Rosatom says talks with IAEA on Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant safe zone to continue

Thu, 22 December 2022

A view shows the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant outside Enerhodar


MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia's Rosatom state nuclear energy company said on Thursday that talks with International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi about a safe zone around Ukraine's Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant would continue.

In a statement posted on Telegram, Rosatom said "approaches to the creation of a nuclear and physical safety protection zone at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant were discussed" and that there was "significant closeness" between the two sides' positions.

It said that talks would continue based on "understanding of the need to reach a mutually acceptable text as soon as possible".

The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southeastern Ukraine, Europe's largest, was captured by Russian troops in March, in the opening days of Moscow's military campaign in Ukraine. It remains close to the frontlines, and has repeatedly come under fire in recent months, raising fears of a nuclear disaster.

Moscow and Kyiv have blamed each other for the shelling. The IAEA, the United Nations' nuclear watchdog, has proposed a safe zone around the plant to guard against any damage to the facility.

(Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Alison Williams)