From: 10/12/2022 03:14
In a meeting with IAEA chief Grossi, Russian President Putin said he was “open to a dialogue” about the safety of Ukraine’s disputed Zaporizhia nuclear power plant. Grossi again called for the establishment of a “protection zone”.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has expressed his willingness to dialogue in the conflict over the Zaporizhia nuclear plant in Ukraine. He was “open to a dialogue” with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) about the Zaporizhia nuclear plant, the Kremlin chief said at a meeting with IAEA chief Rafael Grossi in St. russian.
The nuclear plant in southern Ukraine has been controlled by Russian troops since March. “We would be happy to discuss any issues of common interest or concern, such as the situation around the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant,” Putin said.
Grossi reiterates demand for “protection zone”
Before the meeting, Grossi reiterated his demand for a “safe zone” around the nuclear plant. Everything must be done “to avoid a nuclear accident,” an IAEA statement said. Grossi stressed that the situation was becoming “increasingly dangerous” due to the frequent attacks. “We can’t waste any more time,” Grossi said. There’s a lot at stake.”
For several months, Moscow and Kyiv accused each other of being responsible for attacks around and at the nuclear power plant. Europe’s biggest nuclear power plant is not far ahead. A few days ago, Putin placed the nuclear plant under Russian administration by decree. The IAEA condemned this step and described the plant as Ukrainian.
Kyiv: Russia kidnapped high-ranking nuclear power plant official
Meanwhile, Kyiv has accused Moscow of kidnapping another senior employee at the nuclear power plant. In early October, the director of the nuclear power plant, Ihor Murashov, was arrested by Russia and detained for more than two days before being released.
On Monday, “Russian terrorists” kidnapped Valeri Martynyuk, deputy director general of human resources. Ukraine’s state-owned company, operator of the Energoatom nuclear power plant, said he was being held “in an unknown location” and possibly mistreated.
According to Energoatom, Russia is trying to obtain information about the personnel files of plant employees in order to force Ukrainian employees to work for Russian operator Rosatom as soon as possible.
Grossi also wants to meet Zelenskyy this week
The Ukrainian state-owned company asked IAEA chief Grossi to defend Martynyuk’s release at the meeting with Putin. According to the IAEA, after his talks with Putin “over the course of this week” in Kyiv, Grossi will also meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for further talks on the nuclear plant.
Grossi and Zelenskyy had already met last week to discuss creating a buffer zone around the nuclear plant.