Spain demands that the United States take out the land contaminated with military plutonium in 1966

This case has been kept strictly secret for the time being, ABC News notes. However, it is known that none of the bombs exploded, but the plutonium-filled detonators on two detonated, "splashing" several kilograms of highly radioactive plutonium 239 all over the landscape around Palomares.

The Spanish Foreign Ministry said no further details would be provided to the media until they receive a response from Washington.

As it turned out, back in 2015, Spain and the United States announced their intentions to start negotiations on the preparation of an agreement on the further restoration and cleaning of the Palomares site and disposal of contaminated soil at the corresponding site in Nevada. But for a number of unknown reasons, the agreement was never signed.

The bombs fell on Spanish soil on January 17, 1966, when an American B-52 bomber and a tanker plane crashed into each other in the air. Then 7 of the 11 crew members died.

The accident occurred at the height of the Cold War. At that time, the policy of the United States was to constantly keep military aircraft with nuclear weapons in the air near the Soviet borders.

According to the Spanish agency EFE, about 50,000 cubic meters of land on 44 plots were infected. Since then, the Spanish government has been leasing land from its owners in order to prevent damage to people's health. However, in 2007, a high level of radiation was detected in the Palomares area.

The leading Spanish newspaper El País reported that the request was submitted to the American side several months ago and that the reaction of US officials has so far been positive. However, the Spaniards are asking to hurry up with the conclusion of a framework agreement, since general elections are due to be held in the country in December 2023.