September 2, 2022 Russia-Ukraine news

Follow the latest news on Russia’s war in Ukraine here and read more about today’s developments in the posts below. 

Siemens Energy, the German manufacturer of the turbines on the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, said an oil leak is “not a technical reason” that would justify stopping the supply of gas from Russia to the rest of Europe.

“As the manufacturer of the turbines, we can only state that such a finding is not a technical reason for stopping operation,” it said in a statement to CNN on Friday. 

Earlier on Friday, Russian state energy giant Gazprom said it would not resume flows through the pipeline on Saturday as planned because it had detected an oil leak at its Portovaya compressor station. The pipeline has been shut since Wednesday for maintenance. It didn’t give a timeline of when exports might resume.

According to Siemens, such leakages do not usually affect the operation of a turbine and can be sealed on site.

“It is a routine procedure during maintenance work. In the past, the occurrence of this type of leakage has not resulted in a shutdown of operations,” it added.

Siemens also said they had pointed out “several times” that there are enough additional turbines available at the Portovaya compressor station for Nord Stream 1 to operate.

International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi said he plans to issue a report on the status of the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine early next week. 

“We’re trying to have an in-depth assessment of how things stand at the moment. I expect to produce a report early next week, as soon as we have the full picture of the situation by the end of the weekend more or less,” Grossi said at a news conference in Vienna Friday. 

Six IAEA staff members remain at Zaporizhzhia, Europe’s largest nuclear plant, after Grossi led a 14-person mission of investigators there on Thursday. He added that the number would be reduced to two next week, and those two would be the UN nuclear watchdog’s continuous presence there in the longer term.

The mission of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant can still be “fruitful” despite Russian control, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Friday.

Speaking in a video address streamed at the Ambrosetti Forum, a conference held in Italy and attended by the leaders of various states and businesses, Zelensky expressed disappointment at how Russia is controlling the mission. 

“The Russian military stopped the journalists traveling with the mission at a checkpoint and did not let them go any further. Obviously, the occupiers felt that in the presence of a free media it would be impossible to lie to the IAEA and the whole world,” he said. 

“We did everything to ensure that the IAEA got access to the Zaporizhzhia NPP. I believe that this mission can still be fruitful,” Zelensky stated. 

Earlier on Friday, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi said the organization knows “much more” about the state of the plant after visiting. A team of inspectors will have “continued presence” at the plant, Grossi said. 

Zelensky, who has urged the withdrawal of the Russian military from Zaporizhzhia, said he has not heard the IAEA push Russia on the matter. 

“Unfortunately, we also have not yet heard from the IAEA the key thing — the call to Russia regarding the demilitarization of the plant,” Zelensky said. 

“I really hope that the mission will adhere to what the parties have agreed upon and what is in the interests of the entire international community. The greatest risk of a radiation disaster in 40 years must be removed,” he said.

After visiting the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant on Thursday, International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Grossi told reporters in Vienna that he is mainly concerned about the safety of staff and the power supply.

“It is obvious there is a lot of fighting in this part of Ukraine, so the military activity and operations are increasing in that part of the country, and this worries me a lot,” the head of the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog said.

Grossi said that during yesterday’s visit, he and his team saw holes and markings from shelling on buildings of the plant — the biggest nuclear complex of its kind in Europe.

“The physical integrity of the facility has been violated not once, but several, several times. And this is something, irrespective of the kinetic power of whatever you are throwing at the plant, is unacceptable in any way under any safety and security criteria,” Grossi said.

Both Ukraine and Russia have blamed each other for shelling at and around the plant. CNN is unable to verify what strikes occurred or who was responsible.

Regarding the threat to power supply, he said: “It is clear that those who have these military aims know very well that way to cripple or to do more damage is not to look into the reactors, which are enormously sturdy and robust, but to hit where it hurts so the plant becomes very, very problematic.” 

Grossi reiterated that the several inspectors who are currently at the plant will remain there.

Stressing the importance of the IAEA being on site, he said that he now knows much more than he did before the visit. The team is learning more “as we speak,” he said, adding that its presence has “big added value.” 

US President Joe Biden’s administration is outlining its request to Congress for the next government funding bill that includes additional money for what it is describing as “four critical needs,” including support for Ukraine as the war continues.

