Ukraine and Russia have accused each other of preventing the rotation of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) experts at the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine, which is occupied by Russian troops.
“The Kremlin is following its usual pattern of blackmail, threats and provocations,” Heorhii Tykhyi, a spokesman for Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry, said in a statement on Wednesday.
He accused Russia of deliberately delaying approval of the location and timing of the crossing of the front line for the nuclear observers. The Kremlin’s aim was to force the IAEA staff to travel from Russia to the nuclear facility in Ukraine.
Russia speaks of Ukrainian ‘provocatons‘
Russia’s Foreign Ministry, in turn, accused Kiev of “provocations.”
The rotation was initially planned for February 5.
But Russia claimed the exchange of the observer team was prevented by a deteriorating security situation as a result of Ukrainian drone attacks and mortar fire. No evidence of this was provided.
The IAEA has not yet commented on the events. The Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant has been under Russian control since March 2022.
All six reactors were shut down for safety reasons. A team of IAEA experts is monitoring the condition and security situation around the power plant.
The observers are regularly rotated and normally travel across the Russian-Ukrainian front line into the area controlled by Kiev.
Ukraine has been defending itself against a Russian invasion for almost three years.
