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President Biden met on Sunday with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to discuss the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine, which has been in Russian military possession since March.
The White House said leaders agreed to avoid military operations near the plant and said it was essential for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to visit as soon as possible “to check the status of safety systems.” Stated.
The two leaders also discussed ongoing negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program and the need to support partners in the Middle East as a bulwark against Iran’s “volatile regional activities.”
The Zaporizhia nuclear facility in southern Ukraine has been under Russian control since shortly after the invasion began on February 24.
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Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials and military analysts say the Russian military ironically adopted the plant as a shield because they knew Ukrainians would be hesitant to fight back. and accused the Ukrainian military of repeatedly shelling the plant.
In a statement, the French president’s office said that during his recent meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, President Macron “underscored his concerns” about the situation at the Zaporizhia factory and expressed support for the deployment of the IAEA mission to the site. said to have expressed Possible. “
Putin agreed to the IAEA’s mandate under certain conditions discussed with President Macron. “The Russian side reaffirmed its readiness to provide necessary assistance to the authorities’ experts,” the Kremlin said.
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Yevgeny Baritsky, interim administrative chief of the Russian-controlled area of Moscow-backed Zaporizhia region, said on Friday that the IAEA mission could approach the factory from Ukrainian-controlled areas. It is necessary to move from the Crimea to the plant.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.