The White House is requesting $11.7 billion for security and economic assistance for Ukraine and an additional $2 billion “to help address the impacts Putin’s war has had on domestic energy supply and reduce energy costs in the future,” Office of Management and Budget (OMB) director Shalanda Young said in a blog post.

Per a summary from the OMB, that $13.7 billion request includes:

The request comes as lawmakers are set to return to Washington, DC, after the August recess facing a major must-pass legislative agenda item: Preventing a government shutdown by the end of the month.

So far, the US has provided approximately $13 billion in military aid to Ukraine since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began Feb. 24, a National Security Council official told CNN. The US has also provided $7 billion in grants for direct budget support and over $1.5 billion of humanitarian aid for Ukraine and Ukrainian refugees.

These are the latest developments from the war in Ukraine today:

Price cap on Russian oil: Finance ministers from the G7 nations released a joint statement announcing that they have agreed to implement a price cap on Russian oil and petroleum products in an attempt to weaken Russian revenues and Russia’s ability to fund the war.

Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak earlier warned that Moscow would no longer supply countries that choose to implement such restrictions.

Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant: A team of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors remains at the site, as the head of the UN nuclear watchdog pledged to have a “continued presence” at the plant. Ukrainian state nuclear operator Energoatom said a second reactor out of six is now up and running.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials have demanded that the IAEA press for the demilitarization of the area around the plant, which is currently held by Russian forces. The plant and the adjacent city of Enerhodar have endured persistent shelling that has raised fears of a nuclear accident through the interruption of the power supply to the facility. Each side continues to accuse the other of acts of nuclear terrorism. CNN is unable to verify what strikes occurred or who was responsible.

Key pipeline halted: Russian gas giant Gazprom is completely stopping gas supplies to Nord Stream 1 — which is the biggest pipeline bringing Russian natural gas to Europe — citing an oil leak, Gazprom said in a statement on Friday.

Following a 72-hour shutdown of the pipeline that started Wednesday in order to perform what it said was maintenance work, Gazprom was due to resume gas flows on Saturday.

Battle lines: Russian forces have suffered “significant losses” in the southern region of Kherson following the Ukrainian counteroffensive launched earlier this week, Ukraine’s military said Friday. The military said it is keeping up the pressure on Russian forces in Kherson, with attacks on several targets Thursday, including bridges across the Dnipro river. Ukraine claimed it destroyed a ferry crossing and an ammunition depot in the south.

The Ukrainian military also said the situation in the eastern Donetsk region is virtually unchanged, despite weeks of efforts by Russian forces and their allies in the Donbas militias to take new territory.

Russian gas giant Gazprom is completely halting gas supplies to Nord Stream 1 and is citing an oil leak, Gazprom said in a statement on Friday.

Nord Stream 1 — the biggest pipeline bringing Russian natural gas supplies to Europe via Germany — was on a planned 72-hour shutdown for maintenance work and was due to resume gas flows tomorrow (Saturday).

However, with this latest statement, Gazprom said the pipeline supply would be “completely stopped” until the the issues with equipment operations are resolved, giving no clear timeline for when the flow would resume.

During maintenance work at its Portovaya compressor station, Gazprom detected an oil leak, it said in the statement, adding that the Russian state watchdog issued a warning to the company and that it has also sent a letter to Siemens about the need to repair the turbine.

CNN is reaching out to Germany’s Energy department for comment.

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s daughters have topped the new Ukraine sanctions list.

According to Ukraine’s Ministry of Reintegration of Temporarily Occupied Territories, the government approved a list including 99 individuals and 178 legal entities.

Putin’s adult daughters Katerina Tikhonova and Maria Vorontsova were among those named, plus the Russian Federation of Industrial Companies and officials of the national banks of Russia and Belarus.

Earlier this year, the US applied sanctions against the people and entities listed by Ukraine. Ukraine noted that from now on, it will be matching those who are also sanctioned by partner countries.

In its latest operational update, the Ukrainian military says it has destroyed a ferry crossing that Russian forces used across the river Dnipro in the country’s south.

Missile and artillery units “delivered effective strikes on the ferry crossing near the village of Lvove village [Beryslav district] and on two areas where the enemy’s forces were concentrated,” the military’s Operational Command South said.

