the industrialized countries, but differ considerably in matters of detail as a consequence of different technical and industrial cultures. Given the international importance of the safety of nuclear installations, there is a keen interest in unifying standards at a high level. At present, chances are good to achieve a broad consensus. Europe as a region with the largest number of nuclear power plants in operation should play an important role in this effort and should use this opportunity, because of its traditional high safety-mindedness, by introducing best practices. (orig.)