- Russia’s ambassador warns of ‘nuclear catastrophe’
- Zelenskyy demands that Russia return the work to Ukraine
- Satellite images show damage to Russian air base in Crimea
Kyiv/NEW YORK, Aug 12 (Portal) – Russia and Ukraine have accused each other of shelling Europe’s largest nuclear power plant as the UN chief, fearing a catastrophe, proposed a demilitarized zone at the site.
Ukrainian agency Energoatom said the Zaporizhzhia complex was hit five times on Thursday, including near locations where radioactive materials are stored. Russian-appointed officials said Ukraine shelled the plant twice, disrupting a shift change, Russia’s TASS news agency said.
The UN Security Council met on Thursday to discuss the situation. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on both sides to stop all fighting near the plant.
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“The facility must not be used as part of a military operation. Instead, an urgent technical level agreement on a secure demilitarization perimeter is needed to ensure the security of the area,” Guterres said in a statement.
Russia captured Zaporizhia in March after invading Ukraine on February 24. The plant, located near the front line of fighting, is held by Russian troops and run by Ukrainian workers.
At the Security Council meeting, the United States supported calls for a demilitarized zone and asked the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to visit the site. Continue reading
Russia’s ambassador to the UN, Vassily Nebenzia, said the world was “driven to the brink of a nuclear catastrophe comparable to Chernobyl”. He said IAEA officials could visit the site later this month.
Portal has not been able to independently verify reports from either side of circumstances at the plant.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy asked Russia to return the plant to Ukrainian control.
“Only a full Russian withdrawal … and the restoration of full Ukrainian control over the situation around the station can guarantee a resumption of nuclear security for all of Europe,” he said in a video address.
France joined Zelenskyy’s call, saying Russia’s occupation of the compound endangered the world.
“The presence and actions of Russian forces near the plant greatly increase the risk of an accident with potentially devastating consequences,” France’s foreign ministry said in a statement.
Kyiv and Moscow have previously blamed each other for attacks on the compound. Ukraine has also accused Russia of firing rockets at Ukrainian cities from the area surrounding the captured nuclear power plant, knowing it would be risky for Ukraine to return fire.
RUSSIAN BASE IN CRIMEA
A view shows the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant in the course of the Ukraine-Russia conflict, outside the Russian-controlled town of Enerhodar in the Zaporizhia region, Ukraine, August 4, 2022. Portal/Alexander Ermochenko//File Photo
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Separately, satellite images released Thursday showed the devastation at an airbase in Russia-annexed Crimea. It suggested Ukraine could have new long-range attack capabilities that have the potential to change the course of the war, Western military experts have said.
Images from the independent satellite company Planet Labs showed three nearly identical craters in which buildings at Russia’s Saki Air Force Base had been struck with apparent precision. The base on Crimea’s south-west coast suffered extensive fire damage, with at least eight destroyed fighter jets clearly visible.
Russia has denied any planes were damaged and said Tuesday’s explosions at the base were accidental. Ukraine has not publicly claimed responsibility for the attack.
Regarding the damage, Ukrainian Presidential Advisor Mykhailo Podolyak told Portal in a message: “Officially, we are not confirming or denying anything… considering that there were multiple epicenters of explosions at exactly the same time.”
Zelenskyy told officials to stop talking to reporters about Kiev’s military tactics against Russia, saying such remarks were “frankly irresponsible.” The New York Times and Washington Post newspapers quoted unidentified officials as saying that Ukrainian forces were responsible for the attack on Crimea. Continue reading
Russia, which captured and annexed Crimea in 2014, uses the peninsula as a base for its Black Sea Fleet and as a main supply route for its invading forces occupying southern Ukraine, where Kyiv plans a counteroffensive in the coming weeks.
COUNTER-OFFENSIVE
The Institute for the Study of War said Ukrainian officials portrayed the Crimean strike as the start of Ukraine’s counteroffensive in the south, pointing to intense fighting in August and September that could decide the outcome of the next phase of the war.
Exactly how the attack was carried out remains a mystery, but the nearly identical impact craters and simultaneous explosions seem to indicate that it was struck by a volley of weapons capable of evading Russian defenses.
The base is far beyond the range of advanced missiles that Western countries have been sending to Ukraine so far, although it is within range of more powerful versions that Kyiv has been seeking. Ukraine also has anti-ship missiles that could theoretically hit targets on land.
Meanwhile, the US State Department said Russian officials have been training in Iran in recent weeks under a deal to transfer drones between the two countries. Continue reading
US officials said last month Iran was preparing to supply Russia with up to several hundred drones, including some that are weaponized, and raised concerns that Tehran is now supporting Russia in its war in Ukraine. Continue reading
Russia says its “military special operation” is on track to protect Russian-speaking and separatists in the south and east. Ukraine and its western allies say Moscow wants to consolidate its grip on as much territory as possible.
Tens of thousands have died, millions have fled, and cities have been destroyed since the war began.
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Reporting by Portal bureaus; writing by Cynthia Osterman; Adaptation by Stephen Coates
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