Another Russian ammunition depot had been destroyed in the Beryslav district of Kherson and a Russian Su-25 combat aircraft had been downed in the the same area, it added.

CNN is unable independently to verify the Ukrainian claims.

Ukrainian state nuclear operator Energoatom said a second reactor at Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant is now up and running.

“Today, September 2, 2022, power unit No. 5 of the Zaporizhzhia NPP, which was disconnected yesterday morning (September 1) as a result of mortar shelling by the Russian occupying forces at the ZNPP site, was connected to the power grid at 1:10 p.m., and power set continues,” Energoatom said Friday on Telegram.

Both Ukraine and Russia have persistently blamed each other for shelling the site and surrounding areas. CNN is unable to verify what strikes occurred or who was responsible.

Representatives of the International Atomic Energy Agency mission continue their work at the plant, Energoatom said.

International Atomic Energy Agency officials from Spain, Jordan, Albania, Lithuania and Romania are currently working at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, according to a representative of the Russian nuclear operator Rosenergoatom.

The unnamed Rosenergoatom representative was quoted by Russian state news agency RIA Novosti.

A team of five inspectors from the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog remains at the site, with IAEA chief Rafael Grossi pledging that the IAEA is “not going anywhere” and will have a “continued presence” at the plant.

Rosenergoatom is the Russian nuclear power station operations subsidiary of Atomenergoprom.

Finance ministers from the G7 nations released a joint statement announcing that they have agreed to implement a price cap on Russian oil and petroleum products in order to “reduce Russian revenues and Russia’s ability to fund its war of aggression.”

“Today we confirm our joint political intention to finalise and implement a comprehensive prohibition of services which enable maritime transportation of Russian-origin crude oil and petroleum products globally – the provision of such services would only be allowed if the oil and petroleum products are purchased at or below a price (“the price cap”) determined by the broad coalition of countries adhering to and implementing the price cap,” the statement reads.

The price cap’s goal is to reduce Russian revenues, weaken the country’s ability to fund its war and Ukraine and also ease the impact of the war on global energy prices, the statement said.

The measure builds on existing sanctions, particularly those in the sixth EU package, it added.

Ministers said they commit “to urgently work” on the finalizing and implementing the price cap.

Ahead of this G7 meeting, Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said Moscow would no longer supply oil and petroleum products to countries that choose to implement such restrictions.

“If they impose restrictions on prices, we will simply not supply oil and petroleum products to such companies or states that impose restrictions as we will not work non-competitively,” Novak said previously, according to Russian state news agency TASS.

Norwegian energy company Equinor says it has fully completed its withdrawal from Russia.

In May, Equinor announced its plans to pull out of four joint ventures with Russian oil firm Rosneft and leave an oilfield, the Kharyaga project.

That exit has been completed and there are “no remaining assets or projects in Russia,” Equinor said. 

It’s the first major Western oil firm to fully withdraw from Russia, according to Reuters.

Other big firms like ExxonMobil, BP, Shell and French firm TotalEnergies have all committed to withdrawing from the country or stopping investments, but they are still in the process of completing exits. 

In May, Shell announced the sale of its Russian lubricant and retail energy business, but said it was still in the process of phasing out its other Russian businesses.

In February, BP said it would exit its 19.75% stake in Rosneft but said that sanctions and Russian rules meant that it had not been able to sell its shares yet.

TotalEnergies has sold some of its Russian oilfields but says the deals would not complete until later in September.

ExxonMobil has also outlined plans to exit its operations at the Sakhalin-1 energy project, and said it would no longer invest in new developments in Russia.

One out of the six nuclear reactors at the Zaporizhzhia power plant is operational, the head of the Russian-backed administration in occupied parts of Zaporizhzhia said.

“One power unit remains in operation on Friday at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, delivering 60% of its capacity,” said Yevgeny Balitsky, according to the Russian state news agency RIA Novosti.

Until recently, two reactors were providing power.

Balitsky said his administration had shown details of alleged Ukrainian shelling in the area to the UN nuclear inspectors that visited the plant Thursday .

The team from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) “recorded all the objects we showed. … They said ‘we don’t give assessments of the military situation.’ … They recorded the incoming shells, they are in the protocols, the hits, we showed them everything,” he said, adding that the Russian-backed authorities were interested in the IAEA’s official view on the operation of the plant and the shelling.

