Occupied Ukrainian nuclear power plant: IAEA delegation reaches Zaporizhia

A delegation from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has reached Zaporizhia. According to IAEA President Rossi, the work on the nuclear power plant will start tomorrow. The area was shelled again today.

A team of experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) arrived in the town of the same name in southern Ukraine on their way to Zaporizhia, the Ukrainian nuclear power plant. A convoy of about 20 vehicles, including an ambulance, arrived in Zaporizhia, AFP news agency reported.

Heavy shelling in areas around nuclear power plant

The IAEA delegation earlier met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the capital Kyiv. After the IAEA team left, the town of Enerhodar, site of the nuclear power plant, was shelled. Ukraine and Russia again blamed each other.

Ivan Yevdushenko, head of the military administration of the Nikopol district on the opposite bank of the river, told Telegram that the city on the Dnipro was being shelled by the Russians. He spoke of a “dangerous” situation.

Mayor Dmytro Orlov, who left the city, also shared pictures of Enerhodar City Hall with its damaged facade on Telegram. The building is a few kilometers away from the nuclear power plant.

For its part, the Russian Defense Ministry accused the Ukrainian military of “provocations” aimed at “interfering with the work of the IAEA mission.” Earlier in the day, Ukrainian artillery “hit a building for the reprocessing of radioactive waste”.

It is said that the work will start tomorrow

According to Russian news agency Tass, the IAEA team is due to visit the power plant on Thursday. According to IAEA chief Raffaele Croci, the team received safety assurances from both sides. He said that we are preparing for the real work which starts tomorrow. According to Croci, the IAEA wants to establish a “permanent presence” at the nuclear power plant.

The city of Zaporizhia is actually a two-hour drive from the facility, but the IAEA convoy must pass through Russian-occupied territories. Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry has asked Russia to stop shelling the IAEA delegation’s planned visit. “Russian occupation forces must stop shelling the corridors used by the IAEA mission and not obstruct their activities at the facility,” ministry spokesman Ole Nikolenko wrote on Facebook.

Nuclear disaster warning

With its six reactors and a net output of 5700 MW, the Zaporizhia Nuclear Power Plant is the largest nuclear power plant in Europe. Before the war, more than 10,000 people worked there. It has been controlled by Russian troops since early March.

Shelling of a nuclear power plant site in recent weeks has fueled fears that Zaporizhia could experience a nuclear disaster similar to the 1986 Soviet-owned Chernobyl in Ukraine.

IAEA chief Grosi has been demanding access to the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant for months by his inspectors – warning in early August of the “real risk of a nuclear catastrophe”.

Now Krosi has said that the goal of the mission in Zaporizhia is to “prevent a nuclear accident.” After six months of efforts, the team is “finally on the move”.

Greenpeace lowers expectations

Environmental group Greenpeace warned against the IAEA panel’s high expectations. Greenpeace expert Heinz Schmidl said the time for a thorough investigation was too short. In addition, Russia has great influence over the IAEA through the energy giant Rosatom. “This will lead to criticism that the representation is less than appropriate. So their findings will be subject to critical scrutiny,” said nuclear physicist Smitl.