The Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the Director of the Russian Atomic Energy Agency met today to discuss the inspection in the largest nuclear power plant her Ukrainianher Zaporozhyewhich was bombed several times.

CEO of his service UN Rafael Grossi, Rosatom head Alexei Likhachev and Russian Ambassador to International Organizations in Vienna Mikhail Ulyanov met in Istanbul, the Russian Atomic Energy Agency reported.

Grossi and Likhachev “discussed in detail all the issues related to the planned IAEA inspection of the Zaporozhye NPP,” the Russian agency reported.

“The Russian side shares the intention to organize such a mission in the near future, as soon as the military situation on the ground allows, and is ready to provide all possible support, including logistical support,” Rosatom added.

In a tweet, Grossi said he had “important technical discussions in Istanbul on the upcoming IAEA mission” in Zaporozhye.

The meeting between Grossi and Likhachev comes at a time when the situation at the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant, the largest in Ukraine and Europe, is causing international concern.

The nuclear plant, located in southern Ukraine and held by Russian forces since March, has been repeatedly bombed in recent weeks, with Kyiv and Moscow denying responsibility.

During a meeting with Grossi in Istanbul, the head of Rosatom “stressed that the safety of nuclear facilities, wherever they are, has always been and remains an absolute priority for Russia,” the Russian agency said in a statement.

The IAEA’s inspection of Zaporozhye has been the subject of negotiations for weeks, but its practical details remain under discussion as Ukraine and Russia put forward their terms.

^{Source: APE-MEB, AFP.}