This comes as Ukrainian and Russian agencies continue to accuse each other of trying to subvert the mission of the IAEA to safeguard the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.

Ukraine accused the Russians of trying to prevent the IAEA mission from getting to know the facts on the ground, which it said will make it difficult for the agency to “make an impartial assessment.”

“The Russian military lies, manipulates and misrepresents reality at Zaporizhzhia NPP by disseminating only information on the IAEA mission visit it could benefit from,” The Ukrainian nuclear power provider, Energoatom, said Friday.

On the other hand, pro-Russian officials in the occupied area are blaming the Ukrainians for impeding the IAEA’s work. An official said that Ukraine “did not stop” shelling “but their intensity significantly decreased” during the visit.

If G7 leaders decide to impose price caps on Russian oil, it will lead to a significant destabilization of oil markets, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Friday.

“One thing we can say with certainty: making such a decision will lead to a significant destabilization of oil markets,” Peskov told CNN on a conference call when asked if a potential price cap will hurt Russia financially.

On Friday, G7 finance ministers are expected to meet to discuss setting a price cap on Russian oil. 
The Biden administration has been pushing for governments to introduce a price cap.

“This is the most effective way, we believe, to hit hard at Putin’s revenue, and doing so will result in not only a drop in Putin’s oil revenue, but also global energy prices as well,” White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said earlier this week.

The British finance minister, Nadeem Zahawi, said Thursday he was hopeful that G7 ministers would strike a deal.

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak told reporters Thursday that, should such restrictions be imposed, Russia will suspend oil and petroleum supplies to states which limit the price of its oil.

Peskov confirmed Novak’s statement Friday saying that Russia will not have oil trade with countries that will join these restrictions.

“Those countries that join the potential price ceiling will not be among the recipients of Russian oil,” he said adding that the Russian oil will go to “alternative directions” instead.

Peskov refused to name the alternative oil partners Russia is planning to trade with, but said “they are more numerous than before.”

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said that Russian forces “do not have heavy weapons in the area of ​​the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant,” as each side continues to accuse one another of shelling the plant and surrounding area.

Lack of access makes it impossible to verify the claims.

During a conference call Friday at the Ministry of Defense in Moscow, Shoigu said, “The Ukrainian authorities openly lie that the Russian Armed Forces, hiding behind important energy facilities, are shelling the Armed Forces of Ukraine from long-range artillery systems.”

“I responsibly declare that we do not have heavy weapons on the territory of the nuclear power plant and in the surrounding areas. I hope the IAEA commission will be convinced of this,” he said.

Shoigu said that since mid-July the Ukrainian military “have been regularly attacking the infrastructure of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant,” and that 29 attacks had been registered since July 18.

Meanwhile, the Ukrainian nuclear power provider, Energoatom, said on Friday that “the Russian military lies, manipulates and misrepresents reality at Zaporizhzhia NPP by disseminating only information on the IAEA mission visit it could benefit from.”

Ukrainian and Russian agencies continue to accuse each other of trying to subvert the mission of the International Atomic Energy Agency to safeguard the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.

The Ukrainian nuclear power provider, Energoatom, said Friday: “The Russian military lies, manipulates and misrepresents reality at Zaporizhzhia NPP by disseminating only information on the IAEA mission visit it could benefit from.”

It also accused the Russians of trying to prevent the International Atomic Energy Agency mission from getting to know the facts on the ground.”

Energoatom also said: “Military trucks, deployed in the turbine halls of power units in breach of all fire safety requirements, were presented to the IAEA experts as equipment of the chemical defense forces. The Russian military tries to hide all the nuclear and radiation safety violations created by it.” 

“Only operative personnel were allowed to work at the Zaporizhzhia NPP while the presence of people on the routes of IAEA delegation members was significantly limited,” Energoatom said.
“It is clear that under such conditions it will be difficult for IAEA to make an impartial assessment of the situation at ZNPP.”

For their part, pro-Russian officials in the occupied area are blaming the Ukrainians for impeding the IAEA’s work.

