On the sidelines of the 68th IAEA General Conference in Vienna, Minister of Energy of Ukraine German Galushchenko discussed with Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi practical steps to expand the IAEA monitoring missions to all high-voltage substations that are the targets of russian attacks and on which the safe operation of Ukrainian NPPs critically depends.

German Galushchenko thanked the IAEA monitoring mission, which, following the recent visit of Rafael Grossi to Ukraine, had begun work at one of the electrical substations, which is key to the operation of nuclear power plants and had been damaged as a result of the recent russian attack.

"By attacking substations critical to NPPs, the russians are seeking to achieve blackout of nuclear units and stop our nuclear generation. We are grateful to the IAEA for its support and look forward to continuing monitoring missions at such facilities as soon as possible. This area of the Agency's work is important for ensuring nuclear and radiation safety," the Minister said.

Rafael Grossi confirmed the IAEA's readiness to continue such missions and assured that the agency would make every effort to avoid blackouts at Ukrainian NPPs.

Herman Galushchenko called on the IAEA to further expand its assistance to Ukraine by assessing the safety of nuclear and radiation facilities, documenting operational events, and the consequences of potential and actual damage to the safety of nuclear power plants and technologically related infrastructure.

During the meeting, the parties paid special attention to the construction of Khmelnytsky NPP Units 3 and 4. The IAEA expressed its readiness to provide technical assistance for the implementation of this project, with the parameters currently being discussed.