Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree that puts the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine under involuntary Russian state control and amends the country's constitution by admitting new regions into the Russian Federation.
The annexation of Zaporizhzhia and three other regions is illegal under international law and has been widely condemned by the international community.
Despite international opposition to the move, Putin instructed the cabinet to decide how to regulate and operate the Zaporizhzhia plant, which has been under forcible Russian military control since March.
Just as Putin signed the decree, the Ukrainian state nuclear operator Energoatom said its president would assume the duties of the plant's director general.
Petro Kotin, Energoatom president, said in a video address to the employees of the plant: "In accordance with the current legislation, approval and regulatory documents, I have decided to take over the duties of the director general of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. He said that the administration of the plant would be transferred directly to Kyiv following the detention of Russian officials of the plant's general director, Ihor Murashov. After his release from Russian detention, the IAEA said that Murashov will not continue his duties at the nuclear power plant.
Kotin said that operational issues at the plant would be resolved by the technical staff by agreement with the central office of the company.
IAEA Intervention: The head of the UN's nuclear watchdog, Rafael Grossi, was in Kyiv on Thursday to discuss his calls to establish a nuclear safety zone around the plant as soon as possible, the IAEA said in a statement. Grossi will visit Russia in the coming days.
Grossi said at a news conference that it is still not clear what the practical consequences of Russia's decision to seize the plant, but he will be talking about those matters in high-level meetings in Moscow. He said that the Ukrainian facility is considered by the IAEA.
We want this war to stop. The war should stop immediately. The position of the IAEA is that this facility is a Ukrainian facility, but I don't get into comments about military developments, Grossi said.
Since this is a Ukrainian facility, the ownership sic is on Energatom, Grossi said, referring to the Ukrainian state nuclear agency. We are guided by international law, and we are an international agency. As you know, annexations are not accepted under international law. The plant in Zaporizhzhia has been subject to intense scrutiny since Russia's invasion in late February. The International Atomic Energy Agency sent a team to the facility this summer after intense Russian shelling near the facility sparked concerns of a nuclear accident.
The largest nuclear plant in Europe has six reactors. It continues to be run by Ukrainian technicians, but the forcible annexation of Zaporizhzhia means it is now Russian territory, according to Russian law.