Experts say mission continues despite “increased military activity” in region
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) visit to the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, scheduled for this Thursday, continues despite hostilities in the region. The attacks continue in the vicinity of the nuclear power plant, preventing the experts from reaching their target. Meanwhile, the Russian and Ukrainian authorities accuse each other of boycotting the inspection.
“We demand that Russia stop the provocations and grant the IAEA unimpeded access to Ukraine’s nuclear facilities,” Zaporizhzhya governor Oleksandr Staruj said on Thursday, after stressing that Russian air strikes on the route set by experts to destroy nuclear facilities to achieve, the United Nations team continues “for security reasons”.
Energodar, the city where the factory is located, has been the target of “constant bombing” since the early morning, emphasizes the mayor, Dimitro Orlov. “Since 5 a.m., the city’s constant mortar shelling has not stopped. Several civilian targets are known to have been hit. There are victims! We are finding out exactly how much,” the alderman writes on his Telegram channel.
Moscow, for its part, blamed Kiev for the attacks. The Russian army accused Ukrainian troops of crossing the Dnieper River to recapture the factory, which has been in the hands of the Kremlin since early March. “Around 6 a.m. (local time), two groups of Ukrainian saboteurs, up to about 60 people, landed aboard seven ships three kilometers northeast of the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant,” the defense ministry said in a statement, which it claims to have taken. “measures to destroy the enemy.” In addition, the spokeswoman for Foreign Affairs, Maria Zajarova, has defended that they are doing everything necessary to make the mission of the nuclear agency succeed.
Will the United Nations team be able to reach their destination? The director of the IAEA, Rafael Grossi, is clear. “We will not stop,” he assured. Despite this “increased military activity” in the area, and after “weighing the pros and cons so far,” the plan will continue. “We have a very important mission to accomplish,” he stressed. He also indicated that, after the initial analysis of the situation of the facilities, he and his team – composed of fourteen experts – will assess the possibility of establishing a permanent IAEA presence in them “to stabilize the situation” and be able to “offer updates to trusted, impartial and neutral regulars.
Meanwhile, fighting continues around the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant, the largest in Europe. Because of the hostilities of this day, one of the six reators has even been pre-emptively arrested. “Today at 04:57 (local time), as a result of another mortar shelling by the Russian occupation forces on the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, emergency protection was activated and Operational Force Unit 5 was disabled,” Ukrainian state operator Energoatom said.
Source: La Verdad
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