Russia approves plan to blow up Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant
25 June, 2023 A Russian soldier at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP). Ukraine. Photo credits: DIU
The Russian leadership has drafted and approved a plan to blow up the Zaporizhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP). The Defence Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine reported about this. Major General Kyrylo Budanov, the head of the Defence Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, stated that Russian troops placed military equipment with explosives near 4 out of 6 power units of the ZNPP.
According to him, nuclear reactors without cooling could melt within a period of 10 hours to 14 days. A voltage hike on power lines feeding the facility, which the Russians may also cause, can lead to an accident at the ZNPP as well.
The first reactor of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP). Photo credits: EPA-EFE
"The plan for a terrorist attack on the ZNPP has been drafted and approved.
They can use technical tools to accelerate the disaster," Kyrylo Budanov said. The head of the Defence Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine went on to recall that the Russian troops had earlier planted mines in the ZNPP cooling pond and also spoke about Russian military hardware filled with explosives that the invaders deployed right outside four out of six power units. "The situation has never been as serious as it is now," the head of the Defence Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine emphasized.
Kyrylo Budanov, head of the Defence Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.
Photo credits: Defence Intelligence
According to the head of the Defence Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, the order of the Russian leadership to commit a terrorist attack at the ZNPP may have been caused by the defeat of the Russian invasion forces on the left bank of the Dnipro River. "Russia considers creating a nuclear disaster zone as a safeguard against any further advance of Ukraine's Defense Forces," the Defence Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine stated.
IAEA inspectors at the Zaporizhzhia NPP. June 15, 2023.
Ukraine and Russia separately inform the IAEA about the state of affairs at the ZNPP. Photo credits: Reuters
At the same time, according to Kyrylo Budanov, there is a risk that Russia may launch an attack on the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant that will cause a radiation leak. It may do this as a pre-emptive measure to stop Ukraine's offensive operation and freeze the front line in its current form.
As previously reported, in May 2023, the Defence Intelligence of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine reported that the special services of Russia in the Zaporizhzhia region were trying to carry out a provocation with the use of chemical weapons against their own invasion forces.