UK assertion on Ukraine to IAEA Board of Governors – June 2026

I thank the Director General for his sobering report, and for the continued professionalism and braveness of IAEA employees on the bottom. Their presence stays indispensable in decreasing dangers and offering unbiased, credible reporting beneath terribly tough circumstances. 

The report factors to a progressively degrading working setting throughout Ukraine’s nuclear websites. However, developments since its issuance underscore that these dangers will not be static. They are worsening. 

It is Russia’s unlawful invasion and ongoing aggression in opposition to Ukraine that has created these circumstances, forcing the Agency into the position of negotiating army pauses round nuclear amenities.  

Chair, we’re deeply alarmed by the latest drone strike in opposition to the Centralised Spent Nuclear Fuel Storage Facility at Chornobyl. That a strike of this nature may happen with out quick radiological penalties mustn’t reassure us; it underlines how slender the protection margins have change into, and the way dependent they now are on circumstance slightly than management. 

This facility sits inside an enormous exclusion zone, properly exterior any quick army necessity. Striking nuclear infrastructure in such an setting just isn’t coincidence – it’s reckless and wilful irresponsibility. 

This is strengthened by the element of the Director General’s report: persistent and widespread army exercise throughout all of Ukraine’s nuclear websites, together with ZNPP; ongoing grid instability; assaults on power infrastructure; and repeated reliance on emergency methods to compensate for these failures. 

The sheer quantity of incidents is putting: 

• One energy line to Rivne NPP remained disconnected all through the reporting interval following earlier army injury; 

• On 26 February, Chornobyl NPP misplaced off-site energy, whereas Khmelnytskyy (and South Ukraine NPP every misplaced an off-site energy line; 

• On 14 March, Chornobyl skilled a chronic disconnection requiring activation of emergency diesel turbines; 

• At ZNPP, continued reliance on a single energy line and repeated losses of off-site energy on 14, 16 and 26 April, and 28 May. 

This brings the full variety of LOOP occasions at ZNPP to sixteen because the begin of the battle. 

Chair, these incidents don’t must end in a direct radiological launch to be severe: every lack of off-site energy and every disruption to grid stability additional erodes defence-in-depth and reduces the protection margins on which safe nuclear operations rely. 

IAEA studies of a drone strike on the turbine corridor at ZNPP additional reveal how even incidents with out quick radiological impression contribute to worsening danger setting pushed by Russia’s unlawful invasion. 

We commend the Director General for his sustained efforts to dealer momentary ceasefire preparations to allow vital restore work at ZNPP. These are vital and essential measures to cut back quick nuclear danger. 

However, let me be clear: we shouldn’t be on this place in any respect. 

The easiest method to scale back nuclear danger is for Russia to stop its aggression and withdraw from Ukraine. Nothing much less will ship the circumstances required for secure and safe nuclear operations. 

Thank you.