The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), after inspecting the largest nuclear power plant in Zaporizhzhia in Europe, confirmed that Russian military equipment has indeed been stored in the nuclear power plant, listed many damages in the nuclear power plant, and warned against the nuclear power plant. The shelling is "playing with fire", calling on both Russia and Ukraine to draw a "demilitarization" around the nuclear power plant.
In this regard, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that if the proposal will demilitarize the nuclear power plant area, the Ukrainian side will support it; Russia's ambassador to the United Nations, Vasily Nebenzya, continued to criticize Ukraine for bombing nuclear power plants. The factory did not respond to "demilitarization".
The Zaporozhye nuclear power plant accounted for 20 percent of Ukraine's total electricity production before the war.
However, due to the sharp drop in Ukraine's electricity consumption after the outbreak of the war, only one of the six reactors in the nuclear power plant is still operational, which has not affected Ukraine's electricity supply.
However, as winter approaches, the power generation of nuclear power plants may become more important.
At the beginning of the war, the nuclear power plant had fallen into Russian hands.
Since July, nuclear power plants have continued to explode, and Russia and Ukraine have accused each other of what the other has done, making the incident a "Rashomon."
After a long period of negotiations, IAEA personnel, led by Director General Rafael Grossi, crossed the battlefield from Ukraine on September 1 and were able to enter the nuclear power plant for inspection.
By September 5, the IAEA experts had largely left, leaving only two personnel to try to stay in the nuclear power plant to help the agency continue to observe developments.
On September 6, the International Atomic Energy Agency released its investigation report, arguing that the long-term high tension and pressure of the employees of the Ukrainian nuclear power plant under the occupation of the Russian army is not a sustainable situation, and it also increases the risk of human error. It was pointed out that in order to avoid physical damage caused by military operations, it was necessary to establish a safe area immediately, and consultations with all parties have been launched to this end.
On September 2, IAEA Director General Grossi and his team members inspected the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant.
(AP)
The report also detailed multiple damages to the nuclear power plant: a turbine oil tank, the roofs of several buildings, buildings containing nuclear fuel and solid nuclear waste, a training center, a building with a central alarm system for the physical protection system, buildings with Containers for radiation monitoring systems, etc.
However, the report pointed out that the radiation on the side of the nuclear power plant is still at normal levels.
At the same time, the report also confirmed Ukraine's previous allegations that Russian military equipment was stationed at the nuclear power plant, indicating that Russian military vehicles were parked in the turbine hall and on the channel connecting the reactor.
The Ukrainian side believes that if an accident occurs at the nuclear power plant, it will hinder rescue.
According to an update issued by the International Atomic Energy Agency on September 5, the remaining main connection of the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant to the Ukrainian power grid was interrupted on September 2, while the fire on the 5th also interrupted the last backup line, leaving the nuclear power The plant has temporarily lost its external power supply and can only rely on the last nuclear reactor to power the plant's cooling system and other safety systems.
Although the Ukrainian personnel of the nuclear power plant stated that they would repair and reconnect the connection lines of the above two external power grids, due to the fact that the nuclear power plant has only about 10 days of diesel generators (the water cooling system already consumes up to 200 tons of diesel power generation per day) It will be difficult to supply during the exchange of fire between the two sides), if there is an accident in the last reactor, and the external power cannot be connected in time, a nuclear disaster similar to Japan's Fukushima will be a high probability event.
The "demilitarization" proposed by the International Atomic Energy Agency is, of course, a necessary action in the consideration of nuclear safety.
But the demilitarization of Russia and Ukraine is a strategically favorable outcome for Ukraine.
Zaporozhye Oblast is one of the Ukrainian territories Russia is seeking to implement a referendum on membership in Russia.
If the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant is demilitarized for a long time, the battlefield in Zaporozhye state will be partially frozen in disguise, helping Uzbekistan to rely on the prestige of international institutions to maintain the status quo on the battlefield, so that it can be stopped without a single soldier. enemy advance.
At the same time, the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant is located at a key position on the southern bank of the Dnieper River, which is the front line of the confrontation between Russia and Ukraine. The cities on the northern bank of Ukraine are also occasionally bombarded by Russian troops from the surrounding area of the nuclear power plant.
At this time, the demilitarization led by the International Atomic Energy Agency is tantamount to asking the Russian army to give up its advantageous forward positions.
Moreover, at a time when Ukraine has been accusing Russia of intentionally disconnecting the nuclear power plant from the Ukrainian power grid and relocating it to the Crimea and other Russian-controlled areas in southern Ukraine, the Ukrainian authorities actually intend to increase the power generation scale of the nuclear power plant, even if there is a war During the period, Ukraine does not need it, and it can also be exported to the EU to earn increasingly reduced foreign exchange.
In July, the Ukrainian authorities asked the EU to allow Ukraine to transmit electricity to Europe, while disregarding the danger of war, restarting a reactor at the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant that was out of service due to the war, hoping to increase power generation under Russian control.
The plan, of course, ended in failure due to increased military activity around the nuclear power plant, but if the nuclear power plant is successfully demilitarized and operated by Ukrainian personnel under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the Ukrainian authorities will be able to safely scale the nuclear power plant's power generation capacity Return to pre-war levels and implement its plan to sell electricity.
On the one hand, it is a financial subsidy to the Ukrainian government, and on the other hand, it also allows Ukraine to be closer to the European Union.
Both are strategically disadvantageous for Russia.
At a purely strategic level, it is the most beneficial option for Russia to continue to control the nuclear power plant, completely decommission it or transfer it to a Russian-controlled area.
But today the presence of the International Atomic Energy Agency has probably become a fact, and the agency's call for "demilitarization" has also put some diplomatic pressure on Russia.
Judging from the development of the situation at the moment, in the dispute over the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, the Ukrainian side did rely on the strength of the international organization and did not give up its troops and had a slight advantage over Russia.
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