NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg considers it “urgent” to conduct an “inspection” by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) at the Russian-controlled Ukrainian nuclear power plant “Zaporizhia”, where bombings have become more frequent, reports AFP.

Zaporizhzhia NPP, the largest nuclear power plant in Europe, was occupied by Russian troops in early March, in the very first days of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Since August 5, Kyiv and Moscow have blamed each other for the explosions, in the context of which shots once hit a radioactive materials storage building near the building, and another time led to an automatic shutdown of the reactor.

The occupation of the station by Russian soldiers “constitutes a serious threat to its security and increases the risk of a nuclear accident or incident (…) It is necessary to urgently authorize an IAEA inspection and achieve the withdrawal of all Russian forces from there,” NATO head Jens Stoltenberg said at a press conference.

Russian control over Zaporizhzhia “endangers the population of Ukraine, neighboring countries and the entire international community,” he stressed after meeting with Serbian President Aleksandr Vučić.

The recent strikes on the station, sparking fears of a nuclear disaster, led to a meeting of the UN Security Council last week, with IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi pleading for a mission to be sent to the site “as soon as possible”. for site inspection.

Russia accused UN services of obstructing the IAEA mission. Ukraine, in turn, opposed it, believing that the inspection legitimizes the Russian occupation of the site in the eyes of the international community.

Read also:

• What do we know about the largest nuclear power plant in Europe and what is the greatest danger for the Zaporizhia reactors
• Can Zaporizhia be the Fukushima of Europe? “Now a nuclear disaster has been averted by a miracle, but miracles don’t last forever”

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