CHIRAC MUST ABIDE BY EU DECISION AND STOP NUCLEAR TESTS: GREENPEACE

BRUSSELS, 8 September, 1995--European Union Environment Commissioner Ritt Bjerregaard is due to send a letter to the French Government today demanding France stop its nuclear tests until it can prove the tests are safe.

Under the EURATOM Treaty, the Commission can demand certain health and safety information before nuclear tests are conducted. It has now demanded that France hand over detailed proof that additional health and safety measures have been taken before the French tests continue.

"President Chirac must now prove that he's a 'good European' and abide by the Commission's request to suspend its testing programme," said Louise Gale of Greenpeace's European Unit.

The Commission's decision gives a vital opportunity for other European Governments to meet with France and find a way to help France terminate its testing programme, Greenpeace said.

Speaking from Greenpeace International in Amsterdam, Stephanie Mills, the Rainbow Warrior campaigner just expelled from French Polynesia and Paris, said: "Now the Commission has acted, the world can't wait for lengthy negotiations. European Governments should now secure an urgent political accord with France to halt the tests before ongoing negotiations of a treaty to ban all nuclear tests are finalised."

"France sees fit to ignore the Treaty now the world knows how dangerous nuclear tests are," said Mills. "So far, they've ignored the legal obligations under the Treaty just as they have world public opinion and over 150 governments opposed to their nuclear tests in the South Pacific."

For more information contact: Louise Gale at the Greenpeace European Unit ++32 2 280 1400
Simon Carroll or Stephanie Mills, Greenpeace International political unit ++31 20 523 6288 or 6211
or Desley Mather, Greenpeace Communications ++44 171 833 0600

* Notes to Editors

1. The EURATOM Treaty (the Treaty establishing European Atomic Energy Community) is one of the founding Treaties of the European Community and was signed in 1957.

2. Article 34 EURATOM obliges France to give the European Commission information on the additional health and safety measures in place for "particularly dangerous experiments", and obliges the Commission to give its opinion on these measures before such experiments are carried out, and its prior approval where the effects of such experiments are likely to affect the territories of other Member States, e.g. Pitcairn Island, under UK jurisdiction.

3. Article 35 EURATOM gives the European Commission the right to inspect nuclear facilities to verify the operation and efficiency of their monitoring of radioactivity levels on the air, water and soil, and to ensure compliance with basic health and safety standards to protect the health of workers and general public.

4. Article 148 EURATOM means that if the Commission fails to take a decision on Article 34 EURATOM, a Member State or the European Parliament could take the Commission to the European Court of Justice.

5. The letter, based on a proposal by EU Environment Commissioner Bjerregaard, follows a meeting of all commissioners on Wednesday. Commission President Jacques Santer issued a statement on Wednesday stating that the Commission required information from France before the tests continued.