ST. PETERSBURG, October 4. /TASS/. Moscow has warned Kiev and its Western sponsors against any attempts to destabilize the situation surrounding the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP), Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov told TASS.

"We have warned Kiev and its sponsors against any attempts to destabilize the situation," he said on the sidelines of an international forum titled "Russia and Ibero-America in a Turbulent World: History and Perspectives," commenting on reports of Ukraine’s preparations for another counteroffensive that could involve an assault intended to seize control of the Zaporozhye NPP.

"It wouldn’t be just another step towards an escalation of tensions but also a move that would in fact undermine those principles and ideas developed by IAEA Director General [Rafael] Grossi, which he has been promoting for months on relevant platforms, including the UN Security Council," the senior Russian diplomat added.

"If it is in his (Grossi’s) power and if he has enough political will to insist on the need to abide by them (Grossi’s principles and ideas - TASS), then he should send relevant signals to Kiev and its sponsors," the Russian diplomat pointed out.

"Our approaches to how these principles should have been developed and enshrined may differ from the views of the agency’s leadership. However, the thing currently is that such a destabilizing [military] operation or actions would simply undermine Rafael Grossi’s principles and ideas," the Russian deputy foreign minister concluded.