IAEA seeks access to Ukrainian nuclear plant after reported strike

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The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said it was concerned by a reported drone strike on a machine hall at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant in south-eastern Ukraine and had requested access to the site.

IAEA experts stationed at the plant asked to inspect the affected building, the UN nuclear watchdog said in a post on X on Saturday, adding that it would be the first drone attack on the facility since April 2024 if confirmed.

Earlier, the Moscow-installed management of the plant and Alexei Likhachev, head of Russia's state nuclear corporation Rosatom, said a drone had struck the turbine hall of reactor unit six.

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They blamed the incident on the Ukrainian military, saying the attack involved a fibre-optic-guided drone. No evidence was provided.

Ukraine's military rejected the accusation, describing it in a statement on Telegram as an attempt by Russia at "nuclear blackmail."

Zaporizhzhya is Europe's largest nuclear power plant, with six reactors and a capacity of around 6,000 megawatts.

Russian forces seized the facility shortly after Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. All six reactors have since been shut down for safety reasons.