Ukraine said on Monday it would shut down one of two reactors still operating at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant on Nov. 30, taking a big step toward full closure of the station in line with promises to the West.

"On November 30 reactor No. 1 will be stopped completely," Environment Minister Yuri Kostenko told a news conference. Ukraine had promised to shut the reactor down in November but Kostenko said earlier this month it could be too dangerous.Ukrainian officials had promised to shut down the reactor in November, but Kostenko said two weeks ago that stopping it as planned could make the station, scene of the world's worst nuclear accident, more prone to problems.

The fourth reactor at the plant exploded in 1986, sending a radioactive cloud across much of Europe. It is now encased in a cracking concrete "sarcophagus," while a second reactor was closed after a fire in 1991.

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