Director of Zaporizhia nuclear power plant detained, says Ukrainian nuclear company
The general director of the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine has been detained by a Russian patrol, the president of the state nuclear company Energoatom, Petro Kotin, said in a statement on Saturday.
General Director Ihor Murashov was in his car on the way to the plant when “he was stopped, taken out of the car and, blindfolded, driven in an unknown direction. At the moment there is no information about the fate of him, ”said Kotin.
Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, center of disputes between Russia and Ukraine
“Murashov is an authorized person and has primary and sole responsibility for the nuclear and radioactive safety of the Zaporizhia NPP,” Kotin said, adding that his detention “jeopardizes the safety of the Ukrainian operation and nuclear power plant.” Europe’s largest nuclear power plant.
Kotin called on the Russians to release Murashov and urged the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Grossi, to “release” him.
Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry “strongly condemned the illegal detention” of Murashov in a statement posted on its website on Saturday.
“This crime is another manifestation of state terrorism by Russia and a serious violation of international law. Russia must immediately release the director general of the Zaporizhia NPP,” he said.
“We call on the international community, in particular the UN, the IAEA and the G7, to also take decisive action to this end,” the statement added.
Some background: The Zaporizhia plant has been a focal point of the war, as both the Russians and the Ukrainians have blamed each other for bombings near Europe’s largest nuclear power plant.
Since the beginning of March, when Russia captured the plant, international and local experts have issued dire warnings, not only for the safety of plant workers, but also for fear of a nuclear disaster that could affect thousands of people in the surrounding area. .