Russia's nuclear trade flows with France, imports continue in EU despite Ukraine war

While European Union agreed to curtail its use of Russian oil and gas, its member nations continue to import and export nuclear fuel that is t under EU sanctions - to chagrin of Ukrainian government and environmental activists. A cargo ship carrying uranium that departed from French port of Dunkirk traveled rth Sea on Thursday, heing toward Russian Baltic port of Ust-Luga.

It was third time in just over a month that Panama-flagged Mikhail Dudin ship docked in Dunkirk to transport uranium. Environmental group Greenpeace France deunced ongoing shipments to and from Russia and called for an end to all tre in nuclear fuel. EU's executive arm, European Commission, did t propose targeting Russia's nuclear sector in its latest sanctions pack presented Wednesday.

"France ensures strict compliance by ecomic players with all European sanctions opted against Russia. Civil nuclear power is t affected by se sanctions," French Foreign Affairs Ministry told Associated Press.

Ukraine, meanwhile, is pushing for European sanctions in that area. According to Greenpeace France, reprocessed uranium meant to be transported to Russia was loed onto Mikhail Dudin on Wednesday. A video provided by environmental group shows a crane lifting containers onto ship.

"Despite war, we can see that this tre between French nuclear industry and Russian nuclear industry, Rosatom, continues as if thing h happened," said Pauline Boyer, an energy campaigner at Greenpeace France.

French authorities have repeatedly said country does t depend on Russia to supply nuclear power plants that provide 67% of its electricity — more than any or nation.

Greenpeace France said a shipment of Russian uranium that an Associated Press reporter saw getting unloed in Dunkirk earlier this month was transported by trucks to a plant in Lingen, Germany. Lingen plant is operated by Framatome, which is majority-owned by French utility giant EDF.

At end of last month, enriched uranium unloed from Mikhail Dudin in Dunkirk was destined for Rhone valley in sourn France, which is home to major sites of French civil nuclear industry, according to Greenpeace France. French nuclear sector has a series of contracts with Russian state-controlled energy giant Rosatom, including some to import enriched uranium destined for European nuclear power plants and to export reprocessed uranium to Russia. Rosatom is one of world's biggest actors in nuclear energy market.