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The UN nuclear watchdog has issued a report on the Zaporizhia power station in Ukraine on Tuesday, a day after shelling cut its electricity supplies raising fears of a catastrophe. Here are the key points of the report:
• all parties must agree to create a protective zone around the ZNPP to avoid damage;
• The IAEA is ready to immediately start consultations on creating such a zone;
• shelling can damage important equipment and lead to an unlimited release of radioactive materials;
• all other Ukrainian nuclear power plants, except for Zaporizhia, continue to operate safely;
• the mission recorded damage to: oil tanks for turbines; the roofs of several buildings, in particular the garage where cars for spent fuel are located; buildings in which fresh nuclear fuel and solid spent fuel are stored; of the new building of the educational complex.
“Ukrainian staff operating the plant under Russian military occupation are under constant high stress and pressure, especially with the limited staff available,” the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said. “This is not sustainable and could lead to increased human error with implications for nuclear safety.”
The report also added, “The situation in Ukraine is unprecedented. It is the first time a military conflict has occurred amid the facilities of a large, established nuclear power program. A nuclear accident can have serious impacts within the country and beyond its borders, and the international community is relying on the IAEA to perform a rigorous assessment of the situation and to keep it informed with accurate and timely information.”
Mandatory evacuation may be announced from the territories around the Zaporizhia NPP, as the situation at the plant becomes tenser. Minister of Reintegration, Deputy PM Iryna Vereshchuk on the air of the telethon.
The ZNNP, Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, has been captured by the Russian military since March 4, the invaders have placed military equipment and ammunition in the plant’s territory and have been shelling the surrounding area.
The United Nations, the United States, and Ukraine called on the Russian Federation to withdraw military equipment and personnel from the nuclear facility.
Read also: Interview of the Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal to the Deutsche Presse-Agentur press agency
