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☆ Japan to get crucial UN verdict for Fukushima water release
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Construction site of the unit 5,6 seaside facilities of the Tokyo Electric Power Company's (TEPCO) Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, in Okuma of Fukushima prefecture. Japan is set to receive a report from a U.N. nuclear watchdog on Tuesday approving its plan to release treated radioactive water from the tsunami-wrecked Fukushima plant into the ocean despite fierce resistance from Beijing and some local opposition. Japan has not specified a date to start the water release, which will take 30 to 40 years to complete, pending the IAEA's review and official approval from the national nuclear regulatory body for Tokyo Electric Power . Through its embassy in Japan, Beijing on Tuesday said the IAEA's report cannot be a "pass" for the water release and called for the plan's suspension. Japan maintains the process is safe as it has treated the water — enough to fill 500 Olympic-sized swimming pools — used to cool the fuel rods of the Fukushima plant after it was damaged by the earthquake and tsunami in 2011.

Persons: Rafael Grossi, Fumio Kishida, Yoshimasa Hayashi Organizations: Tokyo Electric Power, International Atomic Energy Agency Locations: Fukushima, Okuma, Fukushima prefecture, Japan, Beijing

☆ Russia, Ukraine accuse each other of plotting imminent attack on nuclear plant
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

July 4 (Reuters) - Russia and Ukraine on Tuesday accused each other of plotting to stage an attack on the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station, long the subject of mutual recriminations and suspicions. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said he told his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, about Russian "dangerous provocations" at the plant in southeastern Ukraine. Zelenskiy tweeted that he had told Macron in a telephone conversation that "the occupation troops are preparing dangerous provocations at the Zaporizhzhia (nuclear plant)." "But in any case, the world sees - and cannot fail to see - that the only source of danger to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant is Russia. Zelenskiy adviser Mykhailo Podolyak told Ukrainian television that Grossi had proved ineffective in trying to uphold safety at the plant.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Emmanuel Macron, Renat, Zelenskiy, Macron, Rafael Grossi, Mykhailo Podolyak, Grossi, Podolyak, Ron Popeski, Nick Starkov, Mark Heinrich, Bill Berkrot Organizations: Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, flipflopping, Thomson Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Russian, Ukrainian

CNN —Japan will soon begin releasing treated radioactive water into the ocean following approval from the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog for a controversial plan that comes 12 years after the Fukushima nuclear meltdown. Radioactive wastewater contains some dangerous elements, but the majority of these can be removed from the water, said TEPCO. The real issue is a hydrogen isotope called radioactive tritium, which cannot be taken away. A survey by Asahi Shimbun in March found that 51% of 1,304 respondents supported the wastewater release, while 41% opposed it. People in Tokyo protest against the Japanese government's plan to release nuclear wastewater into the sea on May 16, 2023.

Persons: Rafael Grossi, Fumio Kishida, Daniel Campisi, Grossi, ” Robert H, Richmond, ”, ” Grossi, “, Han Duck, Yonhap, aren’t, Tim Mousseau, Wang Yiliang, Zhang Xiaoyu Organizations: CNN, United Nations, International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, UN, Tokyo Electric Power Company, TEPCO, Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, US Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Kewalo, Laboratory, University of Hawaii, Forum, World Health Organization, State Department, Atomic Energy Council, Pacific Islands Forum, Korean, US, Nuclear Regulatory Commission, University of South, Reuters, Getty, Asahi Shimbun, – Locations: Japan, Fukushima, China, Manoa, Richmond, Asia, Pacific, California, Taiwan, Australia, New Zealand, University of South Carolina, South Korea, Seoul, Xinhua, Tokyo

PARIS/WASHINGTON/DUBAI, June 28 (Reuters) - European diplomats have told Iran they plan to retain European Union ballistic missile sanctions set to expire in October under the defunct 2015 Iran nuclear deal, four sources said, a step that could provoke Iranian retaliation. The EU sanctions are set to expire on Oct. 18 under a U.N. resolution that enshrined the 2015 nuclear deal. A second Iranian official brushed off the possibility of the sanctions remaining, saying Tehran had advanced its nuclear and missile programs for years despite Western sanctions. NUCLEAR DEAL 'NO LONGER EXISTS'Britain's foreign ministry did not comment on whether the E3 planned to keep the sanctions or had told Iran of any decision. Under the 2015 nuclear agreement, any party could trigger the "snapback" or return of all sanctions that it removed.

