Minister of Energy of Ukraine German Galushchenko met with the U.S. delegation to the IAEA headed by U.S. Deputy Secretary of Energy David Turk. The parties met on the sidelines of the 68th IAEA General Conference taking place in Vienna.

German Galushchenko noted that the enemy continued to attack the Ukrainian energy infrastructure and used new types of weapons that caused significant damage to the energy equipment. “But the attacks that affect the operation of nuclear power plants are of particular concern. By attacking substations that are critical for the operation of nuclear power plants, the russians pose direct threats to nuclear and radiation safety. We thank the IAEA for responding to our request and for having already started its mission at one of these substations. The relevant monitoring should protect the substations from future attacks and thus contribute to the stable operation of our nuclear generation,” he said.

According to the Minister, nuclear generation produces about 60% of Ukraine’s electricity and will be very important for getting through the next winter. “We plan that all 9 nuclear power units will operate during the winter season to meet the needs of consumption as much as possible,” he added.

David Turk, in turn, assured that the U.S. State Department was making every effort to assist the Ukrainian energy sector in the face of russian aggression.

In the context of the winter, the parties discussed the importance of making a decision to increase the maximum capacity of electricity imports from the European Union.

The meeting also stressed the need to strengthen air defence and other means and tools to protect energy facilities.