IAEA demands safety zone around Zaporizhia nuclear plant
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is alarmed because of the renewed failure of the regular power supply in the Ukrainian nuclear power plant Zaporizhia. This is the sixth time that Europe’s largest nuclear power plant has had to switch to emergency diesel generators because of the war, said IAEA boss Rafael Grossi on Thursday before the IAEA Board of Governors in Vienna. “Every time we roll the dice. And if we keep doing that, then one day our luck will run out,” Grossi warned. It shouldn’t go on like this. It is high time to set up a security zone around the power plant. He will continue his efforts in this regard, Grossi said. Nuclear power plants depend on a reliable power supply for safe operation.
In a joint statement on Thursday, numerous states on the IAEA Board of Governors called on Russia to leave the nuclear power plant. “The risks at the power plant remain dangerously high as long as Russian military personnel and Rosatom personnel are there,” says the statement, which was made under the leadership of Canada and also supported by Germany.
As a result of a large-scale Russian missile attack, the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant has been cut off from the regular power supply, according to the Ukrainian operator. Ukrainian Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko spoke on Facebook of a “barbaric, massive attack” by the Russians. A spokesman for the Russian nuclear power plant operator Rosenergoatom confirmed the disconnection from the regular power grid to the Interfax agency. At the same time, he accused the Ukrainian side of cutting off supplies for no apparent reason.