UN Security Council to consider IAEA's suggestion about safety zone around Zaporizhzhia NPP

In May, Rafael Grossi, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), will present a proposal to the UN Security Council to establish a safety zone around the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) after months of negotiations with Ukraine and Russia.

Source: Reuters referring to four diplomats familiar with the topic, reported by European Pravda.

Details: While working on the agreement, the IAEA Director General moved away from the initial goal of creating a "protective zone" around ZNPP and instead, according to Reuters sources, will propose a set of principles to protect the nuclear power plant.

Some of them have already been announced publicly by Grossi, such as a ban on firing at or from ZNPP and the prohibition of heavy weapons on the territory of the plant.

According to diplomats spoken to by Reuters, it also includes a ban on the deployment of military personnel at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, although Russia claims that the armed men present there are not military, and a ban on pressure on Ukrainian personnel at the plant.

One of the diplomats speaking to Reuters stressed that these principles are still being finalised, so it is possible that the IAEA Director General's final proposal could still change.

"We are planning [to present the plan to the UN Security Council – ed.] this month, but the exact date has not yet been determined," Reuters quoted one of the sources, adding that Grossi is in touch with Switzerland, which currently holds the Security Council presidency.

The Reuters sources are saying that Ukraine had previously opposed Grossi’s plan but now supports it, while Russia's position is unclear. They also question the viability of the plan, given the limited means available to enforce it.

Background: Since mid-2022, Zaporizhzhia NPP has been occupied by Russian troops, and due to constant Russian attacks, which Moscow blamed on Ukraine, it has been cut off from the Ukrainian power grid more than once. ZNPP is physically maintained by Ukrainian personnel under occupation and operated by Rosatom, a Russian state-owned nuclear corporation.

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