IAEA Head departs on new visit to occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant

Rafael Mariano Grossi, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said on March 26 that he will soon arrive at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant to “assess first-hand the nuclear safety & security situation at the facility.”

“I will continue my efforts to protect the nuclear plant during the ongoing military conflict, and lead our next regular rotation of IAEA experts to and from the site,” Grossi said on Twitter.

Europe's largest nuclear power plant, located in the city of Enerhodar on the southern bank of the Dnipro River, has been occupied by Russian troops since March 4 and was fully disconnected from the Ukrainian power grid in November due to frequent shelling.

Numerous investigations have shown using satellite imagery and other sources that Russia has placed armored vehicles and other military equipment in and around the plant's six reactor buildings.

Life on the front line of Russia’s new nuclear brinkmanship

On nights when he hears them, Mykhailo Kling runs to his panoramic ninth-floor balcony in Nikopol to watch Russian rockets being fired at his hometown. “See the reactor buildings there,” he said, pointing across the wide expanse of the Dnipro River at the eerie shapes of the Zaporizhzhia…

Kyiv IndependentFrancis Farrell