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Decision to turn back on nuclear was a strategic mistake, EU's Von der Leyen says
Von der Leyen announced a €200 million EU guarantee to boost private investment in small modular reactors aiming for operational SMRs in Europe by the early 2030s.
- On Tuesday, March 10, 2026, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called Europe's nuclear phaseout a "strategic mistake" and announced a €200 million EU programme for investment guarantees at the Nuclear Energy Summit in Paris.
- After the 2011 Fukushima disaster, nuclear energy fell into crisis with Chernobyl fears reinforcing the retreat, Germany retiring its last plants in 2023, and von der Leyen noting the Middle East crisis highlights fossil-fuel dependence.
- In 1990, one-third of Europe’s electricity came from nuclear, but today it is close to 15%, while globally nuclear supplies about 9% with roughly 440 reactors, per the World Nuclear Association.
- The European Commission will push small modular reactors, targeting SMRs operational by the early 2030s and using emissions trading system resources to de-risk investment and attract private capital.
- Political debates in Germany, including remarks by Friedrich Merz, call the German phaseout 'a huge mistake' as other nations extend reactor lifetimes, shaping Europe's nuclear future.
126 Articles
126 Articles
WHY EUROPE BRACES FOR "MAJOR LOSSES" IN IRAN WAR WITHOUT FIGHTING
Emirates 24/7) — Europe finds itself in a state of strategic paralysis, facing the prospect of "major losses" as the conflict in the Middle East escalates, exposing the continent’s profound energy insecurity. Analysts suggest that Europe’s current vulnerability is the direct result of what German Chancellor Friedrich Merz recently termed a "strategic mistake"—the abandonment of nuclear energy under pressure from climate activists. This policy sh…
Ursula von der Leyen Calls Abandoning Nuclear Power "A Strategic Mistake" – 15 Years After Supporting the Nuclear Phase-Out
Ursula von der Leyen has called abandoning nuclear power "a strategic mistake" and said Europe should "lead the world" in the technology – 15 years after supporting the nuclear phase-out. We are led by imbeciles.
The European Commission today presents a plan for small nuclear reactors.
This is unexpected for many: EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (CDU) has described the rejection of nuclear power as a "strategic error" and now envisages risk safeguards of EUR 200 million for private donors investing in new nuclear technologies. Hessen, head of government Boris Rhein (CDU), is also in favour of this. At the start of the nuclear energy summit in France on Tuesday, the Leyen said that a "new European strategy for smal…
A shock between the president of the European Commission, the conservative Ursula von der Leyen, and her number two, the Spanish woman Teresa Ribera on nuclear charges. Ribera has responded to von der Leyen that she “cannot intervene in the energy policy” of the 27 EU Member States, after this Tuesday the Commission president has urged them to regain European leadership in nuclear technologies and called it a “strategic error” that has turned th…
Read on Fatto Quotidiano.it: the President of the European Commission rejects the EU energy strategy and calls a mistake the abandonment of nuclear power
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