Risk of accident: G7 demands Russian withdrawal from Ukraine's nuke plant

The Group of Seven (G7) nations on Wednesday asked Russia to vacate Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant in Ukraine citing a risk of a dangerous nuclear accident.

The statement was issued by foreign ministers of G7 countries came after shelling near the nuclear power plant in recent days that drew condemnation from international atomic officials. This comes as Western media reports said Russian forces occupying the Zaporizhzhya plant have turned the site into a military base.

"We, the G7 Foreign Ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States of America, and the High Representative of the European Union, reiterate our strongest condemnation of the ongoing unprovoked and unjustifiable war of aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine," the G7 said in a statement.

They said the Russian Federation must immediately withdraw its troops from within Ukraine's internationally recognized borders and respect Ukraine's territory and sovereignty.

"In that context, we demand that Russia immediately hand back full control to its rightful sovereign owner, Ukraine, of the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant as well as of all nuclear facilities within Ukraine's internationally recognized borders to ensure their safe and secure operations," the leaders said and added, "it is Russia's continued control of the plant that endangers the region."

The G7 leaders said they remain profoundly concerned by the serious threat that the seizure of Ukrainian nuclear facilities and other actions by Russian armed forces pose to the safety and security of these facilities, significantly raising the risk of a nuclear accident or incident and endangering the population of Ukraine, neighbouring states and the international community.

"It also undermines the IAEA's ability to monitor Ukraine's peaceful nuclear activities for safeguarding purposes," the statement added.