Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed concerns on Thursday (June 22) that Moscow is contemplating a “terrorist attack” on the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, which has been a contentious issue between the two nations since the onset of the war in February last year. Zelensky took to video to inform international partners that Kyiv was sharing its intelligence regarding the plant.
Although he did not disclose the source, Zelensky revealed that intelligence had received information indicating that Russia was considering a terrorist act at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, with the intention of releasing radiation. He stated that Russia had made all necessary preparations for this alarming scenario. Zelensky expressed his frustration at having to repeatedly emphasize that radiation does not respect state borders, and its impact is determined solely by the direction of the wind.
Zelensky claimed that Russian forces were allegedly planning a radiation leak at the plant. However, Russia promptly dismissed these allegations, denouncing them as “another lie.” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov asserted that a team of UN nuclear inspectors had inspected the plant and deemed it highly secure. In fact, on the same day, Russia announced that UN nuclear chief Rafael Grossi would be visiting Kaliningrad, Russia, to meet with the head of Russia’s nuclear agency.
Zaporizhzhia is a strategically important city located on the banks of the Dnieper River in southeastern Ukraine. The city is notable for its Khortytsia Island and the Dnieper Hydroelectric Station. Before the war, the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant played a crucial role in supplying electricity to Ukraine. It used to generate 40-42 billion kWh of power annually, accounting for 20% of Ukraine’s average annual electricity production and nearly half of the electricity produced by Ukrainian nuclear power plants.
The plant is situated in the steppe region of Ukraine, along the Kakhovka water reservoir, which recently experienced a breach, leading to severe flooding in adjacent areas. Zelensky further asserted that intelligence agencies had gathered fresh evidence indicating that Russian forces deliberately and calculatedly destroyed the dam and other structures at the hydroelectric plant.
Since the beginning of the war, Russia had gained control over Zaporizhzhia, and an attack on March 4 heightened concerns that the conflict could result in damage to one of Ukraine’s 15 nuclear reactors. Such an event could potentially trigger a crisis on a scale similar to the 1986 Chernobyl disaster, the worst nuclear catastrophe in history. Experts claim that if the nuclear plant were to explode, the magnitude of the disaster would be ten times greater than Chernobyl.
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