* This content was produced in Russia where the law restricts coverage of Russian military operations in Ukraine

MOSCOW, Sept 17 (Reuters) - Russia's defence ministry said on Saturday that its forces had launched strikes on Ukrainian positions in several parts of Ukraine, and accused Kyiv of carrying out shelling near the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.

Russian forces conducted their strikes in the Kherson, Mykolaiv, Kharkiv and Donetsk regions, according to the ministry, which added that Ukrainian forces had carried out an unsuccessful offensive near Pravdyne in Kherson.

The radiation situation at Zaporizhzhia, Europe's biggest nuclear power plant, remains normal, according to the ministry. It said two incidents of Ukrainian shelling were recorded near the plant on Saturday.

A spokesperson for Ukraine's foreign ministry denied that Ukrainian forces had carried out shelling near the facility.

Russia and Ukraine have repeatedly accused each other of shelling the Zaporizhzhia plant in southern Ukraine.

The U.N. International Atomic Energy Agency passed a resolution on Thursday demanding that Russia end its occupation of the plant. (Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Pravin Char)