The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) mission went to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant occupied by Russian troops, Minister of Energy Herman Galushchenko said.
On August 30, the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyi, held a meeting with the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Raphael Grossi, who heads the agency’s mission at the Zaporizhzhia NPP.
The head of state highly praised the arrival of the IAEA mission, as the situation around the nuclear power plant is escalating, and Russia, whose troops are illegally stationed at the nuclear power plant, is blackmailing the world with a new nuclear disaster.
“There are risks of incidents at the station, failure of nuclear reactors, disconnection of Zaporizhzhya NPP units from our network. There are Russian weapons at the station. That is why it is a global threat,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized.
The President of Ukraine noted that the state leadership wants the IAEA mission headed by Raphael Grossi to find an opportunity to prevent all these threats.
“We trust your specialists,” he said.
“Zaporizka NPP is located on the territory of Ukraine, is and will remain the property of our state. This should be an axiom for the IAEA mission,” Volodymyr Zelenskyi emphasized, adding that the station should be returned to Ukrainian control.
The head of state emphasized the importance of immediate demilitarization of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.
“The nuclear power plant is not the place where weapons and explosives should be placed. Existing risks can be eliminated only by demilitarizing the station,” the President noted.
On August 31, the IAEA mission left Kyiv for the Zaporizhzhya NPP to inspect the situation and establish a permanent representation.
“We are finally leaving after six months of effort. The IAEA is heading to the Zaporizhzhya NPP. As you know, we have a very important task there – to work and examine the real situation there, to help stabilize the situation as much as possible,” said IAEA Director General Mariano Grossi at a briefing in Kyiv.
The head of the IAEA added that the mission plans to spend several days at the station, in particular to talk with the staff, and to report on the results of the trip. According to Grossi, the organization also intends to establish a permanent representation at the station.
In addition, the director general noted that the IAEA is crossing the front for the first time: “We are heading to the war zone, to the occupied territories. This requires clear guarantees not only from the Russian Federation, but also from Ukraine. We were able to ensure it.”
