IAEA mission leaves Kyiv for Zaporizhzhia NPP

The mission of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IEAE), which had earlier arrived in Kyiv, set off for the Zaporizhia Nuclear Power Plant to inspect the situation on the ground and establish a permanent representation at the facility that has remained seized by Russian troops since March 4.

That’s according to IAEA Director General Mariano Grossi, who spoke at a Kyiv briefing in the early hours of Wednesday, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"We are finally moving” after six months of effort, the official said, noting that the agency’s task is “to assess the real situation there, to help stabilize the situation as much as we can."

The head of the IAEA added that the mission plans to spend several days at the NPP, including to talk with the staff, and to report on the outcome of the trip. According to Grossi, the organization also intends to establish a permanent representation at the nuclear facility, which is known to be Europe’s largest.

In addition, the IAEA chief noted that the agency is crossing the front for the first time: "We are heading to a war zone, we are going to the occupied territories. This requires the explicit guarantees not only from the Russian Federation, but also from the Government of Ukraine. And we have been able to secure that."

As reported, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) mission led by its head, Raphael Grossi, arrived in the Ukrainian capital on the eve of the scheduled visit to the Zaporizhzhia NPP.

The ZNPP, the largest nuclear power plant in Europe, has remained captured by the Russian military after it was assaulted by the invasion forces on March 4. Since then, the invaders have deployed military equipment and ammunition on the NPP premises. They have also been shelling the surrounding area.

The United Nations, the United States, and Ukraine have called on the Russian Federation to withdraw military equipment and personnel from the nuclear facility.