France says it is in direct contact with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as Paris seeks to assess the situation at Ukraine's Chernobyl nuclear power plant amid growing fears that Russia's invasion could deliberately target nuclear facilities.
Speaking earlier this Wednesday, French government spokesman Gabriel Attal said: "We are trying to clarify these reports together with the International Atomic Energy Agency," who added that France was asking Russia to co-operate.
This comes amid fears that radioactive material could be released from Ukraine's Chernobyl nuclear power plant.
French President Emmanuel Macron has reportedly urged Russian President Vladimir Putin to ensure the protection and security of Ukraine's nuclear sites, during talks between the two over the weekend.
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According to Ukraine’s state-run nuclear company Energoatom, there are heightened concerns because spent nuclear fuel rods can't be cooled down after its power supply was severed following Russian bombardments earlier this week.
However, Germany's environment ministry has said that they have not recorded any radiation leaks from the Chernobyl site.
The IAEA also maintains there has been "no critical impact on safety" from the power loss at Chernobyl.
EU initiates a broad walk-out from @iaeaorg BoG in response to unacceptable remarks by #Russia. We strongly condemn Russian military aggression against #Ukraine & resulting nuclear threats to safety of Ukrainian facilities. In solidarity EU & its Member States #StandWithUkraine pic.twitter.com/JpDHcVendG
— EU Delegation Vienna 🇪🇺 (@euunvie) March 9, 2022
EU delegation walks out of IAEA
Meanwhile, the European Union led a walkout of delegates from a meeting of the UN nuclear watchdog's Board of Governors on Wednesday in protest at "unacceptable" remarks by Russia.
The EU ambassador to the IAEA, Stephan Klement said on Twitter that the walkout was in response to Russia's aggression in Ukraine, specifically mentioning the Kremlin's threats against nuclear facilities in Ukraine.
The EU also chairs the separate Iran nuclear talks in which Russia is a key player.
