UN nuclear agency says stepping up presence in Ukraine
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
Agency chief Rafael Grossi will visit Ukraine next week to get the operation under way.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Follow topic:
VIENNA - The United Nations’ nuclear watchdog announced on Friday it was boosting its presence in Ukraine to help prevent a nuclear accident during the current conflict.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said it would soon have a permanent presence at all five of Ukraine’s nuclear facilities, including Chernobyl, the plant closed after a 1986 disaster.
The agency’s chief Rafael Grossi will visit Ukraine next week to get the operation under way, the agency added in a statement.
“We must continue to do everything we can to avert the danger of a serious nuclear accident that would cause even more suffering and destruction for the people of Ukraine and beyond,” said Mr Grossi.
The decision marks a major expansion of the IAEA’s activities in Ukraine. At the moment, only the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia plant, which is near the frontline, has a permanent IAEA presence.
But under the new plan, 11 or 12 of the agency’s experts will be present in Ukraine to monitor the plants and provide technical assistance.
Ukraine’s Prime Minister Denys Shmygal announced the plan in December after a meeting with Mr Grossi, although he did not at that time give many details.
Inspectors will soon be deployed at the nuclear stations in Rivne, Khmelnytskyi, Pivdennoukrainska and Chernobyl.
Mr Grossi during his visit next week will also meet senior Ukrainian officials as part of his efforts to set up a nuclear safety and security protection zone around the Zaporizhzhia plant. AFP
