MOSCOW, August 19. /TASS/. The Ukrainian military makes at least ten attempts a day to attack the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant with unmanned aerial vehicles, Renat Karchaa, an adviser to the CEO of the Rosenergoatom concern, said on the Soloviev Live TV channel.
"As our experts have been able to see, Ukraine’s unmanned aerial vehicles make at least 10 attempts a day to reach the Zaporozhye NPP," Karchaa said, adding that the Ukrainian army also conducted constant bombardments in order to identify vulnerabilities in the plant's defenses.
He stated that the power plant’s units were well-protected. The NPP does have vulnerabilities, but they have also been covered as much as possible, he said.
Karchaa recalled that an International Atomic Energy Agency mission had been permanently stationed at the ZNPP since last September.
"Despite all the skepticism that there exists, we have to admit that the IAEA is the only [NATO]-authorized institution dealing with nuclear safety. True, this institution is not unbiased. You cannot expect these people to take an objective stance, but in general we use the same language. [IAEA Director-General] Rafael Grossi has several times surprised the Western bosses in a way that was beneficial for us. Yes, not everything is simple, we sometimes have different views and assessments, but if the question is to be put in a fundamental way, we are interested in their mission," Karchaa said.
The 6GW Zaporozhye NPP with its six reactors is the largest nuclear power plant in Europe. At the end of February 2022, the facility was put under control by Russian forces. Since then, the Ukrainian army has been systematically shelling both residential areas in Energodar and the NPP’s territory, using drones, heavy artillery and multiple rocket launchers.