Persons: Donald Trump, Joe Biden's, Ali Bagheri Kani, Enrique Mora, Bagheri Kani, Mora, Nabila Massrali, Trump, Henry Rome, John Irish, Arshad Mohammed, Parisa, Andrew Gray, Sabine Siebold, Daniel Wallis Organizations: European Union, EU, . Security, Iranian, Reuters, Washington Institute for Near East, Thomson Locations: PARIS, WASHINGTON, DUBAI, Iran, Ukraine, Russia, Tehran, United States, Britain, China, France, Germany, Washington, Israel, Gulf, Western, Moscow, Abu Dhabi, EU, Doha, Iranian, British, European, U.S, Rome, Paris, Dubai, Brussels

☆ Russian spy chief flags 'suspicious' Ukrainian nuclear activity
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

June 19 (Reuters) - One of Russia's top spymasters said on Monday he hoped that the U.N. nuclear watchdog and the European Union would look into Ukrainian nuclear activity that he said might signal Kyiv was working on a "dirty bomb". Sergei Naryshkin, the head of Russia's SVR foreign intelligence service, did not provide documentary evidence to back his assertions. The Ukrainian defence ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Kyiv has in the past said it takes its responsibilities for nuclear power very seriously while accusing Russia of recklessness when it comes to its control of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in southern Ukraine. Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Andrew Osborn and Kevin LiffeyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: spymasters, Sergei Naryshkin, Naryshkin, Andrew Osborn, Kevin Liffey Organizations: European, Reuters, Russian, Thomson Locations: Ukrainian, Russia, Ukraine, Rivne, Chornobyl, Moscow

Having failed to revive a 2015 Iran nuclear deal, Washington hopes to restore some limits on Iran to keep it from getting a nuclear weapon that could threaten Israel and trigger a regional arms race. An Iranian official said: "Call it whatever you want, whether a temporary deal, an interim deal, or a mutual understanding - both sides want to prevent further escalation." U.S. Special Envoy for Iran Rob Malley has also met Iran's ambassador to the U.N. after months of Iran refusing direct contact. The Western official said the key U.S. objective was to keep the nuclear situation from worsening and to avoid a potential clash between Israel and Iran. U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul, a Republican, wrote to President Joe Biden on Thursday saying "any arrangement or understanding with Iran, even informal, requires submission to Congress".

Persons: Donald Trump, Matt Miller, Washington, Brett McGurk, Ali Bagheri Kani, Iran Rob Malley, miscalculate, Michael McCaul, Joe Biden, Parisa, John Irish, Arshad Mohammed, Ramu Ayub, Simon Lewis, Daphne Psaledakis, Don Durfee, William Mallard Organizations: U.S . Congress, State Department, U.S . National Security, International Atomic Energy Agency, U.S, . House Foreign, Republican, John, Thomson Locations: DUBAI, PARIS, United States, Iran, Russia, Washington, Israel, Tehran, U.S, de, Ukraine, Oman, Ali Bagheri Kani . U.S, IRAN, ISRAEL, Parisa Hafezi, Dubai, Paris, Saint Paul , Minnesota

☆ Russia-Ukraine War Updates: 6 Killed By Missile Attack in Kryvyi Rih
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Andrés R. Martínez | Gaya Gupta | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +4 min

The breach of the dam sent water from the Dnipro River coursing downstream and drastically reduced the volume of water in the Kakhovka reservoir. Ukraine controls the western banks of the reservoir, while Russia holds parts of the eastern bank. But it also needs to be supplemented with reservoir water, which means accurate monitoring of the reservoir’s water level is crucial. Over the past year, shelling has cut external power supplies to the plant and also hit an area where spent fuel is stored. Mr. Grossi has repeatedly warned of the potential for nuclear catastrophe at the plant.

