"We do not want our country turned into a radioactive dump," said Alexei Nezhivoy, a representative of the young communist organization SKM, who organized the protest.

In 2004 alone nearly 2.4 million tons of Ukrainian piping, building frames and girders "were imported into Russian territory", he added, without stating how much was allegedly radioactive.

Environmentalists such as Greens party chief, Alexey Yablokov, refused to join the protest against suspected radioactive material.

"The problem exists but without precise information, the topic could be exploited," Yablokov told AFP.

Earlier this year, the public company in charge of the Chernobyl site said part of the plant would be cut up and scrap metal sold to help pay for reinforcing the sarcophagus of the damaged reactor.

The metal for sale was tested by the authorities for levels of radiation and was found to be "clean", the company said.

The protesters also criticized Ukrainian President Victor Yushchenko's proposal last week to study the possibility of storing foreign nuclear waste at the Chernobyl site.

Chernobyl's number-four reactor, in what was then the Soviet Union and is now Ukraine, exploded on April 26, 1986, sending a radioactive cloud across Europe.

Following the disaster, a concrete sarcophagus was built over the stricken reactor and a new 20,000-tonne steel case to cover the whole plant is planned on being constructed in 2008 and 2009.

The power station has been shut down since December 2000.

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