Reducing Europe's nuclear energy sector was a "strategic mistake", European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said on Tuesday, as governments grapple with an energy crunch from the Iran war. Von der Leyen's native Germany took a political decision under then-Chancellor Angela Merkel to phase out nuclear power plants owing to public opposition and safety concerns after the 2011 Fukushima disaster. Germany's Environment Minister Carsten Schneider on Tuesday criticised von der Leyen's "backward-looking strategy" on nuclear power. The EU budget does not directly fund nuclear energy projects because they are not unanimously supported by its 27 member governments. France, Europe's biggest nuclear energy producer, argues that stable, low-carbon power from nuclear plants is key to industrial competitiveness.

Source: The Telegraph March 10, 2026 14:23 UTC