Russia waits for appropriate int’l reactions to disruption of IAEA chief’s visit to ZNPP

MELITOPOL, August 21. /TASS/. Russia expects an appropriate reaction from international organizations to the disruption of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi’s visit to the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) by the Ukrainian side, a Russian diplomat said.

Earlier, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Kiev had derailed Grossi’s visit to the ZNPP scheduled for August 20-21. Russia provided security guarantees for Grossi, while Kiev said it could not provide such guarantees.

"There is a specific issue that calls for a sufficiently strong and clear response from the international community. Because Kiev is openly embarking on a path of undermining the system of radiation and nuclear safety. This is a very dangerous path," Russian Foreign Ministry’s Ambassador-at-Large Rodion Miroshnik told TASS after a working visit to the Zaporozhye Region.

Both the ZNPP’s territory and its satellite city of Energodar regularly come under Ukraine’s attacks. On July 15, a Ukrainian drone attacked the facility’s service car, killing its chief engineer Alexander Yakovlev and his driver. On August 18, a Ukrainian drone hit an area near a bus stop in Energodar, killing one civilian and wounding 20 more, with most of them being ZNPP employees.