VIENNA (REUTERS) - The UN atomic watchdog said on Wednesday (June 29) it had again lost its connection to its surveillance systems keeping track of nuclear material at the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine, Europe's largest, which the watchdog wants to inspect.

"The fact that our remote safeguards data transmission is down again - for the second time in the past month - only adds to the urgency to dispatch this mission (to Zaporizhzhia)," the International Atomic Energy Agency said in a statement.

The connection was lost on Saturday "due to a disruption of the facility's communication systems", it added.