UN Secretary-General calls for immediate end to all military activity around nuclear power plant

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for an immediate end to all military activity around Europe’s largest nuclear power plant in southeastern Ukraine. He issued the statement hours before a UN Security Council meeting as Russian and Ukrainian officials have repeatedly accused each other of shelling the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant. 

In a statement, UN Secretary-General said, regrettably, instead of de-escalation, over the past several days there have been reports of further deeply worrying incidents that could if they continue, lead to disaster. Mr. Guterres said, an urgent agreement is needed at a technical level on a safe perimeter of demilitarisation to ensure the safety of the



area. The facility must not be used as part of any military operation, he added.

Russia took over the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in early March, stationing troops there and keeping the Ukrainian staff in place to run it. There has been shelling around the plant since Friday, which Ukraine and Russia blame on each other. Ukraine said the reactors were not damaged, but there was damage elsewhere on the site.

A team from International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has been trying to get safety guarantees in order to deploy a technical mission to check the site. Mr. Guterres called on the parties to provide the team with immediate, secure, and unfettered access.