Russia reports attack on Zaporizhia nuclear power plant
Russia accuses Ukraine of attacking the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant with drones, injuring several employees. Ukraine denies an attack on the reactor, which is under Russian control.
According to Russian information, three employees were injured in the shelling of the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southeastern Ukraine. The Russian nuclear company Rosatom said there was a Ukrainian attack near the power plant's canteen as well as on a loading zone and the dome of the nuclear power plant's sixth reactor.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said its experts had been informed of the drone attack. There were three “direct hits” on the facility. The damage to Unit 6 did not endanger nuclear safety, but it was a serious incident that jeopardized the integrity of the reactor's containment system, said authority chief Rafael Grossi.
IAEA warns of possible consequences
Grossi once again warned of the risks of such attacks and called for any actions that could endanger nuclear security to be avoided. Such "reckless attacks significantly increase the risk of a serious nuclear accident and must stop immediately."
Ukraine denies attack
Meanwhile, Andriy Yusov, spokesman for the Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine, said that Kiev had nothing to do with the incidents at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. "Ukraine is not involved in any armed provocations on the territory of the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant illegally occupied by Russia," he said. Russian attacks, including simulations of Ukrainian attacks on the territory of the Ukrainian nuclear power plant, are a long-known criminal practice of the invaders.
Nuclear power plant under Russian control
Russia's attack troops occupied Europe's largest nuclear power plant soon after beginning their invasion of Ukraine. The governments in Kiev and Moscow have repeatedly accused each other of attacks on the facility. In this context, the IAEA had warned several times of a potential nuclear catastrophe. The six reactors at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant have been shut down for months, but electricity and skilled personnel are needed to operate the cooling systems.
