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Military operation in Ukraine

IAEA mission coldly accepts request for help in ending shelling of NPP, official says

It is reported that people who are staying on at the NPP are tasked with objectively reporting the information

MOSCOW, September 2. /TASS/. The International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) team, whom Energodar residents handed a written request on Thursday asking for help in ending the bombardments of the city and the Zaporozhye nuclear power, accepted the letter in a dry and reserved way, Yevgeny Balitsky, head of the civil-military administration of the Zaporozhye Region, said on Friday.

"They reacted offishly. They took the letter saying that yes, we will take it into consideration," he said on the air of the Rossiya-24 TV news channel.

Additionally, Balitsky said that after the departure of most members of the IAEA mission led by IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi, those who are staying on at the NPP are tasked with promptly reporting the information about the plant’s safe operation.

"They have left 13 people there [at the plant]," he explained. "First of all, these people are tasked with objectively reporting the information that comes urgently and if it concerns the plant’s safe functioning."

According to the region’s head, they are "contact people."

"We have them stationed at the plant. We will see how they work," he said.

"We have zero confidence in European institutions now. However, we will be using whatever we can to get across to the minds of those in Europe who are willing to hear and listen to the truth. We hope that the information will be communicated objectively," Balitsky added.

On Thursday, the IAEA fact-finding mission team visited the Zaporozhye plant to estimate the material damage to the facility and to evaluate the operational capabilities of the nuclear station’s safety and security systems. After inspecting the Zaporozhye NPP, Grossi told reporters the experts had conducted an initial assessment, had seen "the key things" they needed to see, and were planning to stay on.

Meanwhile, Energodar residents, who Grossi talked to before leaving the plant, handed him a petition with over 20,000 signatures, calling for an end to Ukraine’s provocations against the nuclear power plant. They also handed the IAEA chief evidence related to the bombardments of the city by the Ukrainian armed forces, including photos and statements from eyewitnesses.

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IAEA Military operation in Ukraine

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