Time.news – The Ukrainian Minister of Energy, Herman Halushchenko, expressed the hope that the mission of the International Atomic Energy Agency (Aiea) to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant will go beyond the technical aspects and examine the threats to the safety of the plant, from March under Russian control but largely managed by Ukrainian technicians.
“We hope that IAEA representatives have a slightly broader view of the situation”, Halushchenko told Ukrainian TV, “for example, in addition to purely technical functions, the mission should show the security threats posed by the presence of the Armed Forces. in a nuclear plant, the presence of weapons and heavy equipment in the plant blocks, mines. There are actually many things that need to be evaluated in terms of their impact on nuclear safety. “
The minister then pointed out that the IAEA specialists are “real professionals” and that he hopes that no pressure or manipulation by Russian soldiers will affect their work.
The team aims to establish a “permanent presence”, explained the director general of the UN agency, Rafaelo Grossi, who leads the mission. “We are preparing for the work that will begin,” he said speaking in French in a video released by his staff. The IAEA has specified, “we will try to establish a permanent presence of the agency” in the central, controlled by the Russians
The convoy of 19 vehicles, half of which with the word ‘UN’ on the sides (acronym for United Nations), entered the city at around 11 am GMT (1 pm Italian time). He had left Kiev on Wednesday morning.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (Aiea) now hopes to establish a permanent mission at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. “This is one of the most important things I want to do and will do itAccording to Reuters, Grossi reported that, for now, the IAEA mission aims to spend “a few days” at the nuclear power plant.
Russian troops bombed Enerhodar, the city in the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia region, as IAEA inspectors traveled to the nuclear power plant. The complaint is from the head of the military administration of the Nikopol area, Yevhen Yevtushenko, according to reports from the Ukrainian press. Previously, the Russian authorities of the provisional government had accused the Ukrainians of carrying out dozens of bombings on the area of the plant.
© David Ryder / Anadolu Agency via AFP
UN vehicles in Kiev
The findings in Finland
The Finnish Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority has detected a small amount of radioactive isotopes near the city of Kotka, located in the south-eastern part of the country. This was announced by the same agency, reports the Finnish broadcaster Yle.
According to Helsinki, during the analysis of an air sample in the city of Kotka, it was recorded “a small amount of radioactive isotopes of zirconium and niobium“, as well as a” slightly higher than normal “concentration of the cesium -137 isotope.
These substances are not normally found in nature and, in such a situation, we always inform, the chief inspector specified, however specifying that there is no danger for nature or people.. During the measurements, the wind flow “came from the East and Southeast,” added Stuk.
Cesium, derived mainly from the fallout from the Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident in Ukraine, is regularly detected in small quantities in air samples; small amounts of zirconium and niobium can escape into the air, for example, from the fuel of a nuclear power plant in connection with plant maintenance