Energy Minister: Russian soldiers who were in Chornobyl have a year to live at most

Friday, 8 April 2022, 18:47 – Ekonomichna Pravda

According to Energy Minister Herman Galushchenko, all the soldiers who have been to the Exclusion Zone have received large doses of radiation, and their military equipment has also been contaminated, the Ministry’s press service reports.

"The Russian soldiers’ ignorance went as far off the scale as the dosimeters we used to check the background radiation in the places where the invaders were deployed. They dug into contaminated soil with their bare hands, put radioactive sand into bags for fortifications, and inhaled the dust. After a month of that kind of exposure, they have at most a year to live. Or rather, they won’t be living, but slowly dying of their illnesses," said the minister.

He said the Russian military had looted the plant and the administrative offices, taking everything from crockery to spare parts and instruments.

"It’s not just all of the occupiers’ troops and their ‘trophies’ that are contaminated. So is all the military equipment that has passed through Chornobyl – about 10,000 items. Every Russian soldier will bring a piece of Chornobyl home, whether he’s alive or dead," Galushchenko said.

He also noted that metal is particularly susceptible to radiation and becomes radioactive. There is a high risk of radioactive contamination for anyone who comes into contact with property or machinery from the Chornobyl nuclear power plant.

"The Russians bring death to everyone: they kill Ukrainians with their bombs, and their own people with radiation from the Chornobyl plant," the minister said. 

Ekonomichna Pravda