Contemporary Developments in Nuclear Energy Law

In recent years there has been much concern about the safety of nuclear installations in Central and Eastern European countries (CEEC) and the Newly Independent States (NIS). The enhancement of such safety has been a focal point in the discussions on enlargement of international organizations such as the EU, OECD and NATO. To provide these states with nuclear safety-related assistance, several funds were set up to finance technical and legal assistance on a multilateral as well as bilateral basis. However, the release of such money has been hampered by the absence of complete legal protection against potentially huge liability claims against the governments and companies that provide the assistance. The problem of nuclear liability constitutes a serious impediment to the performance of safety-related assistance work in the CEEC/NIS. In turn, this threatens the overall protection of the international community against nuclear hazards. This impasse is the main focus of this book, which provides an overview of the latest legislative developments concerning nuclear safety and liability in the CEEC/NIS, as well as an analysis of related international and national legislative, financial and technical initiatives. The objective is to bring together the various approaches of academic, governmental, industrial and CEEC/NIS expertise.