Europe is considering "stress testing" its nuclear power stations to check they can cope with crises, while its energy chief on Tuesday even raised the prospect of a nuclear-free future. The developments mark a dramatic turnaround for a continent that had been considering a partial nuclear revival until this week, when Japan's nuclear accident highlighted how quickly events can run out of control - and not only after an earthquake.
"We must also raise the question - if we in Europe, in the foreseeable future, can secure our energy needs without nuclear energy," EU energy commissioner Guenther Oettinger told Germany's ARD television.