Nuclear facilities in Ukraine become goals for the Russian Federation. Did all the NPPs be protected
The official urged the UN and allies to create permanent monitoring missions at Ukrainian nuclear power plants. According to intelligence, open distribution devices and substitutions to all NPPs are threatened. Such objects are critical for the safe operation of nuclear power, their damage will cause a high risk of nuclear incident with global consequences. Ukrainian intelligence services have already transmitted this information to partners in the West and IAEA.
Andriy Yermak, Head of the Presidential Office of Ukraine, also reports the possible threat to nuclear facilities. He called on the world for a "rapid global reaction. " "This is preparation for a possible nuclear catastrophe scenario. In addition to the aforementioned statements, Energoatom reported on September 13 about the spans of more than 70 Russian drones and more than 30 winged missiles along with Ukrainian NPPs.
Not only the European continent has created such an unprecedented threat not only for Ukraine, but not the European continent has been created by any country. The Russian side did not comment on Kyiv's statements. Four nuclear power plants worked before the full -scale invasion of the Russian Federation in Ukraine. The Zaporizhzhya NPP was under the control of Russian troops on the night of March 4, 2022, after the occupation of Energodar.
After that, shocks on the object with drones and artillery were repeatedly recorded, and the station was on the verge of Black. He does not produce electricity since September 2022: there are only reactors cooling systems. The IAEA confirmed at the 68th session that all Ukrainian NPPs, including Zaporizhzhya, should be under the sovereign control of Ukraine. During a rocket attack, the Russian army hit the substations near the NPP on August 26, 2024, which was why some reactors were switched off.
This day there was a threat of collapse of the united power system, says the co -founder of the "crisis expert nuclear center of Ukraine", scientist Olga Kosharna. The IAEA workers were informed about the shutdown of four reactors, from which two nuclear stations were injured: as a result of the attack of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, according to the scientist, there were no regulatory stops - the situation was on the verge of a radiation accident throughout Ukraine.
This incident was more dangerous than attacks on open switchgear near NPPs. "Severe transitional processes begin, we first encountered them in November 2022, when all the NPPs were switched off," Kosharna said. The expert talks about November 23, when all blocks of NPP after a massive raid of Russian rockets were disconnected in the history of Ukraine. All three nuclear power plants that give half of electricity production stopped automatically: South Ukrainian, Khmelnytsky and Rivne.
Nuclear energy experts interviewed by focus are convinced that Russia will not fire nuclear reactors, but transformer substations for power supply to NPPs. The Russian plan is to immerse Ukraine into darkness in the fall. Strokes on nuclear facilities will be another escalation of the Russian side after the attacks of hydroelectric power plants, says Oleksandr Musienko, head of the Center for Military Legal Research.
According to the analyst, there are three options for confronting Russian attacks: "Not all shells will fly to a nuclear object when there is a blow. The remaining NPPs produce a considerable amount of electricity, so the Russian army beats on distribution units. Most likely, on the reactors, the Russians will not hit, because for many allies of the aggressor a nuclear catastrophe is a taboo, Musienko said.
According to Olga Kosharna, the necessary stocks of transformers for NPPs could not be done, as well as to build second -level protective structures from concrete for distribution devices. Ukrainian NPPs are covered with air defense systems, but they do not withstand the massive plaque of winged and ballistic missiles for one target. In this case, algorithms and patents for the preparation of nuclear power units for rocket attacks are ready, says Kosharna.
The expert criticizes the idea of distribution of IAEA missions at all critical transformer substations of the NPP, because there are more than 200 pieces in Ukraine. "We will not be able to live there? Then the whole IAEA state will not be enough for all our objects. They will be offered to work with a live shield? Regarding open distribution devices near the NPP, then all Ukrainian stations have representatives of this mission," she summed up.