IAEA head may visit Chernobyl NPP on upcoming anniversary of 1986 nuclear disaster - Ukrainian energy minister

KYIV. April 13 (Interfax-Ukraine) - A visit by International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi to the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) may take place on the 36th anniversary of the disaster that occurred at the facility on April 26, 1986, Ukrainian Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko said.

"We are talking about April 26, the anniversary of the Chernobyl NPP disaster," Halushchenko said in an interview during the UArazom (UAtogether) nationwide telethon on Wednesday.

As reported, Grossi said on April 8 that the IAEA is compiling comprehensive assistance packages and is finalizing logistic preparations for several IAEA missions on nuclear safety and guarantees in Ukraine that could be dispatched to Ukraine in the coming weeks.

According to the statement, the IAEA's priority is to send safety and guarantees personnel to the Chernobyl NPP as soon as possible. Grossi himself also announced a readiness to arrive at the Chernobyl NPP during his visit to the South Ukraine NPP in late March.