ATTITUDES OF COUNTRIES TO NUCLEAR ENERGY: MODIFICATIONS AFTER FUKUSHIMA

Nuclear energy belongs among the most efficient yet most controversial energy sources. The impacts of the natural disaster and accident in Japanese Fukushima in 2011 have reversed the attitudes of many countries towards nuclear programs. This happened in the period after 2000, which could be characterized as Nuclear Renaissance. The Czech Republic, which has been a long-term advocate of nuclear energy industry and the above-mentioned accident has changed nothing in this attitude, has been mostly affected by the shift of its German neighbor and largest trading partner away from nuclear energy. On the other hand, many developed countries continue their nuclear programs and they do not share the Japanese, German and other countries' fears. It is the aim of this article to introduce and discuss changes in attitudes of selected countries from all over the word towards nuclear energy, especially in connection with the recent tragic events in Fukushima.