Ukraine's surprise push into Russia's Kursk region endangers a nuclear power plant, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency warns.
What's new: Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised his nation's effort "to push the war out into the aggressor's territory" on Saturday, despite calls from IAEA chief Rafael Mariano Grossi for "maximum restraint" a day earlier as fighting from Ukrainian troops' cross-border incursion neared Russia's Kursk Nuclear Power Plant. "Ukraine is proving that it really knows how to restore justice and guarantees exactly the kind of pressure that is needed – pressure on the aggressor," Zelenskyy said.
What's next: IAEA is monitoring the fighting from Ukraine's assault with thousands of troops near Kursk's six reactor units, hoping to avert a nuclear catastrophe about 500 kilometers from Moscow. Two reactor units are fully operational; two are in shutdown, and the other two are under construction. Grossi said he is "personally in contact with the relevant authorities of both countries and will continue to be seized of the matter. I will continue to update the international community as appropriate."
What's important: Gross reminded the warring parties of IAEA's seven pillars for ensuring nuclear safety and security, and five principles for averting disaster at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine. "These include, among others, the imperative to ensure the physical integrity of a nuclear power plant. This is valid irrespective of where an NPP is situated," he said. "At this juncture, I would like to appeal to all sides to exercise maximum restraint in order to avoid a nuclear accident with the potential for serious radiological consequences."
Who's involved: Ukraine's incursion, which entered a fifth day as it pushed deeper into the Kursk region on Saturday, poses a "direct threat" to the nuclear power plant, Alexei Likhachev, head of Russia's nuclear agency Rosatom, was quoted by Russian state news agency RIA as saying in a call with Grossi. Rosatom pointed to "a real danger of strikes and provocations by the Ukrainian army." Ukraine raised similar warnings about Russia's occupation of Zaporizhzhya, Europe's largest nuclear power plant.
What's happening now: Days after Ukraine launched the cross-border incursion with several military brigades, Russia declared a state of emergency in two regions where the Kremlin seemed to have been caught off guard. Ukrainian officials want U.S. permission to use long-range U.S. ATACMS missiles to attack airfields that Russia is using to retaliate.
