The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has come out in favor of setting up a “safety zone” to prevent a nuclear accident at the Ukrainian power plant in Zaporizhia, occupied for six months by the Russians and where she considers the situation “untenable” because of the bombardments.
“It is urgent to take measures”, estimated the UN agency in a report made public on Tuesday, advocating “the establishment of a nuclear security and protection zone” of this complex in southern Ukraine.
“The bombardments on the site and in the surrounding area must stop immediately to avoid causing further damage to the installations”, she insisted, underlining “the extremely stressful conditions” in which the Ukrainian personnel also work, under control of the Russian military.
“The current situation is untenable,” summarized the IAEA, the site of the plant having been hit in recent weeks by multiple strikes for which kyiv and Moscow accuse each other.
Kyiv and Moscow pass the buck
The Russian Defense Ministry on the same day accused the Ukrainians of “firing 15 artillery rounds at the town of Energodar and the territory (near) the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant”, where a shell would have exploded “near the water storage tanks near the second reactor”.
« The IAEA turned a blind eye to the situation with the bombing of the nuclear power plant by Ukraine […] There is not a single call for the Ukrainian side to put an end to its nuclear terrorism,” commented Vladimir Rogov, a member of the pro-Russian occupation administration in the Zaporizhia region, quoted by the Ria Novosti agency.
But Dmytro Orlov, the exiled mayor of Energodar, conversely accused the Russian occupiers of bombing this area which they nevertheless control.
“Right now, there are explosions in the city of Energodar. The provocations continue. There are bombings by the occupiers,” he said on Telegram.
“A resident of the city said he could hear the shots (of shells), and that in the following two or three seconds they fell,” he added.
The head of the Ukrainian presidential administration, Andriï Iermak, also denounced once again on Twitter “the Russian provocations at Energodar, around the site of the nuclear power plant”.
security Council
The IAEA’s report stems from its recent mission to the Zaporijjia power plant and whose director general Rafael Grossi “will report to the UN Security Council”.
The publication of its conclusions comes the day after the disconnection of the last reactor in operation in this complex.
A power line, connected to a nearby thermal power station, has indeed “been deliberately disconnected in order to extinguish a fire”, explained the IAEA in a press release.
According to the Ukrainian operator Energoatom, the fire “started because of the bombardments”.
On Tuesday, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk called for the establishment of a humanitarian corridor for civilians wishing to leave the area around the plant.
After many negotiations, an IAEA delegation was able to inspect its site last Thursday.
Mr. Grossi then told the press that he had found that the “physical integrity” of these infrastructures had been “violated on several occasions”.
Most of the international team left the plant on Friday. Of the six experts who remained on site, four left on Monday and two others are expected to stay there permanently.
North Korean ammunition
In Russia, President Vladimir Putin went to attend on Tuesday in the Far East the large-scale military maneuvers carried out with several countries including China.
The same day, the American Pentagon accused Russia of buying, in possible violation of UN resolutions, from North Korea munitions that it is unable to produce in sufficient quantities.
Moscow has garnered 158 billion euros in revenue from fossil fuel exports in six months of war, taking advantage of high prices, according to a report by an independent research center released on Tuesday, which calls for more effective sanctions.
“Ukraine and the West must end up putting an end to the aggressiveness of the Russians, breaking up their economy and making sure that energy ceases to be a weapon in their hands,” the president’s chief of staff urged on Tuesday. Ukrainian, Andriï Yermak.
The European Commission has also detailed the proposals aimed at tightening the conditions for granting visas to Russian citizens and providing for the non-recognition of Russian passports issued in the occupied areas of Ukraine.