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No substantial progress on creating security zone at Zaporozhye nuke plant — Russian envoy

According to Mikhail Ulyanov, the main reason for this state of affairs "is the absence of a substantive reaction by the Ukrainian side to suggestions by [IAEA Director General Rafael] Grossi"

MOSCOW, February 3. /TASS/. No substantial progress has been made in consultations on creating a safety and security zone at the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant (ZNPP), Russian Permanent Representative to International Organizations in Vienna Mikhail Ulyanov told TASS on Friday.

"Unfortunately, there is no significant progress in the consultations on creating a zone protecting nuclear and physical security at the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant. We keep going around in circles," he said.

According to the diplomat, the main reason for this state of affairs "is the absence of a substantive reaction by the Ukrainian side to suggestions made by [IAEA Director General Rafael] Grossi." "However, the director general proceeds from the premise that the creation of the security zone is the top priority for him," Ulyanov said. "He continues intensive interaction on this issue and, by the way, is working actively in the information field," he added. "We’ll see what these efforts will lead to. Grossi himself, as far as I understand, hopes for a positive result," the envoy concluded.

Located in Energodar, the Zaporozhye nuclear facility, having roughly 6GW of capacity, is the largest nuclear power plant in Europe. Russia took control of the plant on February 28, 2022, in the first days of its special military operation in Ukraine. Since then, the Ukrainian army has been periodically shelling both Energodar’s residential districts and the premises of the nuclear station, using drones, heavy artillery and multiple-launch rocket systems. In early September, the IAEA’s mission led by Grossi visited the nuclear power plant. After it left the facility, several IAEA employees stayed behind as observers. Later, the agency published a report calling for the creation of a safety and security zone around the nuclear station to prevent emergency situations due to hostilities. In order to discuss this project, Grossi has been holding talks with representatives from the Russian and Ukrainian sides.