VIENNA: The UN’s nuclear watchdog will this week carry out an “independent verification” of Russian allegations concerning the production of so-called dirty bombs at two sites in Ukraine, it said on Thursday.
Russia has accused Ukraine of preparing to use such a weapon against Moscow’s troops, but Kyiv suspects Russia might itself use a dirty bomb in a “false flag” attack, possibly to justify use of conventional nuclear weapons by Moscow as it finds itself on the back foot in eastern and southern Ukraine.
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) head Rafael Grossi said: “IAEA inspectors will conduct independent verification at these locations.”
He said they would work “to detect any diversion of nuclear material under safeguards, any undeclared production or processing of nuclear material at the two locations and assure that there are no undeclared nuclear material and activities.”
The agency said it had inspected “one of the two locations a month ago and no undeclared nuclear activities or materials were found there.”
A dirty bomb is a conventional bomb laced with radioactive, biological or chemical materials which are spread in an explosion.
Earlier on Thursday Russian President Vladimir Putin called for the IAEA to inspect Ukraine’s nuclear sites “as fast as possible.”
IAEA to conduct ‘independent’ probe into Ukraine dirty bomb allegations
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IAEA to conduct ‘independent’ probe into Ukraine dirty bomb allegations
- Putin called for the IAEA to inspect Ukraine’s nuclear sites “as fast as possible.”
Disaster losses drop in 2025, picture still ‘alarming’: Munich Re
- Costliest disaster came in the form of the Los Angeles wildfires in January, with total losses of $53bn
FRANKFURT: Natural disaster losses worldwide dropped sharply to $224 billion in 2025, reinsurer Munich Re said Tuesday, but warned of a still “alarming” picture of extreme weather events likely driven by climate change.
The figure was down nearly 40 percent from a year earlier, in part because no hurricane struck the US mainland for the first time in several years.
Nevertheless, “the big picture was alarming with regard to floods, severe ... storms and wildfires in 2025,” said Munich Re, a Germany-based provider of insurance for the insurance industry.
HIGHLIGHT
Around 17,200 lives were lost in natural disasters worldwide, significantly higher than about 11,000 in 2024, but below the 10-year average of of 17,800.
The costliest disaster of the year came in the form of Los Angeles wildfires in January, with total losses of $53 billion and insured losses of around $40 billion, Munich Re said in its annual disaster report.
It was striking how many extreme events were likely influenced by climate change in 2025 and it was just chance that the world was spared potentially higher losses, according to the group.
“The planet has a fever, and as a result we are seeing a cluster of severe and intense weather events,” Tobias Grimm, Munich Re’s chief climate scientist, told AFP.
Last month Swiss Re, another top player in the reinsurance industry, also reported a hefty drop for 2025, putting total losses at $220 billion.
According to Munich Re’s report, insured losses for 2025 came in at $108 billion, also sharply down on last year.
Around 17,200 lives were lost in natural disasters worldwide, significantly higher than about 11,000 in 2024, but below the 10-year average of of 17,800, it said.
Grimm said 2025 was a year with “two faces.”
“The first half of the year was the costliest loss period the insurance industry has ever experienced,” he said — but the second half saw the lowest losses in a decade.
It is now the cumulative costs of smaller-scale disasters — like local floods and forest fires — that are having the greatest impact.
Losses from these events amounted to $166 billion last year, according to Munich Re.
After the LA wildfires, the costliest disaster of the year was a devastating earthquake that hit Myanmar in March, which is estimated to have caused $12 billion in losses, only a small share of which was insured.
Tropical cyclones caused around $37 billion in losses.
Jamaica was battered by Hurricane Melissa, one of the strongest hurricanes ever to make landfall, generating losses of around $9.8 billion.
By region, the US’ total losses amounted to $118 billion, $88 billion of which was insured — around the same as an estimate of $115 billion total losses from US nonprofit Climate Central.
The Asia-Pacific region had losses of about $73 billion — but only $9 billion was insured, according to the report.
Australia had its second most expensive year in terms of overall losses from natural disasters since 1980 due to a series of severe storms and flooding.
Europe saw losses of $11 billion. Natural disasters in Africa led to losses of $3 billion, less than a fifth of which was insured.
The report comes at a time when skepticism toward green policies is growing, particularly since the return to power of US President Donald Trump, who derides climate science as a “hoax.”
But Grimm warned that the Earth “continues to warm.”
“More heat means more humidity, stronger rainfall, and higher wind speeds — climate change is already contributing to extreme weather,” he said.
