Ukraine is on edge as the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant is shelled

Local officials reported on Sunday (August 28) that Russian artillery shot at Ukrainian settlements across the river from the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station overnight, adding to the misery of local inhabitants as reports of shelling around the plant fueled fears of a radioactive disaster.

Moscow and Kyiv traded accusations of targeting Europe’s largest nuclear plant, which has prompted grave international concern. Russia’s defense ministry said there was more Ukrainian shelling of the plant over the past 24 hours. This came just a day after Moscow and Kyiv traded accusations of targeting the plant.

The Ukrainian nuclear corporation Energoatom stated that it does not have any fresh information regarding the attacks on the plant.

The complex on the southern front line of the battle, which was captured by Russian troops in March but is still administered by Ukrainian staff, has been one of the primary hotspots in the fight throughout the entirety of its six-month duration.

The United States Department of State issued a statement on Sunday saying that Moscow had blocked a draft agreement on nuclear non-proliferation because it mentioned the grave radiological risk posed by the Zaporizhzhia plant. The statement said that Moscow did not want to acknowledge the grave radiological risk posed by the plant.

The regional governor, Oleksandr Starukh, stated on Telegram on Sunday that residential structures were targeted by Russian forces in the region’s largest city of Zaporizhzhia and the town of Orikhiv, which is located farther east. Both cities are approximately two hours’ drive from the facility.

On Saturday, Starukh stated in an interview with Ukrainian television that locals were being instructed on how to utilize iodine in the event of a radiation release.

According to the daily report released by the Ukrainian military, nine additional towns in the region on the opposite side of the Dnipro river from the plant were shelled. At the same time, the Russian RIA news agency reported that the Russian defense ministry stated that the Russian air force struck a Motor Sich plant in the region where helicopters were repaired.

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According to RIA, Russian authorities have stated that they were successful in shooting down a Ukrainian drone that was planning to target the nuclear waste storage facility at the plant.

Reuters was unable to independently confirm the stories.

Igor Konashenkov, a spokesperson for the Russian Ministry of Defense, stated that nine shells launched by the Ukrainian artillery during two consecutive attacks landed on the grounds of the nuclear plant.

“At this time, there is full-time technical staff guaranteeing that the nuclear plant continues to function properly by monitoring the technical state of the facility. The level of radiation in the area around the nuclear power station has not changed from its regular level,” he stated his opinion in a statement.

In order to prevent the power plant from becoming a target, both the United Nations and the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv have demanded that all military troops and equipment be withdrawn from the area.

According to the Ukrainian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dmytro Kuleba, Russian forces have converted the facility into a military base, putting the safety of the entire continent in jeopardy; they have no business being there.

On Twitter, he wrote, “The Russian military must withdraw immediately from the plant.”

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is currently awaiting authorization for its personnel to visit the plant, which the head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog said on Thursday should be “very, very close.” Because of the shelling that took place last week, two of the plant’s reactors are no longer connected to the electrical grid.

According to the daily report released by the Ukrainian military in Kyiv, Ukrainian forces on Ukraine’s eastern front were successful in thwarting the most recent Russian effort to advance on the city of Sloviansk in Donetsk region.

According to an update provided in the afternoon, Ukrainian troops have also been successful in fending off Russian attempts to strike in three different directions. This includes the region of Bakhmut and the coal-producing town of Avdiivka.

Following their victories a few weeks ago in Sievierodonetsk and Lysychansk, the Russian forces have shifted their attention to Bakhmut as part of their drive to extend their authority over the Donbas region. Sloviansk and the city of Kramatorsk, both of which are located in the Donetsk province, were reportedly shelled by Russian forces over the course of the previous night, but there were no reports of any additional casualties.

Reuters was unable to confirm any of those accounts.

The previous practice of celebrating yearly holidays on the final weekend of August in both the Donbas area and the city of Donetsk was brought up by the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, at a press conference. He stated this in his nightly video message, saying that Ukraine “will never forget anything.”

On February 24, Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia, gave the order to invade Russia’s neighbor, claiming that a “special operation” was required to demilitarize the country and remove what Russia perceives to be a threat to its national security.

This has been dismissed as a baseless pretext for an imperialist war of conquest by both Ukraine and the West. This war has resulted in the deaths of thousands of people, the displacement of millions more, the destruction of entire cities, and a threat to the global economy in the form of an energy and food supply crisis, which has caused prices to skyrocket.

As part of Kyiv’s efforts to solidify international support for Ukraine and to push for more sanctions to be placed on Russia, Ukraine’s foreign ministry stated that Kuleba would make a trip to Sweden on Monday, followed by a trip to the Czech Republic on Tuesday. Both of these trips were planned to take place next week.

In Prague, he is scheduled to take part in an unofficial gathering of EU foreign ministers to discuss fresh measures against Moscow as well as a restriction on issuing visas to Russian citizens across the EU. Earlier this month, Zelenskyy made a request for such a ban, but so far it has gained support mostly from countries that share borders with Russia. These countries include Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Finland.