Mr Erdogan told his Russian counterpart that “Turkey can play a facilitating role in the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, as it did in the grain agreement”, the Turkish presidency said.
Mr Erdogan told his Russian counterpart that “Turkey can play a facilitating role in the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, as it did in the grain agreement”, the Turkish presidency said.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on September 3 offered to mediate in the impasse over a Russian-occupied nuclear power plant in war-torn Ukraine that is raising fears of an atomic disaster.
Concern has grown in recent weeks over bombings that hit the area of Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, Zaporizhzhia.
On September 2, Ukraine said it bombed a Russian base in the nearby town of Energodar, destroying three artillery systems as well as an ammunition depot.
Mr Erdogan told his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin “that Turkey can play a facilitating role in the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, as it did in the grain agreement”, the Turkish presidency said.
Ukraine, one of the world’s biggest grain exporters, was forced to halt nearly all deliveries after Russia invaded in late February, raising fears of a global food crisis.
Grain exports through Black Sea ports resumed after Kyiv and Moscow signed an agreement in July with the United Nations and Turkey acting as guarantors.
It was not immediately mentioned that Mr. Erdogan had also spoken with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on September 3 to offer his mediation.
Last month, he warned of the danger of a nuclear disaster when he visited Lviv for talks with the Ukrainian leader.
The Turkish leader said he wanted to avoid “another Chernobyl”, referring to the world’s worst nuclear accident in another part of Ukraine in 1986, when it was still part of the Soviet Union.
A 14-string team from the International Atomic Energy Agency visited Zaporizhzhia this week, with UN nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi saying the site was damaged in the fighting .
Russia’s envoy to Vienna, Mikhail Ulyanov, said six IAEA inspectors would remain there for several days and two others would stay there “permanently”.
“Gas Gun”
The Russian invasion of pro-Western Ukraine has killed thousands and driven millions to flee their homes.
Western powers responded by sending military aid to Kyiv in an effort to stem the Russian advance and imposing economic sanctions on Moscow.
On September 2, the major industrial democracies of the Group of Seven pledged to act urgently to set a price cap on imports of Russian oil, a crucial source of revenue for Moscow.
Business as usual, Russian gas giant Gazprom said it had halted gas supplies to Germany indefinitely due to a leaking turbine. Its German manufacturer said that was not a valid reason to stop gas flows.
The European Commissioner for the Economy, Paolo Gentiloni, however declared on September 3 that the European Union was “well prepared” in the event of a total stoppage of Russian gas deliveries, thanks to storage capacities and cost-saving measures. of energy.
“We are well prepared to resist the extreme use of the gas weapon by Russia,” he told reporters on the sidelines of an economic forum organized by the European House – Ambrosetti.
In the European Union, “gas storage is currently at around 80%, thanks to the diversification of supplies”, even if the situation varies from one country to another, specified Mr. Gentiloni.
Ukraine has accused Russia of stockpiling ammunition in Zaporizhzhia and deploying hundreds of troops there.
He also suspects that Moscow intends to divert power from the plant to the nearby Crimean peninsula, annexed by Russia in 2014.
