Ukrainian Interior Minister Denys Monastyrsky warned on Thursday that the country has to be ready for any scenario at the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant that was struck by shelling, including the evacuation of people from the area.
Russian and Ukrainian local officials have exchanged blame for a new volley of shelling that occurred on Thursday at the nuclear power plant. The Zaporizhzhia plant is Europe's biggest and is located in southern Ukraine.
Ukraine's Nuclear Power Plant
In an interview, Monastyrsky said that the plant was not only in the hands of the enemy, referring to the Russians, but also in the hands of uneducated specialists who could potentially allow for a tragedy to happen at the nuclear power plant.
The official added that it was difficult to even imagine the scale of the tragedy that could result from Russian forces continuing their actions in the area. In recent days, Ukrainian authorities have warned of the risk of a Chernobyl-style nuclear disaster, as per Reuters.
The interior minister added that the situation means officials have to be ready for almost anything that could happen at the plant. He noted that the state emergency services together with the interior ministry and the Regions Ministry were discussing different scenarios that may be needed, including the questions of evacuations.
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The situation comes as the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency has expressed grave concern about shelling at the nuclear power plant. IAEA Director-General Rafael Mariano Gross said in a statement that he was extremely concerned about the shelling that struck the plant.
According to CNBC, Ukraine's state nuclear power company Energoatom blamed Russia for the damage to the plant while Russia's defense ministry accused Ukrainian forces of shelling the plant themselves.
Potentially Catastrophic Tragedy
On the other hand, the United States accused Russia of using the power plant as a "nuclear shield" while Moscow's defense ministry said that damage to the plant had only been avoided thanks to the "skillful, competent, and effective actions" of its troops.
Gross, who is also leading the United Nations' nuclear watchdog, urged all sides to exercise the "utmost restraint." The strikes hit a high-voltage power line on Friday at the facility, which forced its operators to disconnect a reactor despite no radioactive leak being detected.
As the world's focus shifted to the nuclear power plant and its potential catastrophic demise, the war between Russia and Ukraine continued in the east and south. Moscow has struggled to gain control of the largely Russian-speaking Donbas region in the east, comprising Luhansk and Donetsk provinces.
On Saturday, Ukraine's military said that Moscow's military forces shelled dozens of frontline towns and were trying to attack six different areas in the Donetsk region. However, officials noted that all of these attacks failed to gain any territory and were held back by Ukrainian troops.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Russia of "unconcealed nuclear blackmail," saying, "Only the complete withdrawal of Russians from the territory of the Zaporizhzhia NPP and the restoration of Ukraine's full control over the situation around the plant will guarantee the restoration of nuclear safety for all of Europe," DW News reported.
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