Zelenskyy calls on IAEA to condemn Russia’s illegal raiding of Zaporizhzhia NPP
KATERYNA TYSHCHENKO – THURSDAY, 6 OCTOBER 2022, 20:31
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has called on the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to strongly condemn Russia’s "international raiding" of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP), which Russia has decreed its "federal property".
Source: website of the President of Ukraine
Details: President Zelenskyy held a meeting with Rafael Grossi, Director General of the IAEA, in Kyiv on Thursday, 6 October.
Zelenskyy said that the IAEA must condemn the decision of Russian President Vladimir Putin to transfer the Zaporizhzhia NPP to Russia’s federal property. Zelenskyy stated that it is actually an "international raiding".
"We have been waiting for a tough statement from the IAEA on this issue. Society is expecting [the IAEA’s] condemnation. I personally think that this is a raiding," Zelenskyy stressed.
He added that the only way to guarantee the radiation safety of the power plant, Ukraine and of Europe is to completely demilitarise the territory of the ZNPP. Zelenskyy stated that there are still up to 500 Russian military personnel at the power plant.
For his part, Grossi emphasised that the decision of the Russian president to transfer the Zaporizhzhia NPP to the ownership of Russia was a violation of international law. He assured Zelenskyy that the IAEA will discuss all issues related to the ZNPP only with Ukraine.
Background:
- On 5 October, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree according to which the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, captured by Russian forces, became Russia’s federal property.
- Energoatom, the operator of nuclear power plants in Ukraine, called Putin’s decree on the transfer of ZNPP to Russia’s ownership null and void.
- Rafael Grossi, Director General of the IAEA, believes that the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant is Ukrainian, despite the statements of the Russian Federation about the transfer of the facility under its control.
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