Persons: Rafael Mariano Grossi, Volodymyr Zelensky, Grossi, ” Mr Organizations: United Nations, International Atomic Energy Agency Locations: Ukraine, Dnipro, Russian, Russia, Europe

☆ UN nuclear watchdog concerned over water levels at Ukraine plant
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

June 12 (Reuters) - The U.N. atomic watchdog said on Sunday that it needs wider access around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant to check "a significant discrepancy" in water level data at the breached Kakhovka dam used for cooling the plant's reactors. Both the Kakhovka hydropower dam and the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant have been occupied by Russia since the early days of its invasion in February 2022. "But we will only be able to know when we gain access to the thermal power plant." Grossi said the thermal power plant "plays a key role for the safety and security of the nuclear power plant a few kilometres away," hence the need for access and independent assessment. The agency has said earlier that the Zaporizhzhia plant can fall back on other water sources when the reservoir's water is no longer available, including a large cooling pond above the reservoir with several months' worth of water.

Persons: Rafael Grossi, Grossi, Gross, Lidia Kelly, Stephen Coates Organizations: International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Melbourne

☆ Iran's Khamenei says 'nothing wrong' with a nuclear deal with West
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-11 | by ( Parisa Hafezi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei visits the Iranian centrifuges in Tehran, Iran June 11, 2023. Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS/File PhotoDUBAI, June 11 (Reuters) - Iran's supreme leader said on Sunday that a deal with the West over Tehran's nuclear work was possible if the country's nuclear infrastructure remained intact, amid a stalemate between Tehran and Washington to revive a 2015 nuclear pact. "There is nothing wrong with the agreement (with the West), but the infrastructure of our nuclear industry should not be touched," Khamenei said, according to state media. Echoing Iran's official stance for years, Khamenei said the Islamic Republic has never sought to build a nuclear bomb. Khamenei, who has the last say on all state matters such as Iran's nuclear programme, said the country's nuclear authorities should continue working with the U.N. nuclear watchdog "under the framework of safeguards".

Persons: Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's, Khamenei, Donald Trump, Parisa Hafezi, Alex Richardson, David Holmes, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Iranian, West Asia News Agency, REUTERS, West, International Atomic Energy, IAEA, International Atomic Energy Agency, Thomson Locations: Tehran, Iran, DUBAI, Washington, Islamic Republic

☆ Russia-Ukraine War Updates: Flooding Subsides, Revealing Scale of Dam Disaster
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-11 | by ( Matthew Mpoke Bigg | Matt Surman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +4 min

Floodwaters in a residential neighborhood after the destruction of the Kakhovka dam, on Friday, in Kherson, Ukraine. Russian troops controlled the dam, and engineering and munitions experts have said that a deliberate explosion inside the dam probably caused its collapse. Moscow’s accusations that the government in Kyiv was responsible for the disaster have been met with scorn in Ukraine. The dam disaster has poisoned water supplies and, over time, it will deplete groundwater levels upstream — creating a long-term problem for a population well beyond those living in the immediate flood zone. The flooding has “severely disrupted this primary water source,” according to a report issued on Sunday by Britain’s defense intelligence agency.

Persons: ”, Ruslan Strilets, Vladimir Saldo Organizations: Emergency Service, Russian, Facebook Locations: Kherson, Ukraine, Dnipro, American, Russia, Kyiv, Mykolaiv, Ukrainian, Russian, Crimea

WASHINGTON/DUBAI, June 8 (Reuters) - The United States and Iran on Thursday both denied a report that they were nearing an interim deal under which Tehran would curb its nuclear program in return for sanctions relief. U.S. and European officials have been searching for ways to curb Tehran's nuclear program since the breakdown of indirect U.S.-Iranian talks on reviving the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran, Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States. That accord, aimed at keeping Iran from developing a nuclear weapon, required Tehran to accept restrictions on its nuclear program and more extensive U.N. inspections in exchange for an end to U.N., U.S. and EU sanctions. One possible solution has been an interim deal under which Iran would accept fewer limits on its nuclear program in return for more modest sanctions relief than under the 2015 pact. The 2015 deal, which capped Iran's uranium enrichment at 3.67%, was abandoned in 2018 by then-U.S. President Donald Trump, who reimposed U.S. sanctions to choke Iran's oil exports.

