UN / UKRAINE

Addressing a Security Council meeting on the situation in Ukraine, a top UN official said, “we are alarmed regarding reported incidents around nuclear facilities in Ukraine and Russia.” UNIFEED

• Video Length: 00:06:04
• Production Date: 28 August 2024
• Asset Language: English; Russian
• Personal Subject: ROBERT A. WOOD; DMITRY A. POLYANSKIY; SERGIY KYSLYTSYA
• Corporate Name: SECURITY COUNCIL
• Subject Topical: PEACE AND SECURITY
• Geographic Subject: UKRAINE; RUSSIAN FEDERATION
• MAMS Id: 3249052
• Parent Id: 3249052
• Alternate Title: unifeed240828e

Description

STORY: UN / UKRAINE
TRT: 06:04
SOURCE: UNIFEED
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGES: ENGLISH / RUSSIAN / NATS

DATELINE: 28 AUGUST 2024, NEW YORK CITY

Shotlist

FILE - NEW YORK CITY

1. Wide shot, UN Headquarters

28 AUGUST 2024, NEW YORK CITY

2. Wide shot, Security Council
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Miroslav Jenča, Assistant Secretary-General for Europe, Central Asia and Americas, Departments of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs and Peace Operations Council Members:
“We are alarmed regarding reported incidents around nuclear facilities in Ukraine and Russia. In August, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reported deterioration of the nuclear safety situation at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. On 17 August, a drone strike hit the road around the site perimeter. On 11 August, significant fire at one of the cooling towers resulted in considerable damage. The IAEA team has also reported periodic intense military activity near the plant, including sounds of frequent explosions, repetitive heavy machine gun and rifle fire and artillery at various distances from the plant. Concerns are also rising over nuclear safety and security in the Kursk region of the Russian Federation. On 22 August, the Russian Federation informed the International Atomic Energy Agency that remains of a drone were found within the territory of the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant.”
4. Wide shot, Security Council
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Robert A. Wood, Alternate Representative of the United States of America for Special Political Affairs in the United Nations:
“The Kremlin is endangering the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. We call on Russia to accede to the demand of a hundred of its fellow UN General Assembly members and return control of the plant to the rightful competent Ukrainian authorities. Russia cannot and will not subjugate Ukraine. The United States will continue to uphold the foundational principles of the UN Charter and support Ukraine against Russia's aggression as it preserves its independence. Ukraine and the United States made concrete progress by signing a historic bilateral security agreement in June. But we are not alone. With Ukraine Compact 32 NATO allies and partners pledged to support Ukraine's immediate security needs and maintain Ukraine's long-term defense and deterrence capability. Ukraine's independence day serves as a reminder of what is at stake the fundamental principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity. Our commitment to those principles, like our commitment to Ukraine, will not waver.”
6. Wide shot, Security Council
7. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Dmitry Polyanskiy, Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Russian Federation:
“Now the Russian forces are freeing up the last strongholds that the Ukrainian forces used to hold since 2014. And this is only the beginning. Ukraine will have to pay for the Kursk adventure in full. We understand full well, that the request for the meeting today by the Western co-conspirators of Zelenskiy regime was done with a heavy heart. The US and its satellites at the same time need to bear in mind the fact that the Ukrainian Armed Forces in Kursk are fighting using Western weapons. So, they use and lose German and American tanks and shell using Western artillery, and also in Kursk they have Western mercenaries and consultants, and this means that the Western participation of the crimes of the Kyiv regime has become even more obvious for everyone. This is something I'm going to discuss on the 30th of August at the meeting on Western weapons supplies to Ukraine. Therefore, expecting that the United States and its NATO allies are going to be objective or even humane in assenting what is being done by the Ukrainian murderers and terrorists and marauderы would be naive. But for such reasons, our Western colleagues do have the formula about the right of Kyiv to self-defense and protection from Russian aggression. And we have heard these expressions today in this room. They sounded false, and we'll continue hearing them.”
8. Wide shot, Security Council
9.SOUNDBITE (English) Sergiy Kyslytsya, Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ukraine:
“Mr. President, for over two years, Ukraine has been withstanding the largest aerial terror in human history, since the beginning of the full scale invasion, Russia has launched over 9600 missiles, nearly 14,000 attack drones and more than 33,000 guided aerial bombs. Just imagine this number of deadly weapons dropped on our homes, schools, hospitals, power stations. The costs of these attacks are difficult to calculate. On August 26 alone, Russia spent about 1.3 billion US dollars on shelling of Ukraine. This money might have been spent on improving the life of ordinary Russians. According to the United Nations, a quarter of them have never had access to centralized sewage systems. However, we are speaking about Russia and its criminal regime, the regime that has plunged its country into profound crisis. The elements of the Russian crisis include a complete disregard for human lives, both of its own citizens and both of other nationalities, a lack of humanity and morality and growing inadequacy, both internally and on the international stage. That is why Russia hopes to spend its revenues on killing Ukrainians.”
10. Wide shot, Security Council

Storyline

Addressing a Security Council meeting on the situation in Ukraine, a top UN official said, “We are alarmed regarding reported incidents around nuclear facilities in Ukraine and Russia.”

Miroslav Jenča, Assistant Secretary-General for Europe, Central Asia, and the Americas, spoke today (28 Aug) in New York about the safety of nuclear sites in both Ukraine and Russia.

During his briefing, he detailed incidents from August, including a drone strike near the plant’s perimeter, significant damage from a fire at a cooling tower, and ongoing military activity close to the site. Jenča also mentioned rising concerns over the safety of the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant in Russia, where drone remains were found on the premises.

Also speaking at the Council, US representative Robert A. Wood said, “the Kremlin is endangering the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. We call on Russia to accede to the demand of a hundred of its fellow UN General Assembly members and return control of the plant to the rightful competent Ukrainian authorities,” Wood said. He emphasized the United States' unwavering support for Ukraine, referencing a recent bilateral security agreement and the broader international backing Ukraine has received through the Ukraine Compact with NATO allies.

For his part, the Russian representative Dmitry Polyanskiy said, “now the Russian forces are freeing up the last strongholds that the Ukrainian forces used to hold since 2014. And this is only the beginning. Ukraine will have to pay for the Kursk adventure in full.”

Ukraine's Permanent Representative to the UN, Sergiy Kyslytsya, provided an account of the ongoing devastation in Ukraine. “For over two years, Ukraine has been withstanding the largest aerial terror in human history,” Kyslytsya stated, detailing the extensive missile, drone, and bomb attacks carried out by Russia. Kyslytsya described Russia’s actions as indicative of a “criminal regime” with no regard for human life or morality, both within its own borders and internationally.