30th anniversary of Semipalatinsk test site closure marked in Ypres, Belgium
The ceremony of laying wreaths at the Kazakh monument to the victims of nuclear tests, which was handed over to the city of Ypres on behalf of Kazakhstan in 2010, was attended by members of the City Council and the «Peace Fund» of the city of Ypres, deputies of the Belgian Federal Parliament, representatives of the Peace Research and Information Group and security of Belgium, Honorary Consul of Kazakhstan in Walloon Brabant, as well as Kazakh and Belgian media, the Kazakh MFA’s press service reports.
The Ambassador of Kazakhstan noted that August 29 is a historic date not only for Kazakhstan, but also for the entire world community and the global anti-nuclear movement. 30 years ago, by the Decree of the First President - ElbasyMr. Nursultan Nazarbayev, Kazakhstan voluntarily renounced the world’s 4th nuclear potential.
Today, achieving a world free of nuclear weapons remains one of the main priorities for Kazakhstan, Mr. Baimukhan emphasized. In this regard, N.Nazarbayev’s initiative to create a Global Alliance of Leaders for Nuclear Security and a World Free of Nuclear Weapons becomes even more urgent.
It was also noted that the closure of the Semipalatinsk test site gave an important impetus to international efforts to establish a moratorium on nuclear tests around the world and to create in 2006 a nuclear-weapon-free zone in Central Asia.
On August 6, 2021, the President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, together with other Heads of StateCentral Asian, confirmed their readiness to continue active cooperation in the implementation of this unique Treaty, the 15thanniversary of its signing this year.
Talking about the scale, the Kazakh diplomat cited figures regarding atmospheric and underground tests at the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site, as a result of which more than 1.5 million people were exposed to radioactive fallout in Kazakhstan, and vast territories in Eastern and Central Kazakhstan were contaminated.
For his part, Deputy Burgomaster of the city of Ypres Mr. Bolle noted Kazakhstan’s significant contribution to nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, which contributes to ensuring global and regional security. The Belgian city of Ypres, which suffered during the First World War from the first use of weapons of mass destruction in the history of mankind, has much in common with the history of Semipalatinsk. Therefore, the establishment of the Kazakhstan monument in Ypres is very symbolic, the vice mayorsaid. In addition, the cities of Semey and Ypres are part of the international organization «Mayors for Peace».
According to Mr. Tim Vandenput, member of the House of Representatives of the Federal Parliament of Belgium, member of the Subcommittee on Nuclear Safety and Chairman of the «Belgium-Kazakhstan» Interparliamentary Group, the decision of the Kazakh leadership to close the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site was a landmark event and marked the beginning of the deployment of the worldwide anti-nuclear movement. It was also noted that the anniversary of the closure of the Semipalatinsk test site is held under the sign of a significant date – the 30th anniversary of Kazakhstan’s independence.
During the event, the guests of the ceremony were also shown a documentary film «The Atom Project», as well as an exposition of paintings dedicated to the victims of nuclear tests at the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site.