Persons: Iran Rob Malley, Amir Saeid Iravani, Malley, Irvani, Donald Trump, Trevor Hunnicutt, Parisa, Arshad Mohammed, Chris Reese, Lisa Shumaker Organizations: White House National Security Council, United Nations, White House, U.S, State Department, Reuters, Iranian, Thomson Locations: WASHINGTON, DUBAI, United States, Iran, Tehran, London, Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia, U.N, Washington, Dubai

The flooding has already killed 300 animals at the Nova Kakhovka zoo, according to the Ukrainian Defense Ministry. Satellite images show a close-up view of the Nova Kakhovka dam and hydroelectric power facility before and after the dam collapse on June 6, 2023. Satellite images show homes along the Dnipro River before and after the Nova Kakhovka dam collapsed. Several Ukrainian regions that receive some of their water supply from the reservoir of the Nova Kakhovka dam are making efforts to conserve water. Local residents carry their personal belongings on a flooded street after the Nova Kakhovka dam collapsed, in Kherson, Ukraine, on June 6.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelensky, ”, Ihor Syrota, ” Syrota, ” Olena, Alina Smutko, Ruslan Strilets, Strilets, António Guterres, Vladyslav Musiienko, Martin Griffiths, Griffiths, ” Griffiths, Zelensky, Oleksandr Prokudin, Maxar Technologies Griffiths, Mohammad Heidarzadeh, Heidarzadeh, Vladimir Saldo, Rafael Grossi, ” Grossi Organizations: CNN, Reuters, Reserve, Nova, Ukrainian Defense Ministry . United Nations, ”, UN Security, Dnipro, Maxar, Maxar Technologies, University of Bath, Science Media, Russian Foreign Ministry, International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, UN Locations: Nova, Ukraine, Russian, Kyiv, Moscow, Russia, Dnipro, Kherson, Reuters Ukrainian, Zaporizhzhia, England, Dnipropetrovsk, Kryvyi

A critical dam on the Dnipro River in southern Ukraine broke overnight on Tuesday, endangering tens of thousands of people who live downstream. Russia said that Ukrainian forces had carried out sabotage. Located near the front line of the war in the southern Kherson region, the dam and nearby infrastructure have been damaged by shelling throughout the war. The area including the dam and the adjacent hydroelectric plant has been occupied by Russian forces since last year. President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine blamed “Russian terrorists,” while the Kremlin’s spokesman, Dmitri S. Peskov, blamed Ukrainian forces, describing what happened as sabotage.

Persons: António Guterres, Nova Kakhovka, Volodymyr Zelensky, “, Dmitri S, Peskov, ” Natalia Humeniuk, Radio Svoboda, Sergei K, John F, Kirby, Ihor Syrota Organizations: The New York Times, Engineering, Radio, Kyiv, National Security Council, Russian, of Locations: Dnipro, Ukraine, Russia, Kherson, Nova, Ukrainian, Donetsk, United States, Russian, Antonivka, Zaporizhzhia, Crimea, Kakhovka, of Culture

☆ Tens of thousands at risk from flooding after Ukraine dam collapse
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-07 | by ( Viktoriia Lakezina | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/3] A satellite image shows a close-up view of Nova Kakhovka dam and hydroelectric power facility, Ukraine, in this picture obtained by Reuters on June 6, 2023. Ukraine and Russia blame each other for the collapse of the massive dam on Tuesday, which sent floodwaters across a swathe of the war zone and forced thousands to flee. Ukraine said Russia committed a deliberate war crime in blowing up the Soviet-era Nova Kakhovka dam, which powered a hydroelectric station. Residents in flooded Nova Kakhovka on the Russian-controlled bank of the Dnipro told Reuters that some had decided to stay despite being ordered out. It's very dirty," Yevheniya, a woman in Nova Kakhovka , said by telephone.

