Energoatom boss calls for the creation of a demilitarized zone around the Zaporizhia power plant
The boss of energy[géticien public ukrainien Energoatom, Petro Kotine, a appelé lundi à la création d’une zone démilitarisée autour de la centrale nucléaire de Zaporijia, touchée par des bombardements pour lesquels Kiev et Moscou s’accusent mutuellement.
« Nous demandons à la communauté internationale et à tous nos partenaires (…) de faire le nécessaire en vue d’un retrait des envahisseurs du secteur de la centrale et en vue de la création d’une zone démilitarisée », a-t-il déclaré dans une intervention à la télévision ukrainienne, relayée par l’énergéticien dans une boucle Télégram.
« [Avec] the presence of blue helmets to ensure control of this area”added Mr. Kotine, considering that “there should be a peacekeeping mission which would also include experts from the IAEA [Agence internationale de l’énergie atomique] and other security organizations”. According to him, the presence of the Russian army on the spot “creates the greatest danger for the future, an accident involving radiation or even a nuclear disaster”. Petro Kotine also accused the IAEA of having only had “a very weak reaction” since the Russian army seized the site, representing “regarding 500 soldiers [russes] and 50 heavy vehicles, tanks and trucks,” to date, he said.
The Russian Defense Ministry said on Monday that the latest strike that hit the area around the power plant overnight from Saturday to Sunday damaged a high-voltage line supplying electricity to two Ukrainian regions. On Saturday, a reactor was shut down following being targeted by strikes. According to Petro Kotin, two Ukrainian employees of the plant were injured during these strikes.
The Secretary General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, was alarmed Monday by these bombings, warning that “Any attack on nuclear power plants is a suicidal thing”. “We fully support the efforts of the IAEA aimed at creating the conditions for a stabilization of the situation at the level of the plant”he also said, once more demanding that agency inspectors have access to the plant.
