Ukraine And Russia Trade Blame Over Fire At Nuclear Plant

Posted by: Eninu William in World news August 12, 2024

Ukraine and Russia have blamed each other after a fire broke out at the giant Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant on Sunday. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russian forces had started a fire at the plant, which has been occupied by Moscow’s forces for more than two years.

Zaporizhzhia’s Kremlin-installed governor said Ukrainian shelling caused the blaze.

The UN’s nuclear watchdog said it saw “strong dark smoke” coming from the facility. It however said there was “no impact reported” for nuclear safety.

The development comes as Ukrainian troops have advanced up to 30km inside Russia. This is the deepest and most significant incursion since Moscow began its full-scale invasion in February 2022.

On Sunday, Yevgeny Balitsky, the Kremlin-installed governor of Zaporizhzhia, said a fire had broken out at the cooling towers of the power plant. He blamed Ukrainian shelling, but asked for “calm”, adding that there had been no radiation spike around the plant.

Mr Zelensky also said there was no detected radiation spike or danger of a nuclear leak. He accused Russia of purposefully starting the fire in an attempt to “blackmail” Kyiv. In the early hours of Monday, Vladimir Rogov, another Kremlin-installed official, said the fire had been “completely extinguished” in a Telegram post.

The nuclear power plant has been under the control of Russian troops and officials since 2022. It has not produced power in more than two years and all six reactors have been in cold shutdown since April.

What the UN Nuclear Watchdog says;

In a statement posted on X, UN nuclear watchdog the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said its experts had witnessed “strong dark smoke” coming from the plant following “multiple explosions”.

It said the plant had reported “an alleged drone attack” on one of the cooling towers at the site.

“No impact has been reported for nuclear safety,” the IAEA added.

In a later statement, the IAEA said it had requested “immediate access to the cooling tower to assess the damage”.

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