Persons: Martin Griffiths, John Kirby, Robert Wood, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Cynthia Osterman, Michael Perry Organizations: Reuters, Maxar Technologies, UN, United Nations, Kremlin, Security Council, Dnipro, U.S, Criminal Court, Kyiv, Thomson Locations: Kakhovka, Ukraine, Russia, UN KHERSON, Ukrainian, Dnipro, Moscow, Kherson, slog, Nova Kakhovka, Russian, Washington, Geneva, Crimean

☆ Germany's Scholz: Kakhovka dam breach in line with Putin's aggression
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, June 6 (Reuters) - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Tuesday that the destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam was in line with Russia's escalating violence in Ukraine and Russian President Vladimir Putin's strategy of attacking civilian targets. This makes it all the more important that Germany continues to support Ukraine for as long as necessary, he added. Scholz also said Germany was watching the situation at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant with concern following the destruction of the dam, which supplies water to the plant. "All we can say about Zaporizhzhia is that we are monitoring this all the time," Scholz said. Ukrainian and Russian forces have blamed each other for the breach, which unleashed millions of litres of water, threatening scores of villages and cutting off water supplies.

Persons: Olaf Scholz, Vladimir Putin's, Putin, Scholz, Miranda Murray, Rachel More, Ed Osmond Organizations: WDR, International Atomic Energy Agency, Twitter, Thomson Locations: BERLIN, Nova, Ukraine, Russian, Germany

☆ The destruction of a major Ukrainian dam could have grave consequences. Here’s what we know so far
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

A partially flooded area of Kherson on June 6, 2023, following damage sustained at the Kakhovka hydroelectric dam. "The destruction of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant dam only confirms for the whole world that they must be expelled from every corner of Ukrainian land. "As a result of detonation of the engine room from the inside, the Kakhovskaya [hydroelectric power plant] was completely destroyed. 'No immediate risk' to Zaporizhzhia nuclear plantThe U.N.'s nuclear watchdog said it was closely monitoring the situation at Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, Europe's largest nuclear power station.

Persons: Dmitry Peskov, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Zelenskyy, Ukrhydroenergo, Nova Kakhovka, Peter Stano, Jens Stoltenberg, meanwhile, Rafael Grossi, Grossi, Carl Court Organizations: Anadolu Agency, Getty, Google, Tass, CNBC, NBC News, Internal Affairs Ministry, Afp, National Security and Defense Council, European Commission, Ukraine, European Union, NATO, Twitter, International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, Carl Locations: Russian, Ukraine's Kherson, Ukraine, Nova Kakhovka, Moscow, Nova, Crimean, Russia, Kherson, Ukrainian, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia

"(This) creates a very good defending position for Russians who expect Ukrainian offensive activity,” Matysiak said. Russia has denied responsibility and accused Ukraine of sabotaging the dam to deflect from what Moscow said were Ukrainian military failures. "For Russians the reason to do it would have been to stop the Ukrainian counteroffensive, obviously. For Ukraine, the breach might have provided a way of distracting the Russians while Kyiv launches its counteroffensive, she added. Patricia Lewis, Research Director for International Security at the Chatham House think tank, said the situation helps Russia even if the Ukrainian counteroffensive later makes inroads.

Persons: Ruslan Strilets, Ben Barry, Maciej Matysiak, ” Matysiak, Strilets, Mohammad Heidarzadeh, Heidarzadeh, Dmytro Kuleba, Marina Miron, Patricia Lewis, they're, Aiden Nulty, Ben Tavener, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: Kyiv, International Institute for Strategic Studies, Stratpoints Foundation, University of Bath, Civil, Engineering, University of Warwick, Reserve, Nova Kakhovka, King's College, International Security, Chatham House, Thomson Locations: Moscow, Dnipro, Kyiv, Nova, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Russia, Kherson, Crimea, Britain, London

Extensive flooding inundated villages and swept away structures after a dam was destroyed in southern Ukraine on Tuesday, according to local officials and imagery of the aftermath. In the town of Antonivka, about 40 miles downriver from the Kakhovka dam, residents looked on in horror at the roiling coffee-colored floodwaters released by its destruction. About 4,000 residents remained there before the flooding on Tuesday, out of a prewar population of about 13,000. Ukraine and Russia blamed each other for the attack on the dam, which is in Russian-held territory. In Nova Kakhovka, the city immediately next to the destroyed dam, the City hall and the Palace of Culture were inundated.

