As one of the focuses of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant in Ukraine has attracted global attention. This week, a working group led by the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Grossi, arrived at the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant despite the artillery fire to carry out assessment and safeguard activities, giving the outside world some confidence in the safety of the nuclear power plant. But at the same time, the Ukrainian side announced a high-profile “counter-offensive”, and the battlefield situation became more complicated.
On August 31, a team of experts sent by the International Atomic Energy Agency arrived in Zaporozhye, the capital of Ukraine’s Zaporozhye state.
According to the TASS news agency, the working group was led by the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Grossi, and 13 experts from 10 countries, including Albania, China, France, Italy, Jordan, Lithuania, Mexico, Poland, Serbia and North Macedonia. Republic, etc., without the participation of Russian and Ukrainian experts, and without representatives of the United States and Britain.
This is the first time the International Atomic Energy Agency has sent a working group deep into the Ukrainian theater, escorted by staff from the United Nations logistics and security fields.
Djarric, spokesman for the UN Secretary-General, stressed that all parties to the conflict have a responsibility to protect the safety of the team of experts.
IAEA Director General Grossi: The IAEA is moving into the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, where, as you know, we have a very important task of assessing what is actually happening there and doing what we can to help stabilize the situation.
The Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant, located in Energodar, Zaporozhye Oblast, Ukraine, is the largest nuclear power plant in Ukraine and one of the largest in Europe, accounting for 25% of Ukraine’s total power generation.
After the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, in March this year, the Russian side took control of the city of Ener Godard. The Russian Foreign Ministry said that in order to prevent the leakage of nuclear and radioactive materials, it is necessary to send Russian soldiers to guard the nuclear power plant. At the same time, the Russian side agreed to continue the operation and management of the nuclear power plant by the employees of the Ukrainian State Nuclear Power Company. But many Western media reported that the Russian army occupied the nuclear power plant.
Since mid-July, the nuclear power plant and its surroundings have been frequently attacked by artillery and drones. The Russian side claimed that it was the Ukrainian staff in the nuclear power plant who leaked the location information of personnel and equipment in the nuclear power plant area to the Ukrainian army, and the Ukrainian army made the attack accordingly.
Russian soldier: The radioisotope is stored there, about 20 to 30 meters away. Decades later, the haze of nuclear leaks still hangs over Chernobyl. The international community is also deeply aware that “playing with fire” on the safety issue of the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant is extremely dangerous and may lead to another nuclear disaster. ICRC director-general Mardini: There should be no firefights in and around facilities like the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant because we know what the consequences will be and in the event of an unfortunate disaster, there can be no humanitarian response measure. According to Ukrainian nuclear energy experts, once a catastrophic accident occurs at the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, the severity may be 10 times that of the Chernobyl nuclear accident. Local residents: We survived the Chernobyl nuclear accident, it was a catastrophe, but we survived. In my opinion, the threat right now is 100%. The Zaporozhye nuclear power plant has six reactors, not one.
Russian soldier: The radioisotope is stored there, about 20 to 30 meters away. Decades later, the haze of nuclear leaks still hangs over Chernobyl. The international community is also deeply aware that “playing with fire” on the safety issue of the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant is extremely dangerous and may lead to another nuclear disaster. ICRC director-general Mardini: There should be no firefights in and around facilities like the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant because we know what the consequences will be and in the event of an unfortunate disaster, there can be no humanitarian response measure. According to Ukrainian nuclear energy experts, once a catastrophic accident occurs at the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, the severity may be 10 times that of the Chernobyl nuclear accident. Local residents: We survived the Chernobyl nuclear accident, it was a catastrophe, but we survived. In my opinion, the threat right now is 100%. The Zaporozhye nuclear power plant has six reactors, not one. EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Borrell: There is currently a nuclear gamble at the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, which is very dangerous.
French President Emmanuel Macron: The situation around the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant is obviously what worries us the most.
On August 21, the leaders of the United States, Britain, France, and Germany held telephone talks, calling on Russia and Ukraine to maintain military restraint.
However, in response to the belated attention and attention of the West, the Russian side has continuously exposed and criticized the United States as the initiator and behind the nuclear power plant crisis.
On August 28, a drone was shot down by Russia over the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, and its flight trajectory showed that it targeted a warehouse storing nuclear waste. Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Konashenkov: The Ukrainian attack drone shot down by the Russian army landed on the roof of the No. 1 special facility. No one was injured and no serious damage to the building was caused. The Russian Satellite News Agency quoted Russian military sources as saying that this was an American-made drone. On August 29, the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant was shelled again, and a large hole was blown out of the roof of the nuclear fuel storage facility. Vladimir Rogov, an official of the Zaporozhye State Military and Civil Administration Agency, pointed out that the fire was provided to Ukraine by the United States. The M777 howitzer. Russian political analysts pointed out that Ukraine’s attack on the nuclear power plant has two main purposes: one is to intimidate Zaporozhye residents and force them to flee; the other is to obstruct the IAEA’s inspection.
Russian Defense Minister Shoigu: Yesterday, the Ukrainian armed forces opened fire not only on the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, but also on the line of action of the IAEA team of experts. The spent fuel storage facility at the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant contains 4,000 spent fuel rods, which contain a huge amount of radioactive material. Russian nuclear expert Alexei Ampirogov pointed out that spent fuel is the ideal raw material for making nuclear dirty bombs. Once the IAEA personnel enter the nuclear power plant for inspection, they will find that the actual situation does not match the information previously reported by the Uzbek side. . In the early morning of September 1, it was quiet near the gate of the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, waiting for the visit of the International Atomic Energy Agency. However, shortly after, the vicinity of the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant was shelled again, and the nuclear power plant was urgently switched to emergency mode.
IAEA Director General Grossi: We are moving. Based on what we know so far, there has been an increase in military activity, including this morning and in the last few minutes. But after weighing the pros and cons, we have not stopped so far, we are now heading to (the nuclear power plant). At 6 o’clock in the evening on September 1, Director General Grossi and most members of the expert group walked out of the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, completed the first inspection, and made a preliminary assessment.
IAEA Director General Grossi: Even though I was only in there for 4 or 5 hours, I saw a lot, and my colleagues were still in there, I did a full walk, went into the various units, visited the emergency system generators and other different areas. The team of experts inspected multiple damages at the plant, including the remains of an unexploded shell, and Grossi announced that the IAEA would send several experts to stay at the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant on a permanent basis.
Analysts believe that the task of the IAEA expert group is limited to “professional technical assessment”, and it does not have the authority to clarify the responsibility for military operations, so it is unlikely to play the role of “mediator” in the conflict, but the experts are stationed in nuclear power plants to a certain extent. Tensions can be de-escalated, and even nuclear power plants are expected to become safe zones. IAEA Director General Grossi: There are two teams of technicians, and one of them will be at the plant until Sunday or next Monday.
Reuters noted that during the visit of the IAEA expert team, a large number of Russian soldiers were protecting the perimeter. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, Ukrainian soldiers tried to conduct an airborne landing in the Ener Godar region, where the nuclear power plant is located, but were suppressed by Russian fire and were unsuccessful. There are also two Ukrainian teams of about 60 people who tried to land on the coast of the Kakhovka Reservoir, 3 kilometers northeast of the nuclear power plant. With the arrival and stay of experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency, confidence in the safety of the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant has increased. But at the same time, in southern Ukraine, a more tragic head-to-head confrontation has begun.