Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Asharq Al-Awsat
Asharq Al-Awsat
World
Asharq Al-Awsat

Putin Tells IAEA's Grossi that Situation at Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant ‘of Concern’

Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi talk during their meeting in St. Petersburg, Russia, Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2022. (Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

Russian President Vladimir Putin told International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) head Rafael Grossi on Tuesday that the situation around Ukraine's Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant is "of concern".

At a meeting in St Petersburg shown on Russian state television, Putin told Grossi, the head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog, that Russia was open for dialogue and would discuss "all issues" concerning the facility's operations.

Putin also said there had been "excessive, dangerous politicization" of everything to do with nuclear activity.

The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Europe's largest, has been a key flashpoint in Russia's nearly eight-month military campaign in Ukraine.

Captured by Russia in early March, the facility remains close to the frontlines, and has repeatedly come under shelling, inflicting so far minor damage but raising fears of a nuclear disaster. Both Kyiv and Moscow have accused each other of shelling the plant. Grossi led an IAEA mission to it in August.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.