The Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemns the violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity by several IAEA staff members as a result of Russian blackmail and systematic attempts to impose illegal and contradictory operational mechanisms on international organizations in the temporarily occupied territories.

Russia deliberately creates artificial obstacles to the work of international organizations in Ukraine, forcing them to violate Ukrainian legislation, bilateral agreements with Ukraine, and disregard UN General Assembly resolutions.

The situation at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant is a striking example of such Russian blackmail. Russia effectively forced IAEA staff to remain at the plant without rotation for 80 days—far exceeding the planned term—keeping them under unprecedented psychological pressure in a high-risk zone. Moscow essentially deprived international experts of their freedom of movement and used them as a tool of political pressure on the international community.

Ukraine has repeatedly proposed a safe and lawful rotation route through government-controlled territory. However, Moscow systematically refused to provide the IAEA with security guarantees under these conditions. The Kremlin deliberately blocked the safe exit of specialists through Ukrainian-controlled territory, forcing the Agency to comply with Russian terms.

We consider the IAEA’s actions not as an expert rotation at ZNPP but as a humanitarian evacuation under conditions that threatened the lives and health of Agency personnel.

Ukraine has sent a note of protest to the IAEA senior officials, condemning the violation of our state’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and warning against any repetition of similar actions in the future. The Ukrainian side will also raise the issue of Russia’s unprecedented blackmail at the upcoming meeting of the IAEA Board of Governors in the coming days.

We emphasize that the activities of international organizations on Ukrainian territory—especially amid the war of aggression- must be conducted strictly in accordance with Ukrainian law, international legal norms, and UN principles.

Only the cessation of Russia’s nuclear blackmail and the return of ZNPP under the control of its rightful owner—Ukraine—will ensure genuine IAEA monitoring at the plant and guarantee nuclear safety in Europe.

Ukraine calls on international organizations to take a firm stance, reject Russia’s imposed conditions, and take measures to safeguard their own authority, independence, and impartiality.