Remarks by H.E. Annalena Baerbock
President of the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly
at the Special commemorative meeting of the General Assembly in observance of
the fortieth anniversary of the Chornobyl disaster
24 April 2026
General Assembly Hall
[As Delivered]
Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Stay inside!
Do not touch the sand at the playground!
Do not drink milk!
I was 5 years old when I heard these strange warnings.
It felt for our children dangerous, but different than the warnings about war.
And everybody who heard it on the radio back then, was confused about an accident at a power station?– 1500 kilometers away from where I lived then in Germany – in Ukraine, then the?Soviet Union.
Hardly anybody really understood the news.
But to everyone it was very clear that something terrible had happened.
And Chornobyl stayed as a symbol of catastrophe.
Even years afterwards, a thousand kilometers away, we were told to avoid certain foods.
For those closer to the reactor, the consequences were more than strange restrictions.
They were catastrophic.
The Chornobyl disaster spread radioactive contamination across vast areas of Ukraine, Belarus, and the Russian Federation, affecting dozens of countries beyond.
Some 155,000 square kilometers of territory were contaminated.
Over 8 million people were exposed to radiation, and thousands died.
Children developed leukemia and other illnesses, many requiring long-term care that shaped the rest of their lives.
Over 400,000 people were resettled.
The scale of Chornobyl underlines that nuclear technology, even when used peacefully, is fundamentally different from other technologies.
Its power is immense.
So too are its risks.
Not only for the 32 countries that use civilian nuclear power, but, as the Chornobyl catastrophe reminds us, for many other neighboring countries as well.
An accident at a single power plant can have consequences far beyond national borders, with radioactive contamination spreading across vast distances, and affecting populations hundreds, or even thousands of kilometers away.
It is precisely because of this scale and reach that the international community agreed that when we develop technologies of such power, safety must always come first – including cooperation and full transparency in the event of catastrophic accidents.
In the aftermath of Chornobyl, the first instinct of the back then authorities was to conceal information, delaying protective measures and increasing exposure for those who might otherwise have been spared.
Even hundreds of kilometers apart, the contrast was stark between populations that received, and followed, timely warnings and public health guidance, and those left in the dark.
One of the clearest lessons of Chornobyl is that many lives could have been saved through transparency and early action ¨C like the simple warning not to give milk to children.
As Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation reported in 2018, that nearly 20,000 cases of thyroid cancer were recorded among those who were children at the time, largely due to the ingestion of radioactive iodine through contaminated milk in the days following the accident.
The consequences of this lack of transparency was even more dramatic in the treatment of first responders and workers, many of whom were mobilized to contain the damage without being told what they were confronting.
Many died prematurely from radiation exposure, while others carried lasting health burdens for the rest of their lives.
Today¡¯s commemoration of the Chornobyl disaster should thus also serve as a recommitment to the principle that openness and accountability are not optional in a crisis.
They are the foundation of any serious effort to protect lives.
At a time when some question the value of the United Nations, we should also recall its important role in supporting affected populations in the immediate aftermath of disasters like Chornobyl – as well as in medium- and long-term recovery, including in the context of nuclear emergencies.
It was the United Nations Development Programme which has played a key role in supporting long-term recovery in communities affected by the Chornobyl disaster.
More broadly, the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction guides international cooperation to reduce disaster risk, including technological hazards
This international cooperation in relation to technological risk reduction becomes even more important in times like these which are marked by rising geopolitical tensions.
As recent military activity around nuclear facilities, including at Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, has highlighted the grave risks that arise when such sites are exposed to armed conflict.
Underlining the importance of upholding international humanitarian law, including Article 15 of the Additional Protocol II to the Geneva Conventions, which prohibits attacks against or installations containing dangerous forces, including nuclear power stations.
As we mark forty years since Chornobyl, today, let us honour memory with responsibility by ensuring that nuclear technology is used strictly for peaceful purposes, supported by robust international safeguards, compliance with international law, and cooperation through the work of the International Atomic Energy Agency, so that disasters such as Chornobyl never occur again.
Thank you.
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