Chernobyl scare returns: Russian strike damages nuclear facility in Ukraine

Kyiv: Ukraine said a Russian Shahed drone struck a building at the Centralized Spent Fuel Storage Facility inside the Chernobyl exclusion zone. According to Ukraine’s state nuclear operator Energoatom, the fuel reception building was partially destroyed.

Officials said radiation levels remained within normal limits despite the damage. The facility stores spent nuclear fuel from Ukraine’s active nuclear power plants and is located within the restricted zone surrounding the site of the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the attack demonstrated Russia’s growing aggression and accused Moscow of disregarding international concerns about nuclear safety.

International watchdog to inspect damage

The International Atomic Energy Agency announced that it would send a team to assess the damage at the facility. The agency described the incident as deeply concerning, given the sensitive nature of the site and the risks associated with nuclear infrastructure during wartime.

Although no radiation leak has been detected, the strike has renewed fears about the vulnerability of nuclear facilities in conflict zones.

Russian attacks elsewhere in Ukraine resulted in multiple deaths.

In the southern Zaporizhzhia region, shelling struck a public transport stop, killing at least two people. A separate drone attack in the same area killed a minibus driver.

Authorities in the central Dnipropetrovsk region reported that two men were also killed in separate Russian strikes.

The latest attacks came as both sides continued exchanging long-range drone attacks and artillery fire across multiple fronts.

Ukraine and Russia trade accusations

Russia also accused Ukraine of targeting civilians. Authorities in Russia’s Belgorod region said a Ukrainian drone hit a vehicle near the border, killing a woman and injuring her husband.

Cross-border drone attacks have intensified in recent months, even as international efforts to broker a ceasefire have struggled to gain momentum.

The attacks occurred as President Zelensky travelled to the United Kingdom for discussions with allies on increasing pressure on Russia to end the conflict.

Efforts backed by the United States to revive peace negotiations have made little progress. Russian President Vladimir Putin recently rejected direct peace talks with Zelensky, further dimming hopes for a diplomatic breakthrough.

More than four years after Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, Moscow continues to control roughly one-fifth of Ukrainian territory, including Crimea and large parts of eastern and southern Ukraine.