What happened? The temporarily occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) has completely got out of control of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Source. The head of the UN Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Grossi, in an interview with the Associated Press.
Details. He states that the situation in Energodar, where the NPP is located, is becoming more and more dangerous every day.
According to Grossi, all principles of nuclear safety have been violated at the plant. He adds that the station is located “in a place where active war is ongoing”, near the territory occupied by russia.
The director general of the IAEA says that the physical integrity of the plant hasn’t been respected and reminds of the constant shelling of the Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
“The supply chain of equipment and spare parts has been interrupted, so we are not sure the plant is getting all it needs. The IAEA also needs to perform very important inspections to ensure that nuclear material is being safeguarded, and there is a lot of nuclear material there to be inspected.”
“When you put this together, you have a catalogue of things that should never be happening in any nuclear facility,” Grossi says. He insists on an IAEA visit to the ZNPP to conduct a safety evaluation.
The head of the IAEA says that he and his team need protection to get to the plant and the urgent cooperation of russia and Ukraine.
According to him, with its presence, the IAEA “will be a deterrent to any act of violence against this nuclear power plant.”