MOSCOW, March 6. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin said the idea to hold a meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Russia and Ukraine was useful and the meeting could be held by video link or in a third country, the Kremlin said in a statement following phone talks between the Russian leader and French President Emmanuel Macron.
Russia’s armed forces earlier seized control of the Zaporozhskaya and Chernobylskaya nuclear power stations during a special military operation in Ukraine.
"All this is done in order to rule out the possibility that Ukrainian neo-Nazis or terrorists organize provocations that could have potential for with catastrophic consequences," the statement said.
"Commenting on the proposal of the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency mentioned by the President of France to hold a trilateral (IAEA-Russia-Ukraine) meeting in the Chernobyl zone to develop a mechanism for ensuring the safety of nuclear facilities in Ukraine, Vladimir Putin noted that in principle this idea could be useful, but it would be worth considering holding such a meeting by video link or in a third country," the statement said.
In response to Macron's concern about the situation with nuclear power plants in Ukraine Putin "reviewed in detail the provocation arranged by Ukrainian radicals in the area of the Zaporozhskaya nuclear power plant which involved a subversion group."
"Attempts to shift responsibility for this incident onto the Russian military are part of a cynical propaganda campaign," the Kremlin said. "Russian troops, in cooperation with the Ukrainian security unit and staff, continue to ensure the operation of the nuclear power plant in a routine mode, and the radioactivity level remains normal."
"All these facts have been officially confirmed by the IAEA," according to the statement. "The physical and nuclear safety of the station is reliably protected."
IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi earlier said he was ready to travel to Chernobyl to support measures to control the nuclear power plant’s security.