The European Union and 42 countries issued a joint statement calling on Russia to immediately withdraw its troops from the Zaporizhzhia NPP and the entire territory of Ukraine.
A joint statement on the situation at the ZNPP was published on the website of the EU delegation to international organizations in Vienna.
"We call on the Russian Federation to immediately withdraw its military forces and all other unauthorized personnel from the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, its immediate surroundings, and all of Ukraine, so that the operator and the Ukrainian authorities can resume their sovereign responsibilities within the internationally recognized borders of Ukraine and legitimate operational personnel [of the station] was able to perform his duties without external interference," the statement reads.
The text says that the deployment of troops and weapons at a nuclear facility is a matter of all safety principles and guarantees that all members of the International Nuclear Energy Agency are obliged to respect.
Countries condemn Russian propaganda and disinformation, with which the Russian Federation tries to justify its actions in Ukraine.
"The international community will hold Russia accountable for its aggression, and Russia must bear full punishment for its illegal actions in Ukraine," the document states.
- On August 5, 6, 11, and 13, Russian troops shelled the territory of the ZANP and its facilities. One of the engineers of the station said that the fire of the occupiers on the NPP is being adjusted by Rosatom employees. They tell the military where to shoot, so that it is "loud, but not painful."
- Ukrainian diplomats, politicians and scientists demand that the IAEA, the UN and the world community send a security mission to the NPP and achieve the withdrawal of Russian troops from the territory of the plant and the occupied Energodar. Scientists separately warned that the actions of Russian troops could lead to a disaster on the level of Chernobyl or Fukushima.
- On August 11, UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for the creation of a safe perimeter around the ZNPP and the cessation of any military actions around it. He insists on the complete withdrawal of troops and equipment, followed by a moratorium on the placement of troops at the ZNPP. The USA supported this idea, but Russia was against it.