One of the reactors at Ukraine’s Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, which is under the control of Russian forces, has shut down, the Ukrainian Atomic Energy Company said on Saturday, following strikes blamed on each other by Kiev and Moscow.
“After the attack on the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, the emergency protection system was activated on one of the three working reactors, which was disabled.“Energoatom” announced in a Telegram message.
According to this source, the bombings took placebadly damaged“Nitrogen and oxygen-containing plant and “auxiliary building“. “There are still risks of leaking hydrogen and radioactive materials, and the risk of fire is high“, – She said:
“The bombing (…) caused a serious threat to the safe operation of the factory“Energoatom went on to say that it still continues to produce electricity, and Ukrainian personnel continue to work there.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) made a decision on Saturday.increasingly alarming” reports coming from the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, the largest in Europe, the day after the nearby strikes.
It’s Friday’s strikesthe latest in a long list of increasingly alarming reports“, IAEA General Director Rafael Grossi condemned, considering that they show.A very real risk of a nuclear disaster that could threaten health and the environment in Ukraine and beyond“, says the press release.
Ukrainian authorities on Friday accused Russian forces of launching three strikes near a reactor at the Zaporozhye power plant in the south, although Moscow has controlled the area since the invasion began. The Russian army, in its turn, confirmed that at the beginning of these strikes, it was the Ukrainian forces that caused the fire, which was extinguished.
The European Union on Saturday condemned “irresponsible violationRussia’s nuclear security rules. The head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, said on Twitter that he sees “Another example of Russia’s disregard for international standards“.
On July 21, Russia already accused the Ukrainian forces of striking the largest nuclear power plant in Europe with a drone. Kiev also assures that Moscow is stockpiling heavy weapons and ammunition in the area of the nuclear plant, which has been occupied by Russian forces since March.
Source: Le Figaro
