BERLIN, August 10. /TASS/. The G7 Foreign Ministers announced their deep concern regarding possible safety threats posed by nuclear facilities in Ukraine, according to a joint G7 statement published by the Foreign Ministry of Germany on Wednesday.
"We remain profoundly concerned by the serious threat that the seizure of Ukrainian nuclear facilities… pose to the safety and security of these facilities, significantly raising the risk of a nuclear accident or incident and endangering the population of Ukraine, neighboring states and the international community," the statement reads adding that in the opinion of G7 member states all risks are connected with Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine.
The statement from the Foreign Ministry of Germany, which holds a rotating chair in G7, also said that the issue of the existing potential risks and threats "also undermines the IAEA’s ability to monitor Ukraine’s peaceful nuclear activities for safeguarding purposes."
Top diplomats of the G7 member states also urged Russia in their statement that: "In that context, we demand that Russia immediately hand back full control to its rightful sovereign owner, Ukraine, of the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant as well as of all nuclear facilities within Ukraine’s internationally recognized borders to ensure their safe and secure operations."
The Russian Foreign Ministry stated earlier in the month that a planned visit by an IAEA (the International Atomic Energy Agency) mission to the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant was canceled by the United Nations Department of Safety and Security (UNDSS) at the very last minute.
The schedule and the route of this visit were agreed upon on August 3 by the Russian side and the IAEA administration and the planned mission was made up of international experts, headed by IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi.
On August 7, the Ukrainian military shelled the Zaporozhye NPP, targeting, in particular, the spent nuclear fuel repository. The military-civilian administration of Energodar where the nuclear power station is located said that the Kiev regime had fired a 220mm Uragan rocket with a cluster munition.
Its striking elements damaged the station’s administrative buildings and the repository’s adjacent territory. Prior to that, the Ukrainian military bombarded the Zaporozhye NPP on August 5 and 6.
Zaporozhye NPP
The Zaporozhye NPP is the largest in Europe and has a capacity of about 6,000 MW. It used to generate a quarter of all electric power in Ukraine. The Zaporozhye NPP consists of six power units and from 1996 it operated as a detached unit of the Energoatom national nuclear power generating company controlled by Kiev.
In March 2022, the Zaporozhye NPP was placed under the Russian army’s control. Currently, the NPP operates at 70% capacity as the area of the Zaporozhye Region liberated from the Ukrainian army has a surplus of electricity power. There are plans to direct part of electricity generated at the Zaporozhye NPP to Crimea.
The Russian Foreign Ministry stated earlier in the month that a planned visit by an IAEA (the International Atomic Energy Agency) mission to the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant was canceled by the United Nations Department of Safety and Security (UNDSS) at the very last minute.
The schedule and the route of the visit were agreed upon on August 3 by the Russian side and the IAEA administration and the planned mission was made up of international experts, headed by IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi.