The UN on Thursday warned that “very alarming” military activity at Europe’s largest nuclear plant in southeastern Ukraine could lead to dangerous consequences for the region and called for an end to attacks at the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia facility.
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director-General Rafael Grossi urged Russia and Ukraine, which blame each other for the attacks at the plant, to immediately allow nuclear experts to assess damage, and evaluate safety and security at the sprawling nuclear complex, where the situation “has been deteriorating very rapidly.”
He pointed to shelling and several explosions at Zaporizhzhia on Friday that forced the shutdown of a electrical power transformer and two backup transformers, forcing the shutdown of one nuclear reactor.
Photo: AFP
Last week, Grossi said in an Associated Press interview that the situation at Zaporizhzhia was “completely out of control.”
While the plant is controlled by Russia, its Ukrainian staff continues to run the nuclear operations. The facility is in Enerhodar, a city seized by Russian troops in early March soon after they invaded Ukraine.
Grossi said statements received from Russia and Ukraine “are frequently contradicted” and his agency cannot corroborate important facts unless its experts visit Zaporizhzhia.
Russian Ambassador to the UN Vassily Nebenzia told the UN Security Council that “Kyiv’s criminal attacks on nuclear infrastructure are pushing the world to the brink of nuclear catastrophe.”
He accused Ukrainian armed forces of repeatedly using heavy artillery and multiple-launch rocket systems to shell the Zaporizhzhia plant, including on Thursday.
“The background radiation at the nuclear power plant at the moment is within limits, but if the strikes continue it is only a question of time,” Nebenzia said. “We call on states that support the Kyiv regime to bring their proxies into check to compel them to immediately and once and for all stop attacks.”
Ukrainian Ambassador to the UN Sergiy Kyslytsya accused Russia of using “elaborate plans of deceit, sabotage and cover-ups” to stage the shelling at Zaporizhzhia, including on Thursday, which poses “an unprecedented threat to nuclear security for Ukraine, to Europe and the world as a whole.”
The Ukrainian state-run company operating the plant, Enerhoatom, said there was renewed Russian shelling of the Zaporizhzhia facility and nearby buildings on Thursday.
“Five [hits] were recorded near the plant management’s office, right next to the welding site and the storage facility for radiation sources,” Enerhoatom said. “The grass caught fire over a small area, but fortunately, no one was hurt.”
Yevhen Balytskyy, the Kremlin-installed temporary head of the Zaporizhzhia region, said that his administration stood ready to ensure the safety and security of any IAEA delegation sent to investigate conditions.
He said in an interview on Russian state TV that the Kremlin-backed authorities had prepared armored vehicles for the international envoys.
Meanwhile, Kyslytsya blamed Russia’s “unjustified conditions” for the delay in getting IAEA experts to Zaporizhzhia, and said Ukraine stands ready to provide “all necessary assistance” to facilitate the nuclear team’s travels through Ukrainian-controlled territory, which is about 8km from the plant across the Dnieper River.
US Undersecretary of State for Arms Control Bonnie Jenkins called the situation at Zaporizhzhia “another tragic result” of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Russia should immediately withdraw its forces from Ukraine so Ukrainians can to restore “the impeccable safety, security and safeguards performance it upheld for decades at the facility,” she said.
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