IAEA Director General Presents Initiative on Safe Zone around ZNPP

MOSCOW, Sep 23 — PRIME. IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi presented proposals for the formation of a safe zone around the Zaporozhye NPP, the press service of the Ministry of Energy of Ukraine reported.

The head of the organization took part in a trilateral meeting with Ukrainian and US Energy Ministers Herman Galushchenko and Jennifer Granholm, which took place in Pittsburgh, USA.

“Grossi informed about the main results of the work of the IAEA mission and presented an initiative to create a security zone around the station,” the message says.

It is noted that the parties recognized the need for prompt and coordinated measures to restore the safety of civilian nuclear facilities.

Earlier, the issue of creating a safe zone was discussed at Grossi’s meeting with Foreign Ministers of Russia and Ukraine Sergey Lavrov and Dmitry Kuleba.

Zaporozhye NPP is located on the left bank of the Dnieper near Energodar. This is the largest nuclear power plant in Europe in terms of the number of units and installed capacity. Since March, it has been under the control of the Russian military. The Armed Forces of Ukraine continue to regularly shell Energodar, the surrounding villages and the territory of the station adjacent to the city.

In September, the IAEA mission visited ZNPP. The organization’s director general, Rafael Grossi, called for an immediate cessation of all shelling and proposed the creation of a protective zone around the facility.