Russia demands changes to NPT document concerning Zaporizhzhia plant: NPT head Zlauvinen
Aug 27, 2022
New York [US], August 27 (ANI/Sputnik): Russia demanded amendments to the paragraphs of the final document of the 10th Review Conference of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), which concerned the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant (ZNPP) and the Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances, president of the conference Gustavo Zlauvinen said on Saturday.
Deputy Director of the Russian Foreign Ministry's Department for Nonproliferation and Arms Control Igor Vishnevetsky previously said that Russia proposed modifying five paragraphs of the document, bringing them in line with the urgent agenda related to the NPT review process and clearing them of political connotations. However, the desire of the Moscow delegation "to work did not find a response ."
"They [Russian delegation] expressed that they were not in a position to agree on the text unless very important changes were to be introduced in their language with regard to the situation with Ukrainian nuclear facilities under Russian control, and I did what any president would do, I tried to see whether that language would be acceptable to other delegations, and that was not the case," Zlauvinen told a press conference.
According to Zlauvinen, the claims of Russia were related to five points of the document concerning the ZNPP and the Budapest Memorandum.
In particular, a paragraph concerning the Budapest Memorandum stated that the conference reaffirmed the importance of full compliance by all nuclear-weapon powers with all existing obligations related to security guarantees granted to non-nuclear-weapon states, including obligations under the Memorandum on Security Assurances in connection with Ukraine's accession to the 1994 NPT.
The paragraphs of the draft document related to the ZNPP expressed concern about the loss of Kiev's control over the plant, and stressed the importance of restoring such control.
The ZNPP, located on the left bank of the Dnieper River, is the largest nuclear power plant in Europe in terms of the number of units and output. Since March, the plant has been under the control of the Russian military. According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, it is currently being managed by a Ukrainian operator. The Ukrainian military continues to regularly shell Enerhodar, surrounding villages and the territory of the ZNPP adjacent to the city. (ANI/Sputnik)
