4th STATEMENT
by Black Sea Women in Nuclear Network (BSWN) – regional professional network for advancing women working in the nuclear sector on ongoing regional and global nuclear security and safety risks created by Russia’ military aggression against Ukraine and call for stronger regional cooperation
Today, on June 6, 2023, Russia’s armed aggression against Ukraine opened a new page of threats to nuclear and radiation safety in the Black Sea region.
The Kakhovska Reservoir serves as a source of water supply for the cooling pond, which is a technological component of the system for removing excess heat from the cooling systems of Zaporizhzhya NPP units. The level of threats to nuclear and radiation safety has reached unprecedented levels.
The deliberate explosion of the Kakhovska HPP is a direct violation of nuclear safety principles and a particularly cynical step after the IAEA Director General’s call in his Statement to the United Nations Security Council, where he defined commitments as essential to avoid the danger of a catastrophic incident, тo action should be taken that undermines these principles, such as1:
All structures, systems and components essential to the safe and secure operation of ZNPP should be protected from attacks or acts of sabotage.
This is a man-made disaster, ecocide and environmental catastrophe for the 163 million of the citizens of Bulgaria, Georgia, Moldova, Romania, Turkey and Ukraine.
We, the BSWN professional community of women and men from the Black Sea region, call for unity of effort to neutralize threats to Ukraine’s nuclear security and support its recovery from the war.
We call on the Governments of the Black Sea regional states to stand for cooperation on deoccupation and demilitarization of Zaporizhzhia NPP, restore the nuclear safety and security regime in the region.
We stand ready to lend our expertise, time, and support to ensure a safe, peaceful, and independent nuclear sector in Ukraine.