On 20 March 2024, the 54th plenary meeting of the European Nuclear Safety Regulators Group (ENSREG) was held in Brussels (Belgium), where the SNRIU delegation represented Ukraine. Head of SNRIU -  Chief State Inspector for Nuclear and Radiation Safety of Ukraine Oleh Korikov informed the delegates of ENSREG member states about the state of nuclear and radiation safety in Ukraine in the context of a full-scale war.

In his speech, he stressed the need to impose economic and political sanctions against the russian federation as a country that resorted to nuclear blackmail by occupying Zaporizhzhya NPP and turning it into a military base.

"Violation of the terms of the licences for the operation of power units, lack of qualified personnel at the industrial site, lack of proper maintenance and repair of safety systems and safety-critical equipment, unreliable connection to the power grid to meet ZNPP's own needs, loss of the Kakhovka reservoir as a reliable source of water supply and a number of other factors have led to the degradation of nuclear and radiation safety at the occupied ZNPP, and this process, unfortunately, continues and accelerates," said Oleh Korikov.

"The technical condition of the nuclear power plant equipment is deteriorating. Further russian occupation of ZNPP is critical and could have catastrophic consequences. The only way to prevent this is to fully demilitarise and de-occupy ZNPP and return it to Ukrainian control," he added.

"I am convinced that the situation can only be changed through joint and consolidated efforts. We need to put pressure on russia as a member state of the IAEA and a member of the Agency's Board of Governors. The restrictions on russia's rights and privileges in the IAEA and other international organisations should be reconsidered. Specific steps are needed to ensure the international economic and political isolation of the aggressor country. Any cooperation in the field of nuclear energy with the russian federation and its enterprises should be terminated," SNRIU Head stressed.

ENSREG is an independent authoritative expert body consisting of representatives of the EU Member States and the European Commission aimed at continuous improvement and establishment of mutual understanding in the areas of nuclear safety and radioactive waste management.