Ukraine denounces that Russia deceived the OEIA mission in Zaporizhia and warns of the danger

Ukraine has denounced this Friday that Russia manipulated and deceived to the experts of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) upon arrival in Zaporizhia, controlled by Russian troops, and they were not allowed to enter the crisis center of the nuclear power plant.

kyiv warns of the danger in Zaporizhia since it considers that it will be “difficult” for the UN nuclear agency to produce an impartial report on the real situation at the plant. The IAEA denounced this Thursday that “the integrity” of the nuclear power plant has been violated and announced that it was staying in Zaporizhia, which is under constant attack. Ukraine blames Russia for such attacks and vice versa.

“The Russian Army lies, manipulates and distorts the reality of Zaporizhia by giving only that information to the IAEA mission that benefits it,” said Energoatom, Ukraine’s state-owned nuclear power company.

[Los motivos del ejército de Rusia para dejar de jugar con fuego en la central nuclear de Zaporiyia]

According to Energoatom, the presence of russian military vehicles in the reactor turbine room “was presented to IAEA experts as chemical defense forces equipment“. In addition, and according to Ukraine’s complaint, “the Russians did not allow the mission in the central crisis center.”

“There are armed soldiers”

In fact, the Zelensky government assures that in the central crisis center there are Russian military personnel “that the IAEA representatives should not see”, “hiding” the presence of “armed Russian invaders”.

Another fact that Ukraine denounces is that Russia “blocked mobile and internet communications in Energodar”, the town where the nuclear plant is located, “in order to avoid sending photographs and videos of the nuclear power plant and the dormitory town”.

[La central nuclear de Zaporiyia apaga uno de sus reactores tras bombardeos rusos en zonas colindantes]

Also, the Ukrainian atomic energy company argued that only operating personnel were allowed to work in the plantwhile the presence of people on the IAEA delegation route was significantly limited.

Furthermore, this Thursday, most of the “international media” that were at the gates of Zaporizhia were “Russian propagandists”. kyiv denounces that Ukrainian and foreign journalists were prevented from covering the event, and were denied passage through the Russian checkpoint at the nuclear power plant.

Russia denies having weapons in Zaporizhia

Zaporizhia is under continuous attacks and its integrity has been in danger since last March. The two countries accuse each other.

From Russia, the Defense Minister, Sergei Shoiguhas indicated this Friday that his country does not have heavy weapons on the grounds of the nuclear power plant or in the surrounding areas, and accused Ukraine of repeatedly attacking the plant. “I trust that the IAEA commission see for itself”has said.

Shoigú has rejected as “false” the accusations of the Government of kyiv that the Russian troops hide behind important energy installations to attack the Ukrainian forces with long-range artillery systems.

“Since mid-July, the Ukrainian Armed Forces, using Western weapons, regularly attack the infrastructure of the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant,” Shoigu denounced.

He specified that since July 18, 29 attacks have been registered there in which 120 artillery shells and 16 “suicide” drones. Ukraine strongly denies this, as does a long list of Western countries.

The IAEA will stay

The Director General of the IAEA, Raphael Grossi, said this Thursday after visiting the plant that “it is obvious that the plant and its physical integrity have been violated several timeseither by chance or deliberately.

“We do not have the elements to evaluate that, but it is a reality that we have to recognize and it is something that cannot continue to happen”, for which the IAEA is “trying to launch certain mechanisms and establish a permanent presence” of some experts of the organism in the central.

The head of the mission, who visited “three or four key areas that he wanted to personally inspect,” such as some nuclear power units, diesel generators and control rooms, and that he also spoke with Energodar employees and citizens, he said, reiterating that “the IAEA is in the plant and does not move from there”.

He explained that there is a group of experts that will be “until Sunday or Monday” at the plant to deepen the inspection in order to prepare the report that Grossi must present to the IAEA board.

And then there will be another group that will remain at the plant, “in the hope that it can continue to provide me and everyone with unbiased, neutral and technically sound evaluation of what might be happening” at the nuclear power plant.

Grossi did not specify how many experts will remain at the plant. Energoatom said this Thursday that currently they have stayed five.