Ukraine has said Russia is preparing to stage a “provocation” at Europe’s biggest nuclear power plant on Friday.
The country’s intelligence agency made the statement just hours after Moscow accused Ukraine of trying to stage an “accident” there, which may involve a radiation leak, during the UN secretary-general’s visit to the war-ravaged nation.
Located in the southeast of Ukraine, the Zaporizhzhia plant was captured by Russia in the early days of the war and in recent weeks has repeatedly come under fire.
Both sides have pointed the finger at each other for the shelling.
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Russia’s defence ministry claimed Ukraine would stage a “minor accident” and “provocation” – and blame it on them – to coincide with Antonio Guterres’ trip.
The UN chief is expected on Friday to visit the Black Sea port of Odesa, where grain exports have resumed under a UN-brokered deal.
He met Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Turkey’s President Tayyip Erdogan in the western city of Lviv during his visit on Thursday.
What was discussed at the meeting?
The trio discussed efforts to de-escalate the war, speed up grain exports and the Zaporizhzhia nuclear situation.
Following the meeting, Mr Guterres called for the demilitarisation of the power plant and said he was gravely concerned about the situation surrounding it.
“The facility must not be used as part of any military operation. Instead, agreement is urgently needed to re-establish Zaporizhzhia’s purely civilian infrastructure and to ensure the safety of the area,” he said.
Ukraine’s president added that he had agreed the parameters for a possible International Atomic Energy Agency mission to the plant.
Mr Guterres has urged an end to fighting near the power station and the head of Russia’s chemical and biological defence forces, Igor Kirillov, claimed back-up support systems had already been damaged by shelling.
He said any accident would mean radioactive material reaching Germany, Slovakia and Poland.
Russia’s defence ministry has also warned the plant could be shut down if shelling continues.
Ukraine says it’s being used as a base to attack from, and that Russian heavy artillery is positioned in and around the power station – something the Kremlin denies.
Kyiv also claims that Russia has hit the facility itself in order to blame Ukraine for any power cuts.
Mr Erdogan said he discussed possible ways of ending the war during the trilateral meeting.
He added the three leaders discussed using the positive atmosphere created by a grain export deal in July to establish lasting peace.
After the meeting, Mr Guterres said 21 ships had departed from Ukrainian ports under the deal in less than a month, and 15 vessels had left Istanbul to load up with grain and other food supplies from the country.
Source: Sky News
