The US is offering Ukraine a joint management format for the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, but it is still unclear how to organize its work and ensure control over the facility. Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported this in a comment to the media.
According to him, “the Americans want a joint format for managing the station. Our position here is very simple. If the Americans can take the station under their control, somehow demilitarize this zone, that is, Russian troops must withdraw from the station to a certain distance, then there will be a possibility for Ukraine to have access to the station. And then we need to look for a way to manage all this”.
The President emphasized that despite the Russian occupation, the facility remains Ukrainian. He also noted that he does not exclude the option in which the United States may claim a share in managing the station:
“This is their influence, this is their money, and ours – this is ours”.
At the same time, the mechanism of operation of the potential consortium, according to him, has not yet been determined:
“And so as of now, what kind of consortium could this be for the station, how to implement it all, how to further launch the work, how to manage it, – it’s hard to say yet”.
Volodymyr Zelensky recalled that the issue of the Zaporizhzhia NPP remains one of the most difficult in any discussions about ending the war.
The Zaporizhzhia NPP is the largest nuclear power plant in Europe, with six reactors. It has been under the control of Russian troops since March 2022 and does not generate electricity: all of its reactors have been in a cold shutdown since then and depend on external power and emergency systems.
The IAEA continues to work at the site to monitor the situation, as shelling in the region continues. Previously, the agency’s CEO, Rafael Grossi, stated that the station needed a “special status” and a separate agreement between Ukraine and Russia in the event of a peaceful settlement.
