Russia Ukraine War: Chernobyl, site of world's worst nuclear disaster, captured by Russian forces

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The Chernobyl nuclear power plant has been captured by Russian forces. Ukraine officials said they had lost control of the decommissioned Chernobyl nuclear power plant, scene of the world’s worst nuclear disaster, according to a report in AP.

Russian forces took control of the site after a fierce battle with the Ukrainian national guards protecting the decommissioned plant, Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said.

The Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, a 2,600-square-kilometer (1,000-square-mile) zone of forest surrounding the shuttered plant, lies between the Belarus-Ukraine border and the Ukrainian capital. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukrainian officers fought to defend it, "so that the tragedy of 1986 will not be repeated." He called it a "declaration of war against the whole of Europe." 

President Zelenskyy had earlier on Thursday said Russian forces were trying to seize the Chernobyl nuclear plant. 

Adviser Podolyak said that after an "absolutely senseless attack" ... it is impossible to say that the Chernobyl nuclear power plant is safe.

"It is impossible to say the Chernobyl nuclear power plant is safe after a totally pointless attack by the Russians. This is one of the most serious threats in Europe today,"  an adviser to the Ukrainian presidential office, Mykhailo Podolyak, said. He warned that Russian authorities could blame Ukraine for damage to the site or stage provocations from there. 

Ukrainian Interior Ministry adviser Anton Herashenko warned that any attack on the waste repository could send radioactive dust over "the territory of Ukraine, Belarus and countries of the EU."

Meanwhile, the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency said it has been informed by Ukraine that “unidentified armed forces” have taken control of the decommissioned Chernobyl nuclear plant, adding that there had been “no casualties or destruction at the industrial site.”

IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi called for “maximum restraint” to avoid actions that could put Ukraine’s nuclear facilities at risk.

“In line with its mandate, the IAEA is closely monitoring developments in Ukraine with a special focus on the safety and security of its nuclear power plants and other nuclear-related facilities,” he said in a statement.

The Chernobyl nuclear power plant, the site of the world's worst nuclear accident, is 130 kms north of Kyiv, the capital city of Ukraine. The warfare at the Chernobyl nuclear plant is still leaking from history's worst nuclear disaster 36 years ago. Reactor No. 4 at the power plant exploded and caught fire deep in the night on April 26, 1986, shattering the building and spewing radioactive material high into the sky.

(With Inputs from agencies)

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