Zelenskyy: We could have seized Russian nuclear power plant, but we never wanted to

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has stated that Ukrainian forces could have captured the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant (KNPP) in Russia's Kursk Oblast, though he noted that there was no intention to do so.

Source: Zelenskyy speaking to journalists in Iceland

Quote: "Russia thinks that they are very strong, but if we had wanted to occupy their nuclear power plant, we would have done so. We could have done that, but we never wanted to. Because we understand what that would have meant. We would have been the same as Russia. We do not occupy their critical infrastructure, as they have done with the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant."

Background:

• In August, Ukrainian forces launched the Kursk offensive, which resulted in the capture of dozens of settlements, in particular the town of Sudzha.
• A Russian media outlet claimed that the KNPP was being prepared for defence due to the approach of Ukrainian units.
• Entry to the city of Kurchatov, which houses the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant in Kursk Oblast, was restricted.
• Kurchatov is located near Kursk, approximately 40 km from the territory controlled by Ukrainian forces. 

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