Russia continues to blackmail Europe and the whole world with a possible man-made disaster by using Zaporizhzhya NPP occupation. The aggressor country cynically ignores all calls of the European Commission, international nuclear communities, nuclear regulators, the IAEA Board of Governors, the UN General Assembly. This was stressed by SNRIU Acting Chairman, Chief State Inspector for Nuclear and Radiation Safety of Ukraine Oleh Korikov during the side events within the framework of the 67th IAEA General Conference (Vienna, Austria).

“It is obvious that the new realities and new challenges for nuclear and radiation safety that this war has opened must be properly studied. It is necessary to develop such legal, economic, political safeguards that would immediately isolate any aggressor country, throw it to the sidelines - away from global progressive processes. Today on the sidelines should be Russia and its nuclear industry”, Oleh Korikov said. He added that the whole civilized world is well aware that all threats to nuclear and radiation safety in Ukraine caused by aggression of the Russian Federation, the baseless war, the occupation of nuclear facilities, their shelling and destruction of infrastructure.

“No matter how difficult the challenges that the war posed to Ukraine were, for me personally, from its first days, a sense of support was important - from the European Commission, Euratom, nuclear regulators of the EU countries, ENSREG, WENRA and IAEA. All channels of communication with them then and now, after a year and a half of war, were and remain open. This is an extremely important factor!”, thanked Oleg Korikov to international partners for their support and for the principled and unchanged position on a full-scale war launched against Ukraine by the Russian Federation on February 24, 2022. This war consists in the requirement of complete de-occupation and demilitarization of nuclear facilities and all territories of Ukraine within the borders of 1991.

SNRIU Acting Chairman underlined, “Europe and the world provide assistance to Ukraine in its various forms, from the reception of Ukrainian refugees, to the provision of weapons, military equipment and ammunition for the Armed Forces of Ukraine, financial support. But equally important is assistance in the field of nuclear and radiation safety. It comes within the framework of our cooperation with the European Commission, within the framework of bilateral agreements with European countries and through the IAEA assistance network - RANET. Every euro cent spent to help Ukraine, every means of control or individual protection enhance our capabilities to ensure nuclear and radiation safety.” Oleh Korikov also expressed confidence that Ukraine will definitely win, and Zaporizhzhya NPP will return under the control of the Ukrainian government, the legitimate operator and the state regulator.

The 67th session of the IAEA General Conference began on 25 September in Vienna (Austria) and will last until 29 September. This year, the Ukrainian delegation at the IAEA General Conference was headed by Minister of energy of Ukraine German Galushchenko. The team also included SNRIU Acting Chairman, Chief State Inspector for Nuclear and Radiation Safety of Ukraine Oleh Korikov, President of SE «NNEGC «Energoatom» Petro Kotin, First Deputy Chairman of the State Agency of Ukraine on Exclusion Zone Management Andriy Tymchuk and others.