UN nuclear watchdog head is in Ukraine out of renewed concern over Zaporizhzhia power plant safety

The head of the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog was holding talks with senior officials Tuesday in Ukraine over safety concerns for Europe's largest nuclear power plant, where attacks were recently reported nearby.

Rafael Grossi, who heads the International Atomic Energy Agency, was making his 10th visit since the Russia-Ukraine war began in February 2022.

Grossi posted on X that he was on his way to Zaporizhzhia to “help prevent a nuclear accident.”

The Zaporizhzhia plant, which came under Russian control in the wake of its 2022 invasion, saw artillery shelling in the area the previous day that damaged the nuclear facility’s power access, according to its operator Energoatom, which blamed Russia for the attacks.

“Russian shelling damaged one of the two external overhead lines through which … the Zaporizhzhya NPP receives power from the Ukrainian power system,” the operator said in a post on the Telegram messaging and social network. “In the event of damage to the second line, an emergency situation will arise,” it said, adding that technicians could not access the site of the damage because of the “real threat of repeated shelling.”

The Vienna-based IAEA says ongoing attacks in the Zaporizhzhia area, as well as damage to the country's grid, pose threats to the power supply that's vital to Ukraine’s nuclear power stations. The watchdog said its staff at Zaporizhzhia recently had to shelter indoors due to reported drone threats in the area.

Other than Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine has three active nuclear plants.

Grossi, who is traveling with a team of IAEA experts and officials, began a round of meetings in Kyiv with a stop at the Ministry of Energy and talks with the minister, Herman Halushchenko.

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