The director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, met this Tuesday in Saint Petersburg with the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, to talk about the future of the Ukrainian plant in Zaporizhia, which the Kremlin appropriated for law a week ago.
The meeting between Putin and Grossi, who visited Ukraine last week, was confirmed at a press conference on Monday by Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov.
Grossi reported a few days ago that he intends to hold consultations “with the competent authorities” about Russia’s plans to take ownership of Zaporizhia, Europe’s largest nuclear power plant.
After meeting with the Ukrainian president, Volodímir Zelenski, Grossi stressed that for the IAEA the plant “is a Ukrainian facility” that belongs to Energoatom, the Ukrainian atomic corporation.
“Of course, we see that today there are elements of an unnecessary and dangerous politicization of everything that has to do with atomic activity. We trust that thanks to your efforts we will be able to lower all this rhetoric,” Putin replied.
At the end of the meeting, the IAEA issued a statement warning that “the situation in the region around the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant and elsewhere has become increasingly dangerous, precarious and challenging, with frequent military attacks they can also threaten nuclear security.
“Now more than ever, in these extremely difficult times, a protection zone must be established around the Zaporizhia nuclear plant,” Grossi added, according to the official note.
Putin decreed on October 5 the appropriation of the plant and its adjacent facilities, and the creation of a company that guarantees its security. In addition, the Russian state company Rosenergoatom created a company to manage its operation and appointed a new director to replace the detainee Ihor Muráshov, already released.
The European Union (EU) described Putin’s decree as “illegal”, ordering him to withdraw his troops and return control of the plant to Kyiv. For weeks Grossi has been insisting on the creation of a security zone around the plant, which has been occupied by Russian troops since the beginning of March and has been the object of bombings that both sides accuse each other of.
The UN agency, which highlighted on October 6 that there had been no more explosions at the plant since October 1, warned that the latest Russian bombardments in Zaporizhia could affect the nearby plant.
The IAEA warned that the plant’s six reactors are deactivated, in what is called a “cold shutdown”, after Russian troops completely disconnected the plant. Even when deactivated, reactors still need electricity to maintain vital nuclear safety functions, such as reactor cooling.
