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Consultations on security zone around ZNPP making some progress — IAEA chief

"I remain hopeful that we will be able to agree and implement the zone soon," Rafael Grossi said

VIENNA, January 13. /TASS/. Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi said on Friday his consultations with Russia and Ukraine on the establishment of a security zone around the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant (ZNPP) are making progress but "not as fast as they should."

"I remain determined to make the much-needed protection zone [around the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant] a reality as soon as possible. My consultations with Ukraine and Russia are making progress, albeit not as fast as they should. I remain hopeful that we will be able to agree and implement the zone soon," the IAEA quoted him as saying.

The Zaporozhye NPP, located in the city of Energodar, has a capacity of 6 GW and is Europe’s largest nuclear power plant. Russian forces took control of the plant in late February 2022 and ever since, the Ukrainian army has been periodically shelling its territory, as well as Energodar’s residential quarters with the use of drones, heavy artillery and multiple rocket launchers.

An IAEA mission, led by its Director General Rafael Grossi, visited the plant in early September 2022. Several agency employees remained at the nuclear plant as observers after the mission departed. In its report issued after the visit, the IAEA called for the immediate establishment of a safety zone around the Zaporozhye plant to prevent a possible "nuclear incident" triggered by hostilities. The IAEA chief is negotiating the project with the Russian and Ukrainian sides. On October 11, he visited St. Petersburg to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Addressing an international conference in Rome on December 2, Grossi said that an agreement on a security zone around the ZNPP was within reach.

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