MOSCOW, April 8. /TASS/. There are still chances to reach an agreement on security and safety of the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, but they are slim, Mikhail Ulyanov, Russia’s envoy to the international organizations in Vienna, told TASS.
"The chances of reaching an agreement, of course, remain, but they are not too great yet. In fact, the matter rests on the negative position of Kiev," he said.
Earlier, Ulyanov, on the air of the Rossiya 24 TV channel, said that Russia and the IAEA are conducting a constructive and professional dialogue on protection the Zaporozhye NPP and that the head of the organization, Rafael Grossi, is correcting his proposals in this area. He noted that the IAEA Director General, in particular, removed the word "zone" from his proposal on ensuring security at the ZNPP, "which has a territorial aspect" and "which may make it difficult for Kiev to make a positive decision" on the plant's security.
Grossi visited the Zaporozhye NPP on March 29. He inspected the plant facilities that had been damaged in Ukrainian shelling attacks. In particular, he could see the site between the coolant reservoirs at the fourth power unit that had been hit by a Ukrainian rocket. It was Grossi’s second visit to the nuclear power plant in the past six months (his first visit took place on September 1, 2022).
On April 5, the head of the IAEA visited Kaliningrad and discussed the security issues of the Zaporozhye NPP there with high-ranking representatives of several Russian agencies.