MOSCOW, April 25. /TASS/. Moscow is keeping the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in the loop on all additional measures that are being taken to ensure the security of the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP), Renat Karchaa, an advisor to the chief executive of Russia’s Rosenergoatom nuclear power plant operator, said in an interview with TASS.
"The IAEA is aware of all design solutions to strengthen the protection of the ZNPP. Inspectors on site at the plant are actively working in accordance with their mandate. It’s impossible to hide anything from them. Anyway, we have never sought to do anything like that. We are transparent and open to a constructive dialogue," he pointed out.
Karchaa noted that the IAEA inspectors "have all information about the situation at the plant." "They are engaged in monitoring activities. Two meetings are held every day where we discuss the current situation and the prospects for the next day, and they ask questions," he added, noting that access to any facility on the premises may be provided to the inspectors upon request.
When asked about the level of confidence in the IAEA inspectors, the expert said that "these days, you can’t fully trust anyone." However, he stressed that no espionage attempts by the IAEA employees had been recorded so far.
The IAEA’s permanent mission to the Zaporozhye NPP was established following IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi’s first trip to the facility in early September 2022. The parties agreed that several IAEA experts would maintain a continuous presence at the plant and their teams would rotate about once a month. Since then, six staff rotations have taken place. All rotations were held on time, with the exception of the last one, which had to be postponed several times due to the fault of the UN Department for Safety and Security. As a result, the fifth IAEA mission remained at the plant for almost two months until they were replaced by a new group of inspectors.