Russia and Ukraine accused each other of shelling Europe’s biggest nuclear power plant, arising fears of a possible disaster. U.N. chief said it should be made a demilitarised zone and Ukraine demanded that Russian forces withdraw from it, informs news agency Reuters.
Ukraine’s Energoatom agency said the Zaporizhzhia complex in south–central Ukraine was struck five times on Thursday, August 11, including near where radioactive materials are stored. Russian–appointed officials said Ukraine shelled the plant twice, disrupting a shift changeover, Russia’s TASS news agency said.
The U.N. Security Council met on Thursday, August 11, to discuss the situation and Secretary–General Antonio Guterres called on both sides to stop all fighting near the plant.
«The facility must not be used as part of any military operation. Instead, urgent agreement is needed at a technical level on a safe perimeter of demilitarisation to ensure the safety of the area,» Guterres said in a statement.
At the Security Council meeting, the United States backed the call for a demilitarised zone and urged the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to visit the site.
Russia’s U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said the world was being pushed «to the brink of nuclear catastrophe, comparable in scale with Chornobyl,» he said IAEA officials could visit the site as soon as this month.
Reuters could not independently verify the reports from either side about circumstances at the plant.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy demanded Russia return the plant to Ukraine’s control.
«Only a full withdrawal of the Russians … and the restoration of full Ukrainian control of the situation around the station can guarantee a resumption of nuclear security for all of Europe,» he said in a video address.
France echoed Zelenskiy’s demand and said Russia’s occupation of the site endangered the world.
«The presence and actions of the Russian armed forces near the plant significantly increase the risk of an accident with potentially devastating consequences,» the French foreign ministry said in a statement.