IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi was in the United States this week as the IAEA held its International Ministerial Conference on Nuclear Power in the 21st Century in Washington DC. During his visit, on Thursday Mr Grossi addressed the United Nations Security Council, briefing the 15-nation group on what he described as the “extremely fragile and dangerous” nuclear safety and security situation at the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP). The ZNPP site has been controlled by Russian forces since March. Until recently, operational decisions were taken by its Ukraine staff, but Russia has announced it has taken control of the facility and is now taking those decisions. In recent months the site has been beset with power outages caused by shelling, putting nuclear safety and security at the plant at risk.
The briefing to the Security Council was Mr Grossi’s fourth since the conflict began more than eight months ago, and the first delivered in person rather than virtually. The meeting was also attended by Ukraine, currently not a Security Council member.
Mr Grossi told the Council that progress had been made in high-level consultations with Ukraine and Russia in recent weeks on establishing an “indispensable” nuclear safety and security protection zone around the ZNPP. He said “we’re not far from” an agreement and “it is in no one’s interest to have a major nuclear accident.”
The Director General also informed the Council that IAEA inspectors were on their way to two locations in Ukraine to carry out nuclear safeguards verification activities. Ukraine invited the IAEA to send inspection teams to the two locations — both under IAEA safeguards — following allegations by the Russian Federation of activities there. Mr Grossi thanked the Security Council for recognizing and supporting the IAEA’s important work aimed at preventing a nuclear accident in Ukraine.
Mr Grossi’s post-meeting briefing to media is available to watch on UN Web TV.
At the beginning of Mr Grossi’s visit to the United States, on Monday, he met with US State Secretary Antony Blinken for a comprehensive discussion on a range of critical global security concerns. Mr Grossi stressed that IAEA safeguards inspectors would visit two nuclear locations in Ukraine this week: “The IAEA inspected one of these locations one month ago and all our findings were consistent with Ukraine’s safeguards declarations and no undeclared nuclear activities or material were found there,” he said.
He thanked Mr Blinken for the United States’ support of the IAEA’s efforts to establish a protective zone at the ZNPP and for supporting the Agency’s mission on non-proliferation, nuclear security and nuclear applications for development. Mr Blinken said: “The U.S. remains committed to ensuring the IAEA has the resources needed to fulfill its responsibilities.”
