Damascus: Russia may help build a nuclear power plant in Syria, Russian Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko told media on Tuesday as the Kremlin moved to strengthen ties with a Soviet-era ally in the Middle East.
On the first state visit to Syria by a Kremlin chief since the Bolshevik Revolution, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev played up prospects for nuclear power cooperation and said Washington should work harder for peace in the Middle East.
"Cooperation on atomic energy could get a second wind," Medvedev said at a news conference with Syrian President Bashar Al Assad after their talks.
Al Assad said he and Medvedev "talked about oil and gas cooperation, as well as constructing conventional or nuclear powered electricity stations".
Asked whether Russia would build an atomic power plant in Syria, Shmatko told media: "We are studying this question."
Syria is under investigation by the International Atomic Energy Agency for a suspected nuclear site that Israeli warplanes destroyed in 2007.
What is your view on nuclear proliferation? Do you think the region should eliminate all nuclear weapons?