Organizations: Planet Labs PBC, Institute, American, Google, UKRAINE, RUSSIA, BY, BY UKRAINE Dnipro, Local, Kakhovka, Reuters, International Atomic Energy Agency Locations: Ukraine, UKRAINE UKRAINE, Dachi Kherson, Kherson, RUSSIA Stara Zbur’ivka, UKRAINE, RUSSIA, Kardashynka Kherson, Black, Russian, Dnipro, Antonivka, BY UKRAINE, Oleshky, Salt Lake, Utah, Russia, City, Culture

☆ Situation at nuclear plant under control after dam blast - Ukraine atomic agency
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

KYIV, June 6 (Reuters) - The destruction of the Kakhovka dam in southern Ukraine poses a threat to the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, but the situation at the facility is under control, Ukraine's state atomic power agency said on Tuesday. The U.N. nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, said on Twitter it was closely monitoring the situation but that there was "no immediate nuclear safety risk at (the) plant" which is also in southern Ukraine. It said the water level of the Kakhovka Reservoir was rapidly lowering, posing an "additional threat" to the Russian-occupied facility - Europe's largest nuclear power plant - which both sides have blamed one another for shelling. "Water from the Kakhovka Reservoir is necessary for the station to receive power for turbine capacitors and safety systems of the ZNPP (Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant)," Energoatom said in a statement on the Telegram messaging app. "Currently, the situation at the ZNPP is under control, Ukrainian personnel are monitoring all indicators," it said.

Persons: Energoatom, Dan Peleschuk, Timothy Organizations: International Atomic Energy Agency, Twitter, Russian, Timothy Heritage, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Russian, Russia

☆ Netanyahu convenes Iran war drill, scorns UN nuclear watchdog
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-04 | by ( Dan Williams | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Israel has long maintained that for diplomacy to succeed, Iran must be faced with a credible military threat. The agency's capitulation to Iranian pressure is a black stain on its record," Netanyahu told his cabinet in televised remarks. After then U.S. President Donald Trump quit the Iran nuclear deal in 2018, Tehran ramped up uranium enrichment. In a 2012 U.N. speech, Netanyahu deemed 90% enrichment by Iran a "red line" that could trigger preemptive strikes. Focussing domestic attention on Iran might provide Netanyahu with respite from a months-long crisis over his proposals to overhaul Israel’s judiciary.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu ramped, U.N, Israel, Netanyahu, Donald Trump, Dan Williams, Angus MacSwan, Grant McCool Organizations: Iran's, UN, International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, Thomson Locations: Tehran, Iran, Israel, Tel Aviv, Syria, IRAN, Soviet, Vienna

☆ Ukrainian drone sparks fire at Russian refinery - governor
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

MOSCOW/KYIV, May 31 (Reuters) - A Ukrainian drone sparked a fire at an oil refinery in southern Russia and shelling hit a Russian town close to the border for the third time in a week, damaging buildings and setting vehicles ablaze, Russian officials said on Wednesday. The Afipsky refinery is not far from the Black Sea port of Novorossiisk, near another refinery that has been attacked several times this month. There was no immediate information on who launched the drone but Moscow has accused Kyiv of increased attacks inside Russia in recent weeks, while Russia has repeatedly pounded Ukrainian cities with drones and missiles. Russian drone attacks killed one person and wounded four in Kyiv on Tuesday, according to Ukrainian officials. Civilian targets in Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities have since the earliest days of the war been struck repeatedly by Russian drones and missiles.