Alexander Volga, head of the military-civil administration of Enerhodar, claimed Friday that “the shelling of the Armed Forces of Ukraine did not stop, but their intensity significantly decreased,” and that technicians continued to work on restoring power lines damaged “as a result of the massive shelling of Enerhodar from the Ukrainian side.”

Volga said the IAEA team still at the plant “was provided with relevant documents on the nuclear power plant, as well as a map of shelling by the Armed Forces of Ukraine.”

Most of the IAEA mission left the plant after a visit of several hours Thursday, but a small team remains behind. The IAEA director general, Rafael Grossi, vowed the agency would have a continuing presence at the plant.

The day after the highly publicized International Atomic Energy Agency visit to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, a team of five inspectors remains at the site. 

IAEA chief Rafael Grossi said that the UN nuclear watchdog is “not going anywhere” and will have a “continued presence” at the plant.

A prolonged IAEA presence there would likely help to stave off the possibility of a dangerous nuclear accident. However, it’s not entirely clear what that continued presence might look like.   

Grossi – who left the plant on Thursday – said that he would be reporting to the agency’s Board of Governors “and then we are establishing a continued presence there…so that they can continue to provide me and all of us with the impartial, neutral, technically sound assessment of whatever it may be happening there.”

Meanwhile, the Ukrainians have demanded that the IAEA press for the demilitarization of the area around the plant, which is currently held by Russian forces.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his Thursday video message that demilitarization was “the goal of Ukrainian and international efforts. And it is bad that we have not yet heard the appropriate call from the IAEA. Although we talked about it with Mr. Grossi at our meeting in Kyiv. It was the key – the key – security point of our agreements: demilitarization and full control by our nuclear workers.”

But such a move would be beyond the IAEA’s limited mandate – and the agency shows no sign of addressing it.

Instead, Grossi stressed the technical nature of the visit while in Zaporizhzhia and the examination of what he called “three or four key areas” at the plant, including emergency systems and control rooms 

The so-called “seven pillars” of the agency’s framework include the physical integrity of facilities, their safety systems, secure off-site power supply, effective radiation monitoring systems and reliable communications with the regulator.

Some background:

The plant and the area around it, including the adjacent city of Enerhodar, have endured persistent shelling that has raised fears of a nuclear accident through the interruption of the power supply to the facility. Each side accuses the other of acts of nuclear terrorism.

Russia has insisted the military presence at the plant is to protect it; Ukraine says that the Russians are using the territory of the plant to fire at Ukrainian-held territory on the other side of the river Dnipro.

What now?

Each side is working hard to present its version of the situation to the IAEA team.

The Ukrainian side is concerned that even at the plant, the Russians will seek to withhold the reality from the inspectors. On Thursday, Zelensky said:  “We have specific information that Russia has done a lot of cynical things in order to deceive the [IAEA] mission.” It was a theme picked up Friday by Ukraine’s state nuclear company Energoatom, who said on Telegram: “The Russian occupiers are making every effort to prevent the International Atomic Energy Agency mission from getting to know the facts on the ground at the Zaporizhzhia NPP.”

Alexander Volga, head of the Russian-backed military-civil administration of Enerhodar, said Friday that the IAEA team “was provided with relevant documents on the nuclear power plant, as well as a map of shelling by the Armed Forces of Ukraine.”

The IAEA will tread carefully, sticking to its seven pillars in pursuing a strictly technical path to ensure the plant’s systems are in working order and that it has an uninterrupted power supply. 

Ukrainian Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko on Friday urged the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to insist that a military presence at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant is unacceptable.

Halushchenko said on Ukrainian television that “The IAEA mission must state that the presence of the military, the presence of weapons at the station is a real threat to nuclear safety. This is obvious.”

After a relatively quiet night around the plant and in the nearby city of Enerhodar, Halushchenko said the IAEA specialists at the site “can rise to another level by assessing such significant violations of nuclear safety.” 

“The part of the mission that is currently left on the station will be key one. It is planned that it will stay there for three to four days,” Halushchenko said.

“Recommendations and reports of the IAEA should be sent to Ukraine, the operating organization of the ZNPP — Energoatom. And we must implement these recommendations … But for that we need to have access to the station. It should be returned under the control of Ukraine,” Halushchenko said.

Shutdown risks: Halushchenko said a controlled shutdown of the plant would not alleviate the risks there. 

