By Janet Ekstract
İSTANBUL- On Tuesday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’s spokesperson Stephane Dujarric announced the UN leader will meet Turkish President Erdogan and Ukrainian President Zelensky on Wednesday in Lviv. Guterres will also travel to the port city of Odessa, Dujarric told a press briefing. The three leaders are expected to discuss the dire situation at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant as well as seeking a political solution to the ongoing war in Ukraine. Both Ukraine and Russia are trading barbs regarding shelling near the nuclear plant that is located in eastern Ukraine. The nuclear plant was taken over by Russia when they invaded Ukraine on February 24 though the plant is still being operated by Ukrainian technicians. Both Ukraine and Russia are trading barbs regarding shelling near the nuclear plant that is located in eastern Ukraine. The nuclear plant was taken over by Russia when Russian President Putin invaded Ukraine on February 24, though the plant is still being operated by Ukrainian technicians.
The UN wants inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to visit Zaporizhzhia from Kyiv, though Russia insists that such a trip through Kyiv would prove too perilous. Meanwhile, Guterres is scheduled to visit Istanbul on August 20 to see the Joint Coordination Center monitoring the grain deal that was created in a historic meeting with mediation initiated by Turkiye and the UN. The UN and Turkiye had worked on the deal for two months to help alleviate and thwart an impending global food crisis. The historic deal was responsible for ending Russia’s blockade on three Ukrainian Black Sea ports.
