On Friday Iran informed the International Atomic Energy Agency that Bushehr nuclear power plant was struck by US-Israeli attacks for the third time since the start of the war.
At the same time, the head of Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom has confirmed that the situation continues to deteriorate; however, there’s as yet been no damage to the operating reactor and no release of radiation reported. It was the third strike in just ten days.
The Kremlin has newly accused Washington and Israel of putting the whole region in danger, and further of harming the cause of nuclear non-proliferation globally.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has issued a fresh statement: “The drama of the situation is aggravated by the fact that countries attacking peaceful nuclear facilities in Iran are effectively undermining the NPT, the IAEA’s verification mechanisms, nuclear and physical security conventions, as well as the agency’s relevant regulations,” according to the ministry’s website.
“Carefully crafted and internationally agreed solutions are not taken seriously by these states and can be discarded at any moment in favor of their selfish interests and geopolitical considerations,” the spokeswoman added.
Zakharova further communicated that atrocities in Iran must cease, and nuclear sites must be safeguarded, referencing the latest attacks in the past days on the complex in Khondab, the factory in Ardakan, and the strikes near the Bushehr nuclear power plant.
“The aggressors continue to raise the stakes in their war in the Middle East, ignoring all associated risks, including the danger of widespread radioactive contamination,” Zakharova said.
She further chastised UN and international bodies for not stepping up to loudly condemn the US-Israeli operation.
Russia has a direct interest in Iran’s nuclear sites, given hundreds of Russian experts and technicians have long helped operate them, and support the Islamic Republic’s domestic nuclear power generation for its electricity needs. Reuters reported this week:
Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom evacuated a further 163 of its staff from Iran’s Bushehr nuclear power plant on Wednesday, the state-run RIA news agency reported.
It cited Rosatom chief Alexei Likhachev as saying about 300 of the company’s staff remained at Bushehr, but more would be leaving.
Some 500 to 1,000 Russian staff are there during normal operations, and presumably many more are at other sites throughout the country. Russia helped construct many of these very complexes many years ago.
