Published: Less than 20 min ago
Russia warns of an upcoming “terrorist attack” against the giant Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant.
The Ukrainian intelligence service believes that it is an insidious plan from the Kremlin.
– Everyone is terrified, says an employee, who is fixed at the nuclear power plant, to The New York Times.
The situation surrounding the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant, the largest in Europe, has been increasingly escalated recently.
Ukrainian President Zelenskyi has accused the Russians of practicing “nuclear blackmail” by using the area as cover during artillery fire on nearby cities.
Threat of terrorist attack
Both sides accuse the other of firing near the giant nuclear power plant and thus risking a nuclear disaster.
– We are worried. We do not want a new Chernobyl, Turkish President Erdogan said in connection with meetings with Zelenskyi and UN chief Guterres in Lviv.
On Thursday, tensions and fears of a full-scale disaster increased further when the Russian leadership came out and claimed that Ukraine is planning a “terrorist attack” on the plant, states The New York Times.
It is stated that the plan is to create “a disaster” by striking the reactor and creating a radioactive leak, writes the Russian state-controlled news agency Tass.
“Part of Russian plan”
The false flag attack will then be used by Kyiv to “blame the Russian army’s military operations at the nuclear power plant and incompetent Russian specialists,” according to the Russian data.
Russia further claimed that the Ukrainian military equipped all soldiers in the region with protective equipment against radioactive radiation ahead of the upcoming operation.
The Ukrainian intelligence service quickly responded to the accusations and said that it is Russia that is planning a sabotage operation in Zaporizhzhya – and that the “warning” was a first step in the plan.
It is also claimed from the Ukrainian side that people from Rosatom, the Russian state’s own nuclear power company, hastily left the area.
Employees terrified
In addition, the Russian occupation force is said to have given most people a day off on Friday and is only allowing essential personnel access to the nuclear power plant.
Russian troops captured Zaporizhzhya at the beginning of the invasion. It is still mainly operated by Ukrainian engineers under the supervision of the Russian forces.
One of the employees tells The New York Times that everyone trapped inside the nuclear power plant is terrified.
– The situation is terrible. Everyone is afraid of tomorrow’s provocation that Russia has announced, the employee told the newspaper.
– The Russian Ministry of Defense says that provocations are expected from the Ukrainian side, but we understand perfectly well what that actually means. Now even more people are trying to escape.
Demands Russian withdrawal
At a press conference on Thursday, President Zelenskyi said that he and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres agreed on the guidelines for the International Atomic Energy Agency IAEA to be mobilized in an inspection of Zaporizhzhya.
Zelenskyy called on Russia to stop shelling the nuclear power plant and immediately withdraw its troops from the area.
He said an inspection of Zaporizhzhya must take place “free from occupiers”.
At the same time, employees inside the plant have written an appeal on Telegram where they say they are “powerless” in the midst of “human irresponsibility and madness”.
Even before both sides threatened an upcoming attack, the employees warned that the increased shelling around the plant risks degenerating into a nuclear disaster.
“The artillery shelling is becoming more intense and more dangerous all the time,” they write.