IAEA alarmed by another power outage at Zaporizhzhya nuclear plant

VIENNA — The Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhya nuclear plant in Ukraine has been cut off from its external power supply for the second time in just five days days, the U.N.’s nuclear watchdog said on Wednesday.

“This repeated loss of (Zaporizhzhya’s) off-site power is a deeply worrying development and it underlines the urgent need for a nuclear safety and security protection zone around the site,” tweeted Rafael Grossi, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Without external power, Europe’s largest nuclear power plant has enough fuel from diesel generators to run its cooling systems for about 10 days and prevent a nuclear accident, according to the IAEA.

The sprawling complex in south-eastern Ukraine saw its last operating reactor shut down in September. But the risk of disaster remains as the atomic material still needs to be kept cool to avoid a meltdown.

Grossi, who met Tuesday with Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg, has been calling for a “safety and security zone” to be set up around the nuclear plant.

Demilitarization with troop withdrawals is not part of the plan.

After Tuesday’s meeting, Grossi said the situation around the Russian-occupied nuclear plant was “increasingly dangerous, unstable and challenging” because of frequent military attacks in the area.

Russia has effectively controlled the nuclear power plant since the beginning of March, when Moscow’s troops occupied large parts of southern Ukraine.

The power plant has come under fire several times in recent months during heavy fighting. Ukraine and Russia blame each other.

Meanwhile, Russia has detained eight people for the explosion that sent a section of the strategically important Crimean Bridge tumbling into the Black Sea, state media reported.

Five of the suspects taken into custody in connection with the criminal case are Russian citizens, Russia’s domestic intelligence service, the FSB, said, according to the Interfax news agency.

The three others were reported to be Ukrainians and Armenians.

The attack was organized by Ukraine’s military intelligence agency, the FSB accused, naming its chief Kyrylo Budanov as the mastermind of the blast that struck the bridge at the weekend.

On Saturday morning, an explosion rocked the 19-kilometer-long bridge connecting Russia and the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea, which was annexed by Moscow in 2014. Moscow said four people died.

Russian President Vladimir Putin accused Ukraine of perpetrating a “terrorist” attack.

In retaliation, Russia struck Kiev and other Ukrainian cities with missiles on a large scale, many of them targetting energy infrastructure. At least 19 people died in the attacks on Monday, according to Ukraine.

The Ukrainian side has celebrated the destruction of the bridge, but has not officially claimed responsibility for the alleged attack.

The bridge is an important supply route for Moscow’s floundering military campaign in Ukraine. It was was opened by Putin himself to much pomp and fanfare in 2018.

According to British intelligence, Russia used Iranian drones as part of its massive shelling of Ukraine this week.

But the unmanned Shahed aircraft are slow and fly very low, making them easy for air defences to hit, the Ministry of Defense in London said on Wednesday in its daily intelligence update on the war.

However, there is a “realistic possibility” that Russia has had some success with using several drones at the same time, it said.

With Russian warplanes being of only limited effectiveness because of Ukraine’s anti-aircraft defences, the Russians continue to lack an aerial attack weapon that offers a reliable, sustained and accurate strike capability. This is one of the most important gaps in the Russian war against Ukraine, according to the assessment.

Russian troops have been using Iranian drones, including Shahed-136 kamikaze drones, since at least August, the ministry said.

In Rome, Pope Francis says his “heart continues to be turned toward the Ukrainian people, especially to the residents of the areas hit by the bombardments,” as he once again called for an end to the war.

Francis told his Wednesday general audience in St Peter’s Square that he prays the cry of the people will be heard and that those who hold the fate of war in their hands will stop the violence.