Austria allocates another $1.1M to support IAEA work in Ukraine

Austria has allocated an additional 1 million euros ($1.1 million) to support the activities of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Ukraine, Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg said at a session of the IAEA General Conference, Report informs referring to TASS.

"We fully support you [the agency] and the five basic principles you developed [to protect the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant] in Ukraine," the minister said. "And to assist in your important work in Ukraine, we have allocated an additional 1 million euros for the work of this agency."

Vienna does not consider nuclear power to be a sustainable source of energy and therefore "strongly supports the agency’s work," Schallenberg continued. He called on countries to “maintain the highest safety standards” as long as they rely on this type of technology. "We cannot limit ourselves only to reducing emissions, but also must take into account the long-term consequences of possible nuclear accidents on the environment and unresolved issues of nuclear waste management," he explained.

Earlier, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi, in his speech at a meeting of the UN Security Council, outlined five principles for protecting the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. They include a ban on firing from and towards the power plant, as well as towards its reactors, personnel, and spent fuel storage facilities. According to Grossi, the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant should not be used for the deployment of heavy weapons and military personnel. All facilities necessary to ensure the operation of the power plant must be protected from attacks and sabotage, the head of the IAEA emphasized.