Quotes
There is not enough water in the cooling pond. The only way it can be refilled is to build a new pumping station,
says Shaun Burnie, a nuclear expert with Greenpeace
The U.S. wants to take it back from the Russians and invest in its modernization. That is a separate issue — one that remains open for discussion,
he said Thursday
President Trump asked me: ‘what you think about this station?’
Zelensky told reporters
I raised this issue with President Trump and said that our side would identify what we consider to be civilian infrastructure,
Mr Zelensky said
I think they appreciate our capability. What is obviously important is that they appreciate that it is what it is, which is a credible capability”.
Of Russia, the prime minister saidThe temporarily occupied Zaporizhzhia [nuclear power plant] belongs to Ukraine, everybody acknowledges it and recognises it,
he saidI believe that the station will not work under occupation. I believe that the station can be restored to operation,
Zelensky said, also cautioning
But, if it was helpful to achieve that end – have the US run nuclear power plants in Ukraine? No problem. We can do that,
Wright addedCertainly, we have immense technical expertise in the United States to run those plants. I don’t think that requires boots on the ground,
Wright saidHaving said that, if we’re talking about a long process, I’m sure certain things could be worked out, particularly if there is an arrangement… to have the majority of the Ukrainian staff and operators running these reactors,
Sokova addedThere’s no point in trying to rebuild a plant and operate it if it could be jeopardized at any moment,
Lyman saidThe first word of business would be to establish definitively that there could be no attacks on either the plant directly or on the supporting infrastructure – both power and water resources – and that would have to be iron-clad,
said Edwin Lyman, director of nuclear power safety at the Union of Concerned ScientistsIf you just hand over the station, and a meter away from the station, everything is occupied or there are Russian weapons, no one will work like that,
Zelensky told reporters, raising concerns that the plant could be restored with US and Ukrainian investment, only to have Russia possibly damage or destroy it again laterIt still does not receive adequate maintenance and it continues to serve as a Russian ammunition depot,
said Prokip, also a senior associate at the Wilson CenterToday does not just mark the birth of this vessel. It marks nothing less than the renewal of a historic national endeavour. A commitment to our defence for decades to come.”
He added
We will not discuss it. We have 15 nuclear power units in operation today. This all belongs to our state.”
Mr Zelensky, who had a very public bust-up with Mr Trump in the Oval Office last month, said[Trump] said that the United States could be very helpful in running those plants with its electricity and utility expertise. American ownership of those plants would be the best protection for that infrastructure and support for Ukrainian energy infrastructure,
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement Wednesday after the call with Zelenskyy
President Trump asked me [about the plant], I told him that if it is not Ukrainian, it will not work for anyone. This is illegal. [But] if the Americans are thinking about how to find a way out and want to take it away from the Russians and modernize it — this is a different issue, an open issue. We can talk about it,
Zelenskyy said at a press conference Thursday in OsloBut we did not discuss the issue of ownership with President Trump,
Zelenskyy added Thursday, notingWe can’t just give this station to someone. And if we want it to start working again, and become safe, Ukrainians must take it over, not only because it is our station and our land. We need to be able to restore the station and make it safe for the entire world. We can’t just give it away,
the Ukrainian leader said