Rafael Grossi will “directly assess the seriousness of the nuclear safety and security situation at the site”. According to him, there is “need to act now to avoid an accident”.
The Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, announced on Saturday that he would visit next week the Ukrainian power plant in Zaporizhia (southeast) which, according to him, is in a “precarious” situation.
This is the second visit by Rafael Grossi to the plant, the largest in Europe, since Russia invaded Ukraine, in order to “directly assess the seriousness of the situation in terms of safety and security measures at the site,” the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said.
“Despite our presence on the site for seven months, the situation at the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant remains precarious,” Rafael Grossi said in a statement.
Presence since September
“The dangers to nuclear safety and security are all too obvious, as is the need to act now to avoid an accident,” he added. Rafael Grossi proposed to establish a security zone around the site.
“I remain determined to continue to do everything in my power to help reduce the risk of a nuclear accident during the tragic war in Ukraine,” he said.
A new group of IAEA experts will accompany Rafael Grossi, the agency having maintained a permanent presence at the plant since September. The February rotation has been delayed by almost a month, according to the IAEA, which deplores “the very difficult circumstances which the experts had to face”.
