Shield for troops: London: Russians endanger Ukrainian nuclear plant

Russian troops have been occupying the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine since the beginning of March.

Shield for troops: London: Russians endanger Ukrainian nuclear plant

Russian troops have been occupying the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine since the beginning of March. The artillery units stationed there probably use the high-security status of the facility as a protective shield, suspect British secret services. However, this endangers the safety of the nuclear power plant.

According to British intelligence services, actions by the Russian armed forces are highly likely to jeopardize the security of the Ukrainian Zaporizhia nuclear power plant. Moscow's intentions regarding the largest nuclear power plant in Europe are still unclear five months after the start of the war, the UK Defense Ministry said in an update.

The Russians are believed to have used artillery units in the areas adjacent to the power plant to attack Ukrainian regions west of the Dnipro River. They may have used the high-security status of the power plant site to protect themselves and their equipment from Ukrainian counterattacks at night, sources said.

With six blocks and an output of 6000 megawatts, the plant in the city of Enerhodar in the Zaporizhia Oblast is the largest nuclear power plant in Europe. Russian troops occupied the facility in early March. After that, the nuclear power plant continued to be operated by Ukrainian personnel, but was monitored by Russian nuclear specialists.

The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has described the situation at the nuclear power plant as extremely unstable and fragile. "All the principles of nuclear safety have been violated in one way or another," Rafael Grossi said in New York this week. An IAEA inspection to check technical safety is urgently needed.