Germany’s government has reacted critically to the European Commission’s new strategy for small modular reactors, with environment minister Carsten Schneider rejecting plans for further support for nuclear power and describing the initiative as a “backward-looking strategy”.

The strategy, announced by European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen at the Nuclear Energy Summit in Paris on 10 March, proposed a framework to support the development and deployment of SMRs in Europe during the 2030s.