“Whether the power plant releases the energy to the grid or not does not affect the issue of the nuclear safety. Because even if the power plant does not operate and does not produce the energy — the nuclear material is still there … in the holding pools, and in the storage of the spent fuel on the Zaporizhzhia NPP,” he said.

“So while the nuclear material is still there, there is still a certain hazard present.”

Russian forces have suffered “significant losses” in the southern region of Kherson following the Ukrainian counteroffensive launched earlier this week, Ukraine’s military said Friday.

“The enemy suffers quite significant losses — losses in manpower have gone from tens to hundreds. Equipment also burns. […] Therefore, our successes are quite convincing, and I think very soon we will be able to disclose more positive news,” said Natalia Humeniuk, spokeswoman for the Ukrainian military in the south.
“We continue to destroy the enemy in terms of its logistics, capabilities, capacities. Ammunition warehouses explode, pontoon crossings explode. It means that the enemy’s logistics and transport connections are undermined to such an extent that they cannot raise reserves.”

Operational Command South claimed that a range of targets had been struck, including a ferry crossing.

“Our air forces carried out 18 strikes on command and support posts, warehouses with ammunition and fuel and lubricants, as well as logistics and transport facilities,” it said. 

According to Operational Command South, three important bridges across the Dnipro river— Antonivskyi, Kakhovskyi and Dariivskyi — are ongoing targets.

Ukrainian forces have been trying to prevent Russian troops from resupplying their units north of the river, essentially cutting off Russian defensive positions.

However, Russian forces continue to shell more than a dozen Ukrainian settlements behind a front line that runs roughly along Kherson’s northern border.

There has been little indication of territory changing hands in the area. 

A cargo vessel carrying 3,000 metric tons of corn from Ukraine that was stranded in the Bosporus Strait has been anchored and traffic has resumed, Turkey’s General Directorate of Coastal Safety said Friday. 

The ship, Lady Zehma, was traveling from the Black Sea to Ravena, Italy when it ran aground due to rudder failure and became stranded on Thursday. 

The ship has been towed and is now anchored in Istanbul’s Bebek Bay, the General Directorate tweeted Friday. 

Traffic had been suspended, but has since resumed, it added. 

Ahead of a G7 meeting to discuss setting a price cap on Russian oil, Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said Moscow would no longer supply places that choose to implement such restrictions.

“If they impose restrictions on prices, we will simply not supply oil and petroleum products to such companies or states that impose restrictions as we will not work non-competitively,” Novak said, according to Russian state news agency TASS.

G7 finance ministers are expected to meet Friday to discuss setting a price cap on Russian oil. 

“This is the most effective way, we believe, to hit hard at Putin’s revenue and doing so will result in not only a drop in Putin’s oil revenue, but also global energy prices as well,” White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Wednesday, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Novak called the proposals to impose restrictions “completely absurd” and said they could destroy the global oil market, TASS reported.

Most of the international team of nuclear experts visiting the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant on Thursday have left, after overcoming initial challenges in reaching the facility, including an hours-long delay and a drive through an active war zone.

The visit by the team of 14 experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), including its chief Rafael Grossi, came at a crucial moment for the plant, which has endured constant shelling and raised fears of a nuclear accident.

Their trip was mired in risk as shelling had broken out on Thursday, with both Russian and Ukrainian officials confirming that the nearby city of Enerhodar had endured a morning of bombardment.

Mortar shelling by Russians forced one of the the plant’s two working reactors to shut down on the same day, Ukraine’s nuclear operator Energoatom said Thursday, while Ukrainian officials accused Russian forces of shelling the IAEA mission’s pre-agreed route to the plant.

Grossi said that his team were determined to visit the plant, despite the bombardment. “Having come this far, I was not going to stop and with my courageous team we moved in. There were moments where fire was obvious,” he told reporters after the visit.

“Heavy machine gun artillery, mortars two or three times were really pretty concerning, I would say, for all of us. We had splendid support from the United Nations Security team that is here with me as well. So I think we showed that the international community is there, could be there — and we are continuing this,” he added.

Ongoing mission: The IAEA chief has now left the plant, however Grossi said the UN nuclear watchdog is “not going anywhere” and will have a “continued presence” there.

