KYIV: Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha warned on Saturday that Russia is reportedly planning strikes on Ukrainian nuclear facilities ahead of winter, urging the U.N. nuclear watchdog and Ukraine’s allies to implement permanent monitoring at the country’s nuclear plants.
“According to Ukrainian intelligence, the Kremlin is preparing attacks on critical nuclear energy infrastructure, including open distribution devices at nuclear power plants and transmission substations,” Sybiha stated on X. He did not provide specific details on why Ukraine believes these strikes are imminent.
There was no immediate response from Moscow, and the U.N.’s International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) did not comment right away.
Andriy Yermak, chief of staff to the Ukrainian president, called for a prompt global reaction to the potential threat, stating, “This is preparation for a possible nuclear disaster scenario. Russia is a terrorist and must be stopped immediately. The West and Global South must respond firmly to this terror.”
Since its invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Russia has conducted extensive aerial attacks on Ukraine’s power grid, damaging much of the country’s thermal power capacity, but has not yet targeted any nuclear facilities controlled by Ukraine.
Ukraine has previously accused Russia of nuclear blackmail following its occupation of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in March 2022. Moscow denies these allegations.
Both nations have accused each other of shelling areas near the plant, raising concerns about power outages that could lead to nuclear accidents. IAEA chief Rafael Grossi has repeatedly urged both sides to avoid military actions near nuclear sites, emphasizing the inherent risks of such conflicts.
