Russian attack on Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant could be like 6 Chernobyls – Zelenskyy
Valentyna Romanenko — Friday, 4 March 2022, 11:07
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the attack of the Russian occupiers on the Zaporizhzhya NPP an act of terrorism on an unprecedented scale.
Source: Zelenskyy’s address on 4 March
Quote: "People of Ukraine! We experienced a night that could stop history. The history of Ukraine. The history of Europe. Russian troops attacked the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant. The largest in Europe. The destruction of that plant alone could be like six Chernobyls."
"Russian tanks knew what they were firing at. Directly aiming at the station. This is terror of an unprecedented level."
"There are 15 nuclear units in Ukraine. And the Russian military has completely lost the memory of Chernobyl. This tragedy would be of global significance.
"Russian people, I want to address you [directly]. How is this even possible? Together in 1986, we were battling with the consequences of the Chernobyl disaster. You have to remember the burning graphite scattered by the explosion. The victims. You have to remember the glow over the destroyed power unit. You must remember the evacuation from Pripyat and the 30-kilometer [exclusion] zone. How can this be forgotten? And if you have not forgotten, then you cannot be silent. You have to tell your government, take to the streets and say you want to live. Live on an earth without radioactive contamination. Radiation does not know where Russia's border is."
According to Zelenskyy, world leaders are shocked. Britain is convening a UN Security Council over the attack. The IAEA is launching its 24-Hour Incident and Emergency Center.
"We need immediate strengthening of sanctions against the nuclear terrorist state. We need an immediate closure of the skies over Ukraine, because only this can guarantee that Russia will not at least launch missiles and bombs at nuclear facilities [from the air]," said the President of Ukraine.
Zelenskyy thanked the heroes of the National Guard of Ukraine who guarded the station and tried to stop the enemy, as well as the rescuers who put out the fire. He stressed that much depends on the people of Energodar.
"You understand the threat to the station better than anyone else. You live there. Next to it. And you see the occupiers directly. Drive them away. Let them know that Energodar is Ukraine. That Ukraine is not a place for nuclear ashes," said the President.
