According to the organization, mining is against its safety standards.
The International Atomic Energy Agency IAEA says that Russia has mined the area around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine, which it has recaptured.
According to the organization’s statement, the landmines had been removed in November, but they have now been brought back. According to the organization, mining is against its safety standards.
The mining has been done in the nuclear power plant’s buffer zone between the plant’s protective fences, and the plant’s operational personnel do not have access to the area. The IAEA points out in its statement that its experts also do not have access to several reactor halls and some other places in the nuclear power plant area.
– Access to these areas is needed to ensure nuclear safety, the IAEA statement says.
IAEA experts got into one reactor hall this week. Russia announced earlier this month that it had blocked experts from entering several reactor halls for security reasons.
Director of the IAEA Rafael Grossi has repeatedly warned of nuclear safety risks in the power plant area. The organization’s experts have been there to monitor the operation of the power plant since September 2022.
Europe’s largest nuclear power plant
Russia soon seized the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, located in the city of Enerhodar, in the early stages of the attack that began in late February 2022. Russia and Ukraine have repeatedly accused each other of planning the accident in the area of the nuclear power plant. The vicinity of the nuclear power plant has often been the target of grenade fire and drone attacks.
The Zaporizhia nuclear power plant is the largest nuclear power plant in Europe. Its six reactors were responsible for a fifth of Ukraine’s electricity production before the Russian attack, but now their production has been reduced.
The nuclear power plant needs electricity and water for the cooling systems of the reactors. During the war, the power plant has been disconnected from the electricity grid several times, which has increased the fear of a nuclear accident. During disconnections from the power grid, the nuclear power plant has received electricity through its backup system.
Source: AFP