Dhe head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, warned of a “disaster” in the Russian-occupied plant in southern Ukraine during a visit to the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant. There is “an increase in military activity” around the facility, Grossi said on Wednesday. He wants to try to find a compromise between Moscow and Kiev to secure the nuclear power plant.
“I’m trying to prepare and propose realistic measures that will be approved by all sides,” Grossi said during his visit to Europe’s largest nuclear power plant. It is about both the nuclear power plant itself and the surrounding area. “A catastrophe must be prevented,” added the IAEA chief. To this end, both sides should agree on “certain principles, certain obligations – including not attacking the power plant”.
Grossi spoke to journalists invited by Russia to visit Zaporizhia. For the IAEA chief, it was the second visit to the power plant since it was occupied by the Russian army in March last year. His agency has had a permanent team of experts at the power plant since September 2022.
Before his visit to Zaporizhia, Grossi met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday. He emphasized that it was impossible to guarantee the nuclear safety of the nuclear power plant as long as it was controlled by Russia.
With his visit, Grossi also wanted to guarantee a rotation of the IAEA observers in the energy town of Enerhodar, the site of the nuclear power plant. The Ukrainian state nuclear energy company Enerhoatom also confirmed the inspection on Wednesday in the Telegram news channel, for which the experts had traveled from an area controlled by Kiev. According to Russian sources, the last rotation took place on March 2 after several unsuccessful attempts.
With its six blocks and a net output of 5700 megawatts, the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant is the largest nuclear power plant in Europe. Last summer, regular shelling of the power plant site triggered international fears of a nuclear accident. Russia and Ukraine accuse each other of artillery fire. The reactors that were in operation at the time were shut down as a result. Due to the artillery battles, however, the power supply for the necessary cooling system was interrupted several times. Diesel generators were used to bridge the gap.