Even though the six reactors at the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) are in a cold shutdown, the threat of a major disaster at the facility remains real, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi said on Monday.
“Even though the plant’s six reactors are now in cold shutdown, with the final unit shifting into that status two days ago following the IAEA’s recommendation, the potential dangers of a major nuclear accident are very real,” Grossi told the UN Security Council.
The situation is "dangerously close to a nuclear accident," Grossi warned. Attacks around the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) have to stop immediately as nuclear safety is already compromised, the IAEA director stressed.
“These reckless attacks must cease immediately. Though, fortunately, they have not led to a radiological incident this time, they significantly increase the risk at Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant, where nuclear safety is already compromised,” Grossi said.
The recent attacks on the nuclear power plant earlier this month repeatedly violated one of the five principles he outlined last year to avert a nuclear disaster amid the Ukraine conflict.
"Nevertheless, Madame President, over the past ten days, the first of these principles has been violated repeatedly in what marks a step-change increase in risk to nuclear safety and security at Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant," Grossi emphasized.
"We must do everything in our power today to minimize the risk of an accident," he stated.
On April 7, Ukraine's kamikaze drones attacked the territory of the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant right after an inspection carried out by IAEA experts, the plant's press service said. The IAEA confirmed minor damage to the sixth power unit of the nuclear power plant, adding that nuclear safety had not been compromised. The attack also left three workers injured, with one of them sustaining serious injuries, Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom said.
No Russian heavy weapons at Zaporozhye nuclear plant – IAEA boss
Russia does not station heavy weapons at the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi told reporters on Monday.
Moscow and Kiev have been accusing each other of shelling Europe’s largest nuclear plant, which sits close to the front line. Kiev and its Western backers have also accused Moscow of using the facility as a cover for its troops.
Grossi made his comments after a UN Security Council meeting dedicated to the renewed strikes on the plant. “There is no heavy weaponry there,” Grossi said while answering a reporter’s question during a media stakeout.
Russia does not station heavy weapons at the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi told reporters on Monday.
He explained that, although there are Russian “armored vehicles and some security presence at the plant,” IAEA monitors did not see any prohibited weapons, such as multiple rocket launchers, tanks and artillery.
Grossi said that the IAEA does not have the mandate to determine which side has been attacking the facility and argued that “indisputable evidence” is needed to establish who is responsible.
Addressing the Security Council, Grossi confirmed that Europe’s largest nuclear power plant was struck on April 7, which was the first direct attack on the site since November 2022. Insectors have determined that the apex of the containment dome of the Unit 6 reactor building had been hit, he added. “Whilst the damage to the structure is superficial, the attack sets a very dangerous precedent of the successful targeting of the reactor containment,” Grossi stressed, warning that “these reckless attacks must cease immediately.”
Russian Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia told the Security Council that Ukrainian forces have been “systematically” targeting the plant and surrounding areas. He stated that the Russian army has been “spotting and intercepting up to 100 drones per week.” Moscow has never placed heavy weapons at the facility or used the plant to stage attacks on Ukraine, he said.
Officials in Kiev have denied striking the plant. “The position of Ukraine is clear and unequivocal: we are not conducting any military activities or provocations against nuclear sites,” Andrey Yusov, spokesman for Ukraine’s military intelligence, told Ukrainian TV this month. Andrey Kovalenko, the head of the state-run Center for Countering Disinformation, accused Moscow of spreading false information and “manipulating the IAEA.”
The agency said in its report this week that all of the plant’s six reactors are currently in cold shutdown. According to the plant’s management, only one reactor had been working since 2022 in order to keep the site operational. IAEA inspectors were deployed to monitor the facility in September 2022.
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