Zakharova: Moscow and Kyiv are not conducting direct negotiations on security at the ZNPP

It is untimely to say that Moscow and Kyiv are close to agreeing on an acceptable agreement to create a security zone around the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, said Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova.

“To say that the parties are close to agreement is untimely. The question in principle is whether Kyiv is ready to commit itself to stop shelling and attempts to seize the ZNPP, and also whether the IAEA will be able to achieve the implementation of such hypothetical agreements by Ukrainians,” the diplomat noted (quote according to RIA Novosti).

According to her, Moscow and Kyiv are not conducting direct negotiations in this direction, the possible parameters of the declaration are being discussed through the IAEA secretariat.

Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov noted earlier today that Moscow is continuing contacts with the IAEA. “The most important thing is to stop the shelling of the territory of the nuclear power plant by the Ukrainian armed forces, which is fraught with great danger,” he added.

Contacts between the IAEA and Moscow and Kyiv have intensified against the background of the resumption of strikes on the ZNPP from the Ukrainian side on November 19 and 20. Grossi called for an immediate halt to the shelling of the station. At the same time, he said that it is difficult for the IAEA specialists to determine who strikes at the object. “Our main goal is to stop this, not play whistleblower,” he said.

Russia has controlled the ZNPP since the end of February. In early October, after the Zaporozhye region became part of Russia, Putin instructed to take the plant facilities into federal ownership and create the Zaporozhye NPP Federal State Unitary Enterprise to ensure the safety of nuclear facilities.

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