MOSCOW, November 22. /TASS/. Moscow believes that it is important for all parties to understand that Kiev’s shelling of the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant poses a nuclear threat, Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Tuesday.
"It’s very important for everyone to take a sober look at the situation and understand that the Ukrainian armed forces are shelling a nuclear power plant so their actions are creating nuclear, environmental and other security threats for vast areas. It certainly causes us great concern," the Kremlin spokesman stressed.
Peskov noted that the IAEA "is doing its job" in the current situation. "It’s a good thing that the IAEA confirms that these shelling attacks pose a threat to the plant," he went on to say. "We certainly regret that due to the agency’s specifics, IAEA officials say that they aren’t authorized to clarify who is behind the shelling attacks," he stressed. "Russia will continue to maintain dialogue with the IAEA," the Russian presidential spokesman concluded.
The Russian Defense Ministry reported earlier that the Ukrainian Armed Forces had resumed shelling attacks on the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant after a two-month break. According to the ministry, Ukrainian forces fired at least 25 munitions at the facility on November 19-20, with one of them hitting the roof of Special Building No 2, where nuclear fuel is stored. The attackers were suppressed by return fire, and radiation levels remain normal around the power plant, the ministry added. The Zaporozhye NPP is Europe’s largest operating nuclear power plant. Russia took control of the facility in late February. An International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) mission visited the Zaporozhye nuclear plant in early September and later published a report calling for the creation of a safety zone around the plant to prevent accidents caused by military activities.