Live blog: Main power line back up at Ukraine nuclear plant - IAEA

Saturday, September 17, 2022

Main power line back up at Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant: IAEA

One of the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant's four main power lines has been repaired, and the 750-kilovolt line is once again supplying the plant with electricity from the Ukrainian grid two weeks after it went down, the UN nuclear watchdog said.

Even though the six reactors at Zaporizhzhia, Europe's biggest nuclear power plant, have been shut down, the fuel in them still needs cooling to avoid a potentially catastrophic meltdown. That means the plant needs electricity to pump water through the core of the reactors.

The power supply at Zaporizhzhia has been a source of major concern after the last main line went down and then three backup lines that can connect it to a nearby coal-fired power plant were also disconnected.

EU calls for war crime tribunal over mass graves in Ukraine

The EU presidency has called for the establishment of an international tribunal for war crimes after new mass graves were found in Ukraine.

"In the 21st century, such attacks against the civilian population are unthinkable and abhorrent," said Jan Lipavsky, foreign minister of the Czech Republic which holds the European Union's rotating presidency.

The appeal follows the discovery by Ukrainian authorities of around 450 graves outside the formerly Russian-occupied city of Izyum with most of the exhumed bodies showing signs of torture.

'Don't': Biden warns Putin over nuclear weapons

US President Joe Biden has warned his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin against using chemical or tactical nuclear weapons, saying: "Don't. Don't. Don't."

In the excerpt from an interview with CBS' "60 Minutes", Biden was responding to a question about the possibility of Putin, whose army is incurring heavy losses in the Ukraine counteroffensive this month, resorting to chemical or tactical nuclear weapons.

"You would change the face of war unlike anything since World War II," Biden said, adding that Russia "will become more of a pariah in the world, more than they have ever been."

Two more grain ships leave Ukraine under Istanbul deal: Türkiye

Two more ships have left Ukrainian ports under the historic Türkiye-brokered grain export deal, the Turkish National Defence Ministry has said.

Seven more ships were also planned to set sail depending on weather conditions. 

Türkiye, the UN, Russia, and Ukraine signed an agreement in Istanbul on July 22 to resume grain exports from three Ukrainian Black Sea ports, which were paused after the Russia-Ukraine conflict began in February.

Ukraine receives $1.5B in new financial aid

Ukraine's Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal has thanked the United States for its support after Ukraine received the aid.

"This is the last tranche of $4.5 billion aid from the United States from @WorldBank Trust Fund," Shmyhal tweeted on Saturday.

He said the funds would be used to reimburse budget expenditure for pension payments and social assistance programmes. 

Russia launches strikes on Ukrainian troops

Russia's defence ministry has said that its forces had launched strikes on Ukrainian positions in several parts of Ukraine, and accused Kiev of carrying out shelling near the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.

Russian forces conducted their strikes in the Kherson, Mykolaiv, Kharkiv and Donetsk regions, according to the ministry, which added that Ukrainian forces had carried out an unsuccessful offensive near Pravdyne in Kherson.

The radiation situation at Zaporizhzhia, Europe's biggest nuclear power plant, remains normal, according to the ministry. It said two incidents of Ukrainian shelling were recorded near the plant on Saturday.

Britain: Ukraine continues its offensive in northeast

Ukraine continues offensive operations while Russian forces have established a defensive line between the Oskil River and the town of Svatove, British military intelligence has said.

"Russia likely sees maintaining control of this zone as important because it is transited by one of the few main resupply routes Russia still controls from the Belgorod region of Russia," the Defence Ministry said in a regular Twitter update.

"Russia will likely attempt to conduct a stubborn defence of this area, but it is unclear whether Russia's front line forces have sufficient reserves or adequate morale to withstand another concerted Ukrainian assault," it said.

Biden talks energy, Russia with S.Africa's Ramaphosa

US President Joe Biden has discussed relations with Russia in a White House meeting with South Africa's Cyril Ramaphosa, who has resisted joining Washington's campaign against Moscow for the conflict in Ukraine.

Biden, who has led an international coalition to punish Russian President Vladimir Putin for the near-seven month conflict in Ukraine, wants South Africa's help in efforts that include forcing Moscow to sell its oil at below-market rates.

Zelenskyy to speak at UNGA via video

Of the 193 member states, 101 voted in favour of allowing Zelenskyy to "present a pre-recorded statement" instead of in-person as usually required.

Seven members voted against the decision including Russia, Belarus, Cuba, North Korea, Eritrea, Nicaragua and Syria. Nineteen states abstained.

Ukraine's UN mission had argued that Zelenskyy "cannot participate in-person at the meetings of the General Assembly due to ongoing Russian aggression against Ukraine."

For live updates from Friday (September 16), click here