WHAT IS REALLY HAPPENING AT THE ZAPOROZHYE NUCLEAR POWER PLANT

By Ambassador Oleg V. Stepanov

Certainly, the situation around the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) has been in the very spotlight not only of those who closely follows the events in and around Ukraine, but indeed of everyone concerned with the state of nuclear safety and security of Europe and the rest of the world.

There has been much speculation about the issue. So, in response to the distorted narrative in numerous publications, including the recent opinion by Michael Bociurkiw in September 7, 2022 edition of the Globe and Mail it is my duty as the Ambassador of Russia to cross all the T’s and dot all the I’s and let the Canadian public know the ultimate truth.

Indeed, the situation is still very precarious and hardly predictable. We all should definitely be paying attention to the beating of drums about the looming nuclear disaster amid continuous shelling of the largest nuclear power plant in Europe. But let’s face the evident: everyone, including establishment in the West and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that recently visited the facility, is very well aware that behind those provocations is solely the regime in Kiev. Even Kiev itself is hardly denying that.

Since the very beginning of our special operation, the safety and well-being of civilians living in the liberated areas have been a matter of critical concern for Russia. Therefore, the perimeter of the ZNPP was preemptively secured as early as in late February, so that it could not be endangered by those hotheads who were ready to make it the victim of their mercenary-minded motives and recklessness. And I want to underline it once again – we secured the perimeter with no armaments within it, so that the plant remains purely civilian infrastructure facility.

We have never interfered into the operation of the plant, and the local personnel continued doing their job so that the ZNPP kept going and providing millions of people with heating and lighting. More than that, our troops have been doing their best to defend the ZNPP from critical damage.

But, the obstinate nationalists in Ukraine unwilling to lose theirs grounds went as far as convincing themselves that the plausible exit strategy to drive Russians out would be provoking a nuclear catastrophe – by causing unacceptable damage to the civilian nuclear infrastructure.

In doing so, regime in Kiev rejected all the attempts by the IAEA to reach multilateral or bilateral arrangements concerning nuclear safety and security of the respective facilities. Instead, it unleashed hail of shells against the ZNPP and the nearby town of Energodar. Eventually causing the interruption of energy supply due to the break of the power lines.

Politicians in major Western capitals have been encouraging such irresponsible behaviour on the part of Kiev. Including through weapons supplies used by the Ukraine’s regime forces to shell the plant. Fragments of such munitions bearing clearly Western identification markers were presented to the IAEA – the fact widely circulating on social media but never mentioned or recognized by the Western mass media or governments.

Such support emboldens Kiev’s false sense of impunity and rewards it for further insane gamble, including attempts to seize the plant by subversive military means. Thus creating the real danger to the integrity of the plant and risks of extensive radioactive leaks – potentially much worse that in Chernobyl or Fukushima.