UN nuclear watchdog head Rafael Grossi kicked off a visit Tuesday to "independently assess" conditions at the Kursk nuclear plant following Ukraine's cross-border offensive into the southern Kursk region earlier this month.The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has repeatedly warned of the dangers of fighting around nuclear plants following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.A spokesperson for Russia's nuclear agency, Rosatom, told AFP that Rossi had arrived at the power plant as he personally leads a mission to assess the situation there, which he has warned is "serious."In the first days of the war, Russian forces seized the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in southern Ukraine, and also briefly held the decommissioned Chornobyl plant in the north.Ukraine launched its surprise incursion into Kursk on Aug.

6 and has said it is making advances, even as Russian forces move deeper into eastern Ukraine.Russian President Vladimir Putin last week accused Ukraine of trying to attack the Kursk nuclear power plant, which is less than 50 kilometers (30 miles) from fighting between Russian and Ukrainian forces.The IAEA confirmed that it had been told by Russian authorities that drone fragments were found last Thursday roughly 100 meters (328 feet) from the Kursk plant's spent nuclear fuel storage facility.