10:28 15.11.2019

Belarus set to close border along Chernobyl zone's perimeter

2 min read
Belarus set to close border along Chernobyl zone's perimeter

 It's a key task of Belarusian border guards to bolster security and to close the state border along the entire perimeter of the Chernobyl zone, Belarusian State Border Committee head Anatoly Lappo said on the television channel Belarus 1.

"We are tasked with closing the state border along the Chernobyl zone's perimeter. Contamination levels are extremely high on the borderline; no people should go there," Lappo said.

For now, the border sector is being protected by a drone, and surveillance cameras will soon be installed in the exclusion zone, he said.

"Six operators will see everything that is happening within the border sector of about 370 kilometers. If any information is received, special hardware and trained people, warrant officers, will be deployed to the area," Lappo said.

The mission is due to be accomplished in 2020-2021, Lappo said. The need for rapid response derives from both radiation, which is a threat by itself and could be carried across the border by "negative elements," and the increasing number of tours to the Chernobyl zone, he said.

"Time and reality show that [the area] must be controlled because wherever we close the border negative elements relocate and, of course, they are not frightened by radiation, especially as tours to the area have become popular. Tourists go there by special routes, and negative elements travel under the tourist disguise," Lappo said.

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