By Steven Mufson and Claire Parker Washington Post

The war in Ukraine has intensified interest across Europe in building new nuclear energy plants or extending the lives of old ones to liberate the continent from its heavy reliance on Russian oil and natural gas.10 steps you can take to lower your carbon footprint

Belgium made an about-face, deciding to keep open a pair of reactors slated for closure. The Czech Republic invited Western companies to deliver nuclear fuel to replace Russian supplies. Poland is negotiating to build new reactors in a quiet seaside town. The war has reversed the tenor of the nuclear debate, just when its prospects had seemed to dim.

“They’re all doing it for the same reasons: decarbonization, energy security and national security,” said David Durham, president of Westinghouse’s energy systems business, which as of early April had signed memorandums of understanding with 19 different companies or government agencies in a dozen countries, including Poland, Romania and the Czech Republic.

The heightened interest comes as the war in Ukraine shows the dangers of building nuclear reactors on NATO’s front line. Fighting around Ukraine’s nuclear sites raised alarms about damage that enemy troops, drones and missiles might inflict on installations — damage that could lead to radiation releases, which have been linked to a range of cancers years later.