Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, urged Russia and Ukraine on Thursday to immediately allow nuclear experts to assess safety at the sprawling Zaporizhia nuclear complex. “These military actions near such a large nuclear facility could lead to very serious consequences,” Grossi told the UN Security Council, adding that “any nuclear disaster would be unacceptable.” Addressing the council via video conference, Grossi said the attacks on the plant were “very worrying” and the situation at the facility had reached a “difficult hour”. The meeting was called by Russia to discuss what Moscow claims were Ukrainian attacks on the plant. Russia and Ukraine blame each other for the attack on the plant, which is Ukraine’s largest nuclear facility. Reuters Grossi pointed to the bombings and multiple explosions in Zaporizhia last Friday that knocked out a power transformer and two backup transformers, forcing a nuclear reactor to shut down. Last week, Grossi said in an interview with The Associated Press that the situation in Zaporizhia was “completely out of control.” On Thursday, he called for an end to military actions “that have even the slightest possibility of jeopardizing nuclear security” at such an important facility. While a preliminary assessment by experts found “no immediate threat to nuclear safety” at the plant from the bombings and military action, “that could change at any time,” he warned. The plant has been under Russian control since March, but continues to be operated by Ukrainian personnel. AFP via Getty Images Grossi’s call echoed UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ call earlier Thursday for an end to all hostilities around the Zaporizhzhia plant, warning that any damage could lead to “catastrophic consequences” for the region, the region and beyond. . He had previously called the attacks on the facilities “suicide”. While the plant is controlled by Russian forces, its Ukrainian staff continues to direct nuclear operations. It is located in Enerhodar, a town captured by Russian troops in early March immediately after their invasion of Ukraine. Kyiv has said for weeks that it is planning a counteroffensive to retake Zaporizhia and neighboring Kherson provinces – the bulk of territory seized by Russia after its February 24 invasion that is still in Russian hands. Grossi said statements received from Russia and Ukraine “often contradict each other” and the IAEA cannot confirm important facts unless its experts visit Zaporizhia. Russian Ambassador Vasily Nebenzia told the Council that “Kiev’s criminal attacks on nuclear infrastructure are pushing the world to the brink of nuclear destruction.” He accused the Ukrainian armed forces in recent days of repeatedly using heavy artillery and multiple launch missile systems to bombard the Zaporizhzhia factory, including on Thursday. “Background radiation at the nuclear power plant is currently within limits, but if the strikes continue it’s only a matter of time,” Nebenzia warned. “We call on the states that support the Kiev regime to put their proxies under control to force them to stop the attacks immediately and once and for all.” Ukraine’s UN ambassador, Sergiy Kyslytsya, accused Russia of using “elaborate schemes of deception, sabotage and cover-up” to stage the bombing in Zaporizhzhia, including Thursday’s, which is “an unprecedented nuclear security threat to Ukraine , Europe and the world as a whole”. The Ukrainian state-owned company that operates the plant, Enerhoatom, said there had been new Russian shelling of the Zaporizhzhia facility and nearby buildings on Thursday. Last week, Grossi warned that the situation at the plant was “completely out of control.” Getty Images “Five (shocks) were recorded near the plant’s management office — right next to the welding site and radiation source storage facility,” Enerhoatom said in a post on its official Telegram channel. “The grass caught fire in a small area, but fortunately no one was injured.” Ukraine’s ambassador told the Council that the only way to end nuclear threats is to withdraw Russian troops and return the plant to Ukrainian control. Nebenzia said Russia supported an IAEA visit in June to Zaporizhia, which was given a “red light” at the last minute by UN security experts. Moscow is ready to provide “every possible assistance” to resolve any issues for a visit “even before the end of August,” he said. Yevhen Balytskyy, the interim head of the Zaporizhzhia region, who is based in the Kremlin, said Thursday that the Russian-backed government there is ready to ensure the safety and security of any IAEA delegation sent to investigate the conditions. In an interview on Russian state television, he said Kremlin-backed authorities had prepared armored vehicles for the international envoys. Kyslytsya blamed Russia’s “unjustified conditions” for delaying the transfer of IAEA experts to Zaporizhia and said Ukraine was ready to provide “all necessary assistance” to facilitate the nuclear group’s travel through Ukrainian-controlled territories , which is only five miles from the factory across the street. the river Dnieper. Bonnie Jenkins, US undersecretary of state for arms control, called the situation in Zaporizhzhia “another tragic result” of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He said the solution is simple: Russia should immediately withdraw its forces from Ukraine so that the Ukrainians can restore “the flawless performance of safety, security and safeguards that it has maintained for decades at the facility.” At the end of the council meeting, Grossi said there was “one common denominator” among the 15 members: “Everyone agrees that nuclear safety and security must be maintained. … And everyone believes that this mission must be accomplished.” UN experts are calling on Russia and Ukraine to let them assess the damage to the nuclear plant and make the necessary repairs. AP “So it’s no longer a matter of if, it’s only a matter of when,” the UN nuclear chief said. “When should be as soon as possible.” Guterres appealed in a statement “for common sense and reason” to avoid any actions “that could jeopardize the physical integrity, safety or security of the nuclear plant” and for the withdrawal of all military personnel and of the equipment. Russia’s seizure of Zaporizhzhia has renewed fears that reactors at the largest of Ukraine’s four nuclear power plants could be destroyed, triggering another emergency like the 1986 Chernobyl accident, the world’s worst nuclear disaster. This happened about 65 miles north of the capital Kiev. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has asked Russia to return the plant to Ukrainian control. “Only the complete withdrawal of the Russians … and the restoration of full Ukrainian control of the situation around the station can guarantee the resumption of nuclear safety for all of Europe,” he told a video camera. France echoed Zelensky’s request and said Russia’s seizure of the site endangered the world. “The presence and actions of the Russian armed forces near the plant significantly increase the risk of an accident with potentially catastrophic consequences,” the French foreign ministry said in a statement. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the only way to ensure the safety of the plant is for the Russians to withdraw from the area.Alexey Furman/Getty Images Speaking at a conference in Copenhagen on Thursday, Zelensky told defense leaders that the consequences of a radioactive accident in Zaporizhia “could be even more devastating than Chernobyl and essentially the same as the use of nuclear weapons by Russia, but without nuclear blow.” “If the Soviet authorities tried to hide the Chernobyl disaster and its full consequences, the Russian authorities are much more cynical and dangerous,” he said. “They are doing everything themselves to maximize the risk of a nuclear disaster and lying to the whole world that someone else is allegedly to blame.” By postal cables
