ROSTOV-ON-DON. Feb 22 (Interfax) - The only goal of the decision initiated by the United Nations to block the rotation of specialists from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) at the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) and change the route of the mission's arrival across the line of contact is to provoke a conflict with Russia, Renat Karchaa, an aide to the head of Rosenergoatom, said in an interview with Interfax.
"The main goal is to provoke a conflict out of nothing, and the latent objective is to identify the positions of the Russian Armed Forces near the line of contact in Kamenskoye. The new route proposed [for experts to reach the ZNPP] is seven kilometers longer," Karchaa said.
He described the pretexts on which the rotation has been postponed three times, which included heavy fighting and mined areas, as "nonsensical" and Russia's actions as impeccable.
"There was no heavy fighting there [along the mission's original route], and we didn't lay any mines there. In all cases, we offered full security guarantees from the moment they [IAEA specialists] start being escorted by the Russian side," Karchaa said.
A new date for the rotation has not been set yet and is still being agreed upon, Karchaa said, adding he was sure that a solution would ultimately be found.
"As this story stems from the UN Department for Safety and Security, I'll venture say that it's the Americans again who are the authors of this conflict's scenario. They're seeking to set Russia and the IAEA at loggerheads, but they won't succeed," he said.
As reported earlier, the UN Department for Safety and Security three times called off the rotation of IAEA specialists at the ZNPP, insisting, in particular, on changing the mission's route. Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said in a commentary that Russia did not and could not pose any obstacles to the staff's changeover.