Russia's strikes on substations near Ukraine's nuclear power plants could trigger nuclear disaster – The Guardian

Ukraine’s power grid is at "heightened risk of catastrophic failure" following Russia’s missile and drone attacks on 17 November.

Source: The Guardian, citing Greenpeace

Details: A briefing note prepared by Greenpeace for the Guardian revealed that Moscow’s strikes targeted electrical substations "critical to the operation of Ukraine’s nuclear power plants". This raises the risk of reactors losing power and becoming dangerous for the environment.

Quote: "It is clear that Russia is using the threat of a nuclear disaster as a major military lever to defeat Ukraine. But by undertaking the attacks Russia is risking a nuclear catastrophe in Europe, which is comparable to Fukushima in 2011, Chornobyl in 1986 or even worse."

Greenpeace has called on Russia to immediately halt its attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure and urged the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to deploy permanent monitors at substations critical to the operation of nuclear power plants. While the IAEA conducted an inspection in late October, it has not committed to returning.

Although Greenpeace is an independent organisation, it maintains contact with the Ukrainian government. Ukrainian officials who spoke to the Guardian acknowledged Greenpeace’s technical analysis of the crisis.

On the night and early morning of 17 November, Russia launched over 210 missiles and drones targeting power generation and transmission facilities across Ukraine. Hours later, Ukraine’s main power provider, Ukrenergo, announced nationwide consumption restrictions to stabilise the grid.

Explosions were reported in Kyiv; Odesa and Mykolaiv in the country's south; Kryvyi Rih, Pavlohrad and Vinnytsia in central Ukraine; and Rivne and Ivano-Frankivsk in the west. Blasts were also heard near the border with Moldova, where Ukraine’s power grid is interconnected with its neighbour and the rest of Europe.

While the attacks likely did not directly target the three operational nuclear power plants controlled by Ukraine (in the cities of Rivne, Khmelnytskyi and Pivdennoukrainsk), Greenpeace believes Russia is deliberately increasing pressure on them by striking the substations that they are connected to.

Background:

• On Sunday, 17 November, seven Tu-95MS aircraft took off from Olenegorsk, Russia. At around 06:30, cruise missiles entered Ukrainian airspace. The attack, lasting about an hour, targeted Ukraine's energy infrastructure.
• That same day, Russian forces launched a large-scale assault on Ukraine's energy sector, seriously damaging equipment at thermal power plants belonging to DTEK, Ukraine's largest private energy firm.

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