Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Russia struck near the former Chernobyl nuclear energy plant, which started a fire but reportedly does not pose an ongoing threat to nearby people. File Photo by Nadja Whohlleben/Pool/EPA
Ukraine said early Sunday that Russia struck areas near the Chernobyl nuclear facility, hitting a building that holds spent nuclear fuel.
The Chernobyl strike is one of at least 13 Russian strikes in Ukraine last night, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a statement posted to X.
Early in Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, which was part of the former Soviet Union, it briefly took control of the area around the former nuclear energy plant.
Chernobyl is considered the worst nuclear accident in human history after a fire in April 1986 led to an explosion and meltdown at the power plant, killing dozens of people and sending a nuclear cloud hundreds of miles away.
The International Atomic Energy Agency said that the strike caused “significant damage” to the the plants fuel reception building and other nearby buildings, and will be sending a team to investigate the damage, The Hill reported.
“Russia deliberately struck this particular nuclear infrastructure facility,” Zelensky said.
“As of now, there are no readings exceeding normal background radiation levels,” he said. “But there is certainly an increase in Russia’s brazenness, which long ago went off the charts.”
Zelensky said that Ukrainian first responders put out fires at the facility as a result of what he called “an extremely vile Russian strike.”
Russia has not publicly commented on or taken credit for the attack, which was roughly nine miles away from the actual plant, The Telegraph reported.
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President Donald Trump discusses renovations to the Lincoln Reflecting Pool and makes an announcement on coal in the Oval Office at the White House on Thursday. Photo by Samuel Corum/UPI | License Photo
