Zaporizhzhia: UN urges safety zone around nuclear plant

International

-DW News

Zaporizhia,
Sep
07:
The
United
Nations
nuclear
watchdog,
the

International
Atomic
Energy
Agency
(IAEA),
on
Tuesday
called
on
Russia
and
Ukraine
to
establish
a
“nuclear
safety
and
security
protection
zone”
around
the
Zaporizhia
nuclear
power
plant
(ZNPP).

“We
are
playing
with
fire,
and
something
very,
very
catastrophic
could
take
place,”
Rafael
Grossi,
head
of
the
IAEA,
warned
the
UN
Security
Council,
days
after
leading
an
inspection
visit
to
the
Zaporizhzhia
nuclear
power
plant.

At
the
Security
Council
meeting,
UN
Secretary-General
Antonio
Guterres
also
demanded
that
Russian
and
Ukrainian
forces
agree
on
a
“demilitarized
perimeter.”

Iran
seeks
stronger
US
guarantees
to
revive
nuclear
deal

According
to
Guterres,
this
would
include
“a
commitment
by
Russian
forces
to
withdraw
all
military
personnel
and
equipment
from
that
perimeter
and
a
commitment
by
Ukrainian
forces
not
to
move
into
it.”

What
was
in
the
IAEA
report
following
the
visit
to
Zaporizhzhia?

In
a
report
of
the
visit,
the
IAEA
said
shelling
of
the
facility
should
cease
immediately.
“This
requires
agreement
by
all
relevant
parties
to
the
establishment
of
a
nuclear
safety
and
security
protection
zone”
around
the
plant,
it
said.

The
IAEA
said
shelling
presented
a
major
risk
to
nuclear
safety.
“The
IAEA
is
still
gravely
concerned
about
the
situation
at
the
ZNPP
—
this
hasn’t
changed,”
the
report
said.

It
said
the
best
course
of
action
would
be
for
the
conflict
to
end,
but
failing
that,
a
security
area
should
be
established.
It
also
called
for
the
removal
of
the
Russian
armored
vehicles
that
the
delegation
observed
at
the
plant.

How
important
is
the
Zaporizhzhia
nuclear
power
plant?

What
damages
did
the
IAEA
delegation
observe?

During
the
visit,
the
IAEA
said
it
saw
numerous
cases
of
damage,
and
at
one
point
the
delegation
was
forced
to
seek
shelter
from
incoming
shellfire.

The
damaged
infrastructure
included
a
turbine
lubrication
oil
tank;
the
roofs
of
several
buildings
including
the
one
housing
the
spent
fuel
transporter
vehicle;
the
building
that
houses
fresh
nuclear
fuel
and
the
solid
radioactive
waste
storage
facility;
the
new
training
building;
the
building
with
the
central
alarm
system
for
the
physical
protection
system;
and
the
container
holding
radiation
monitoring
system
which
is
near
the
dry
spent
fuel
storage
facility.

It
heaped
praise
on
the
staff
manning
the
plant,
but
said
working
and
living
conditions
needed
to
improve
for
them
to
avoid
the
risk
of
a
nuclear
accident.

“The
staff
at
all
of
Ukraine’s
nuclear
facilities
have
continued
to
show
endurance
and
resilience
in
keeping
the
sites
running
in
a
safe
and
secure
way
amid
the
conflict,
and
the
IAEA
salutes
them,”
it
said.

It
said
they
were
“under
constant
high
stress
and
pressure,
especially
with
the
limited
staff
available.”

“This
is
not
sustainable
and
could
lead
to
increased
human
error
with
implications
for
nuclear
safety.”

Kyiv
and
Moscow
have
repeatedly
accused
each
other
of
shelling
the
plant.
The
Zaporizhzhia
plant,
along
with
most
of
the
rest
of
the
region,
has
been
under
Russian
occupation
since
March,
but
is
run
by
Ukrainian
staff.

The
IAEA
did
not
weigh
in
on
who
they
believed
should
be
held
accountable
for
the
damage.

Ukraine:
Attacks
on
nuclear
plants
not
banned
by
law

Reactions
to
the
IAEA
report

Ukraine’s
President
Volodymyr
Zelensky
welcomed
the
IAEA
report,
especially
the
part
that
mentioned
Russian
military
hardware
presence
at
the
Zaporizhzhia
nuclear
plant.

“The
report
notes
the
presence
of
Russian
military
hardware
on
the
territory
of
the
nuclear
power
plant,
pressure
on
our
employees
there,
and
makes
clear
references
to
the
Russian
military
occupation.
It’s
good,”
Zelenskyy
said
in
his
daily
address.

The
Ukrainian
president
also
referred
to
the
report’s
proposal
for
a
security
zone
at
the
plant.
He
said
if
it
was
aimed
at
demilitarising
“the
territory
of
the
nuclear
power
plant
…
then
we
can
support”
it.

Najmedin
Meshkati,
an
engineering
professor
at
the
University
of
Southern
California,
told
DW
the
report
did
not
go
far
enough.

“I
think
the
UN
Security
Council
needs
to
be
more
proactive.
They
need
to
empower
a
commission,
something
that
they
did
that
in
1999
for
Iraq.
At
that
time,
they
call
that
United
Nations
Monitoring,
Verification
and
Inspection
Commission,
and
they
need
to
really
develop
this
thing
in
parallel
with
IAEA
activities,”
Meshkati
said.

Source: DW