At the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant (ZNPP), which is temporarily occupied by the Russians, the situation remains difficult — all seven principles of nuclear safety are completely or partially violated there.
This was announced by IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi.
Nuclear safety risks at the Zaporizhzhia NPP create problems with staffing, routine inspections and maintenance of safety structures, systems and components; reliability of supply chains, as well as emergency response mechanisms.
"At the beginning of April, the Zaporizhzhia NPP was subjected to direct attacks for the first time in almost a year and a half. These attacks violated the first of the five specific principles of protection of the Zaporizhzhia NPP, which I first laid out at the Council a year ago," Grossi added.
Since April, all six reactor units of the ZNPP have been in a state of cold shutdown. The IAEA recommended this to improve the overall safety of the facility.
However, the IAEA mission does not get access to some areas of the nuclear power plant, which are important for the nuclear safety and protection of the ZNPP. Also, the mission cannot hold open discussions with all relevant personnel, which prevents the Agency from making an impartial assessment of the situation at the station.
- The ZNPP was occupied by the Russian military at the beginning of March 2022 and has been operating under their control since then. The station was completely disconnected from the power grid several times. From September 2022, the IAEA mission is stationed at the station. Ukraine insists on the withdrawal of the Russian occupiers from the station. President Volodymyr Zelensky emphasizes that while Russian soldiers are at the ZNPP, "the world remains on the brink of a nuclear catastrophe." Russia refuses to create a demilitarized zone at the ZNPP.