Ukraine on Thursday accused Russia of shelling the pre-agreed route for a team of international inspectors who were headed to the country’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant to ensure its safety amid growing global alarm about a potential radiation disaster.
Meanwhile, the country’s state nuclear agency, Energoatom, reported that Russian shelling of the plant itself triggered its safety systems, forcing the shutdown of one of its power units. It said one of the plant’s own power supply lines was also damaged. It comes just a week after shelling left the Russian-controlled plant disconnected from Ukraine’s national power grid for the first time in its 40-year history.
Russian officials in turn accused Ukraine of being responsible for the eruption of fierce fighting around the plant, which is Europe’s largest. NBC News could not immediately verify the claims of either side.
Oleksandr Starukh, the head of the Zaporizhzhia regional military administration, said in a post on the Telegram messaging app early Thursday that Moscow’s troops were firing at the route being taken by the team of United Nations inspectors as they set out from the city of Zaporizhzhia, which is under Ukraine’s control, to the nearby plant, which has been controlled by Russian forces since the early days of the war.
He said the International Atomic Energy Agency team couldn’t continue its movement due to security reasons.
“We demand that the Russian Federation stop the provocations and grant the IAEA unhindered access to the Ukrainian nuclear facility,” Starukh said.
There was no immediate reaction from the IAEA or the Kremlin.
Meanwhile, the Russian defense ministry said Thursday that a Ukrainian “sabotage group” consisting of up to 60 people landed on the coast within two miles of the plant. It said the group was in the process of being eliminated.
The ministry also accused Kyiv of shelling the meeting point of the IAEA mission with Russian experts in the area of the settlement of Vasilyevka and the plant.
It said the activities were meant to disrupt the arrival of the IAEA mission.
The head of the IAEA announced the long-awaited mission earlier this week, saying it was planning to assess physical damage to the plant, determine how well its safety systems are functioning, evaluate working conditions for its staff and perform any urgent safeguard activities. Kyiv and Moscow have been trading blame for shelling at the plant for weeks. The U.N.’s atomic energy agency has warned for months about the risk of a nuclear catastrophe, and has sought to send in a team to inspect and help secure the safety of the plant.
This is a developing news story. Please check back for further updates.