The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) did not detect any mines during the visit of Director General Rafael Grossi to the temporarily occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, but the IAEA is aware of the placement of mines around the perimeter and in certain places inside the Zaporizhzhia NPP, the agency said in a statement.
The IAEA is aware of reports of mines near the cooling pond, but no mines were found during the Director General's visit to the site, including the cooling pond, the statement said. Grossi called the situation with nuclear safety and security at the Zaporizhzhia NPP extremely fragile, as the destruction of the Kakhovka Reservoir was a disaster for the region as a whole, and also added serious difficulties for the nuclear power plant. He called on all parties to adhere to the basic principles of the IAEA aimed at preventing a nuclear accident.
"The IAEA is aware of the prior placement of mines outside the plant perimeter, which the agency has previously reported, as well as at certain locations inside, which security personnel explained were for defensive purposes. Our assessment of these specific placements was that although the presence of any explosive device does not meet safety standards, the basic safety functions of the facility are not significantly affected. We are following this issue very closely," Grossi said.
The IAEA Director General emphasized that the agency is going to step up efforts to help ensure nuclear safety and security, as well as provide assistance to the affected region.
As Ukrainian News Agency earlier reported, on June 22, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that the aggressor state of Russia was preparing a terrorist act at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant with the release of radiation.
On June 20, the head of the Defense Intelligence, Kyrylo Budanov, reported that the Russian occupying forces additionally mined the Zaporizhzhia NPP, in particular the cooler.
On June 19, Mykhailo Podoliak, adviser to the head of the President's Office, stated that there is a threat to the temporarily occupied Zaporizhzhia NPP.
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