Azerbaijan petitions to Nuclear Energy Summit co-chairs regarding Armenia nuclear plant

Several representatives of Azerbaijan's civil society have written an open letter—regarding the Metsamor Nuclear Power Plant of Armenia—to Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi, co-chairs of the first-ever Nuclear Energy Summit, which started Thursday in Brussels, reported the RFE/RL Armenian Service.

In the open letter, the Azerbaijani side called on the leadership of the summit to pay attention to the "global danger posed by the nuclear power plant," and to raise before the Armenian government the matter of immediately stopping the operation of this nuclear plant.

Armenia has repeatedly stated that it actively cooperates with the IAEA in ensuring nuclear safety, and fulfilling all its respective obligations. And Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Thursday reaffirmed this during the aforesaid Nuclear Energy Summit, also informing that Armenia is extending the operation period of the nuclear power plant from 2026 to 2036.

Separately, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi was in Armenia in late 2022. At his meeting with PM Pashinyan, Grossi had discussed the work to increase the safety level of the country’s nuclear power plant and spoken with satisfaction about the improvements made in the nuclear plant.