Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant urges world to prevent nuclear disaster that will make Chornobyl pale in comparison
KATERYNA TYSHCHENKO – THURSDAY, 18 AUGUST 2022, 15:37
The Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) staff are urging the world to prevent a nuclear disaster at the plant. The consequences of it might be worse than those of the Chornobyl disaster or the one at the Fukushima power plant in Japan.
Source: Statement by the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant staff
Quote: "We believe that collective intelligence and good will can make the cannons go quiet and prevent an irreversible disaster from occurring. The consequences of such a disaster can be far worse than those of the Chornobyl and Fukushima tragedies.
The world’s nuclear sector has no emergency plans for ensuring the security of nuclear facilities when they become the grounds for military actions."
Details: The ZNPP staff note that over the past five months, "countless legal norms, principles and safety regulations have been violated" in the realm of "peaceful use of atomic energy". They stress that the Zaporizhzhia NPP has essentially become "the target of relentless military attacks" in the past two weeks.
"Our planet is too small to believe that there will be a place where one could hide in the aftermath of a large-scale nuclear disaster," the statement signed by the ZNPP staff reads.
However, the statement does not outline any concrete steps that the world community could take. Moreover, it does not name the aggressor country, Russia, responsible for the possible nuclear disaster.
Background:
- On 18 August, Russian military command threatened to stop the operation of Europe’s largest Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.
- In addition, the Russian Defence Ministry announced a large-scale provocation could occur at the ZNPP during the visit of UN Secretary-General António Guterres to Ukraine on 19 August.
- Russian forces captured the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant in the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion in Ukraine. They captured the Zaporizhzhia NPP on 4 March, creating the threat of nuclear disaster. In mid-March, the Russians detonated munition at the ZNPP. In recent weeks, Russia has ramped up its attacks on the ZNPP.
- At a meeting of the United Nations Security Council, the United States indicated that for the security of the ZNPP, it is necessary to withdraw Russian troops from there, create a demilitarised zone and provide access to IAEA [International Atomic Energy Agency] experts. Vasiliy Nebenzia, Russia's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, did not support the offer to create a demilitarised zone around the ZNPP.
- On 13 August, Russian occupying forces placed several artillery systems on the territory of the ZNPP. They used these systems to fire on the power plant, while making it seem as though the shells come from Nikopol.
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