“We are not going anywhere. The IAEA is now there at the plant and it’s not moving. It’s going to stay there. We’re going to have a continued presence there at the plant,” he said.

Read more here.

The Ukrainian military says the situation in the eastern Donetsk region is virtually unchanged, despite weeks of efforts by Russian forces and their allies in the Donbas militias to take new territory.

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s declared objective is to take all of the regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, but Ukrainian forces still control more than one-third of Donetsk.

The Ukrainian military’s General Staff said Thursday that once again the Russians had tried to attack in several directions, toward the city of Sloviansk and the towns of Bakhmut and Avdiivka.

In each instance, the General Staff said, Russian forces had been unsuccessful and had withdrawn.

It spoke of heavy attacks with tanks, artillery and mortars in the south where Ukrainian forces are trying to weaken Russian defenses.

According to the General Staff, the Russians had fired on 15 settlements in the region, mostly along the borders of Mykolaiv and Kherson regions, which have been an active front line for more than two months.

It was a chilling shooting: Russian soldiers caught on camera killing unarmed Ukrainian civilians as they walked away from an encounter on the outskirts of the capital Kyiv.

CNN first reported on the shooting in May, after obtaining exclusive surveillance video of what is being investigated as a war crime, a shooting targeting civilians.

Now, Ukrainian prosecutors say they have informed Russia that their pre-trial investigation has zeroed in one of the Russian perpetrators they believe is responsible.

The Bucha Prosecutors’ Office in the Kyiv region says CNN’s exclusive reporting was instrumental in helping identify the Russian soldier.

Prosecutors say the suspect is Nikolay Sergeevich Sokovikov, adding that Russia was informed of his charges of “violation of the laws and customs of war” and “intentional murder.”

CNN has requested comment from Russia’s defense ministry but has not had a response. CNN also asked the Russian MOD for response to our original report in May and never received a reply.

Read the full story here.

The chairman of Russian oil and gas giant Lukoil has died after falling out of the window of a hospital in Moscow, according to Russian state media.

“The man fell out of the sixth-floor window and died as a result of his injuries,” a source told TASS.

Lukoil confirmed the death of its chairman on Thursday in a statement published on its website.

Ravil Maganov “passed away following a severe illness,” Lukoil said, making no mention of a fall. “Maganov immensely contributed to the development of not only the company, but of the entire Russian oil and gas sector.”

Lukoil, Russia’s second biggest oil and gas company, made headlines in March when it called “for the soonest termination of the armed conflict” in Ukraine.

“We express our sincere empathy for all victims, who are affected by this tragedy,” the company’s board of directors said in a statement to shareholders, staff and customers at the time. “We strongly support a lasting ceasefire and a settlement of problems through serious negotiations and diplomacy.”

The firm produces more than 2% of the world’s crude oil and employs over 100,000 people.

RIA Novosti quoted a law enforcement source Thursday as saying Maganov “most likely committed suicide.”

“Investigating authorities are working on the spot to establish the causes of the incident,” the source told RIA.

At least five prominent Russian businessmen have reportedly died by suicide since late January, according to previous CNN reporting.

The Ukrainian military says it is keeping up the pressure on Russian forces in the southern Kherson region, with attacks on several targets Thursday, including bridges across the Dnipro river.

Its Operational Command South said: “Our missile and artillery units conducted fire missions on three control points, a radar station, two points of concentration of enemy manpower, weapons and equipment.” 

It added that fire against the Kakhovskyi Bridge left several additional holes, which meant it remained unusable to occupying forces.

Ukrainian forces have focused in the last two months on degrading Russian supply lines, ammunition depots and rear bases in the south.

Vladimir Putin will not attend the funeral of Mikhail Gorbachev, the Kremlin said Thursday, in a snub of the former Soviet leader with whom the Russian President had a fraught relationship.

Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said “Putin’s work schedule will not allow him to take part in the farewell ceremony for Gorbachev on September 3,” adding that the Russian President visited the Central Clinical Hospital today to pay his respects to Gorbachev, laying flowers by the coffin.

A farewell ceremony for Gorbachev, which will be open to the public, is due to take place on Saturday, followed by the funeral later on the same day at Moscow’s Novodevichy Cemetery.

Read the full story here.