Persons: Veniamin Kondratyev, Vyacheslav Gladkov, Mykhailo Podolyak, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Karine Jean, Pierre, Rafael Grossi, Grossi, David Ljunggren, Guy Faulconbridge, Max Hunder, Olena Harmash, Pavel Polityuk, Valentyn Ogirenko, Gleb Garanich, Lidia Kelly, Trevor Hunnicutt, Steve Holland, Stephen Coates, Robert Birsel Organizations: Kyiv, Residents, Civilian, Washington, Russian, International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, . Security, Thomson Locations: MOSCOW, KYIV, Ukrainian, Russia, Ukraine, Moscow, Russia's Krasnodar, Novorossiisk, Russian, Kyiv, Shebekino, Ukraine's Kharkiv, Ukraine's, Washington, United States, Zaporizhzhia

WASHINGTON, May 30 (Reuters) - Neither Russia nor Ukraine committed to respect five principles laid out by International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Rafael Grossi on Tuesday to try to safeguard Ukraine's Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. Grossi, who spoke at the U.N. Security Council, has tried for months to craft an agreement to reduce the risk of a catastrophic nuclear accident from military activity like shelling at Europe's biggest nuclear power plant. "Mr. Grossi's proposals to ensure the security of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant are in line with the measures that we've already been implementing for a long time," Russia's U.N. Western powers accused Russia, whose forces invaded Ukraine in February 2022, of putting Zaporizhzhia at risk, with the United States demanding that Russia remove its weapons and civil and military personnel from the plant. Russia denies that it has military personnel at the power plant and it describes the war, which has killed thousands and reduced cities to rubble, as a "special military operation" to "denazify" Ukraine and protect Russian speakers.

Persons: Rafael Grossi, Grossi, Vassily Nebenzia, Sergiy Kyslytsya, Linda Thomas, Greenfield, Daphne Psaledakis, Arshad Mohammed, Grant McCool Organizations: International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, Ukraine's, . Security, U.S, Thomson Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Zaporizhzhia, United States, Moscow

The sources spoke on condition of anonymity because of fears for their safety in a city under Russian occupation. But there is concern in the international community that the six-reactor nuclear plant, Europe's largest, could be caught up in fighting, particularly as military analysts expect Ukraine to try to push Russian forces back in Zaporizhzhia region. In April, Japan contributed 2 million euros to the U.N.'s watchdog to help its effort to secure the safety of Zaporizhzhia power plant. Kotin said Russian forces would have to retreat if it looked like that road was going to be cut off. He added that he believed Russian forces had already been conducting drills at the plant to practise pulling out.

☆ Russia's war on Ukraine latest: Ukraine's Zelenskiy meets the pope
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The Ukrainian leader, on a visit to Rome, also met Italy's leaders, who promised full military and financial backing for Ukraine and reiterated support for its EU membership bid. * South Africa's presidential security advisor said on Saturday the country was "actively non-aligned" in Russia's war against Ukraine, after U.S. allegations that it had supplied weapons to Moscow led to a diplomatic crisis this week. * A draft communique from a meeting of Group of Seven finance chiefs reiterated the group's condemnation of Russia's "illegal, unjustifiable, and unprovoked war of aggression" against Ukraine. INSIDE RUSSIA* The head of Russia's federal crime agency suggested on Saturday that key sectors of the economy should be returned to state ownership to support Moscow's war in Ukraine. * Police in the Russian city of St. Petersburg said on Friday they have created an anti-drone unit to detect unmanned aerial vehicles following a purported drone attack on the Kremlin this month.

☆ Zaporizhzhia: Evacuations from Russian-occupied Ukrainian region raise concerns of nuclear power plant safety
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-08 | by ( Helen Regan Julia Kesaieva Mariya Knight Katharina Krebs Kostan Nechyporenko Stephanie Halasz | Helen Regan | Julia Kesaieva | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

But the evacuation of a town close to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant has raised concerns about the facility’s stability. The plant, Europe’s largest nuclear power station, is held by Russian forces but mostly operated by a Ukrainian workforce. The plant is also significant because Ukraine relies heavily on nuclear power. On the groundOn Sunday, Ukraine’s Operation Command South spokeswoman said Russian forces were trying to exhaust Ukraine’s air defense system. Bakhmut has been the site of a months-long assault by Russian forces that has driven thousands from their homes and left the area devastated.

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