Kiev and Moscow have once again exchanged accusations for firing on the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, the largest in Europe, occupied by Russia and targeted several times in a week.
“Limit your presence on the streets of Energodar. We have received reports of new provocations from the occupiersThe Russians tagged Ukraine’s nuclear agency Energoatom on Telegram, reposting a message from the local head of the town of Energodar, home to the nuclear plant, which has remained loyal to Kiev. “According to the testimonies of the residents, shelling is going on again in the direction of the Zaporizhia nuclear power station (…) The departure and arrival of the shots are 3-5 seconds.“, the message adds.
In turn, the occupation authorities installed by Russia in the territories it occupied in the Zaporozhye region suddenly accused Ukrainian forces of being behind the shootings. “Energodar and the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant have again come under fire from militants (President of Ukraine Volodymyr) Zelensky.Vladimir Rogov, a member of the pro-Russian military and civil administration, said in Telegram. the shells fell”in areas located on the banks of the Dnieper and in the power plant“, he said, without reporting on casualties or destruction.
Fear of a nuclear disaster
The Dnieper River (Ukrainian: Днепр) separates the territories in Russian hands from the territories controlled by the Ukrainian authorities. Several bombings, blamed on each other by the two sides, targeted the Zaporizhia power plant, sparking fears of a nuclear disaster and prompting a UN Security Council meeting on Thursday.
The first strikes, on August 5, specifically hit a high-voltage power transmission transformer, triggering an automatic shutdown of reactor No. 3 at Europe’s largest nuclear power plant and triggering emergency generators. The latest strikes on Thursday damaged the pumping station and sensors measuring radioactivity.
Ukrainian authorities, backed by their Western allies, are calling for the demilitarization of the area and the withdrawal of Russian troops who have occupied the site since March, with Vladimir Zelensky condemning “Russian nuclear blackmail“.
Source: Le Figaro
