Russian-gun warehouse targeted by Ukraine raises concerns over nuclear plant

Ukraine targets more Russian weapons depots as security fears rise at Russian-dominated nuclear power plant

Ukrainian officials reported that more Russian weapons depots were targeted by the country's military, amid growing security concerns over a Russian nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine.

Depo “major weapons” in the Herson region were destroyed overnight, Juri Sobolevski, the first deputy chairman of the Herson regional council, said on August 14th.

There are confirmed information on the destruction of objects in both Nova Kakhovka and Musicyvka. Large military warehouses with weapons and ammunition were located there. Military equipment” was stored there, he told Ukrainian media.

For several weeks, Ukraine's military has been trying to lay the groundwork for a counteroffensive to regain the Hherson region of southern Ukraine, which borders the Crimean and falls into the hands of Russians shortly after the 24 February invasion.

A local Ukrainian official reported on August 13th that a Ukrainian attack had damaged the last functional bridge over the Dnieper River, further damaging Russian supply lines.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has warned Russian forces not to use the Zaporija nuclear power plant for military purposes.

“Any Russian soldier who either shoots at the plant, or shoots at the plant as a cover, must understand that it becomes a special target for our intelligence agents, for our special services, for our army”, Zelensky said in his night speech on August 13th.

Ukrainian president said recent bombings at the plant have increased the threat of a radiation leak, and he said Ukrainian diplomats and partner states “will do everything to ensure the new sanctions block the Russian nuclear industry.

Zaporizha is the largest nuclear power plant in Europe, and there are six of the 15 reactors in Ukraine.

Russian forces have controlled this plant since the early days of their invasion in Ukraine.

Zelensky, who did not give any details, reiterated allegations that Russia was using the plant as nuclear blackmail.

The G7 has called on Moscow to withdraw its forces from this plant.

Ukraine's defence intelligence agency on 13 August warned of “approvals of the new Russian” around the plant, while the town's mayor, where the plant is located, said there were new Russian grants.

But a local official installed by Russia, Vladimir Rogov, wrote in the telegram that Ukrainian forces were bombing the plant.

The head of the UN nuclear agency, Rafael Gross, warned on August 11th that the highly alarming “military activity at the Zaporija nuclear power plant could lead to dangerous consequences for the region and called for an end to the attacks.

Gross urged Russia and Ukraine, which blame each other for the central attacks, to immediately allow nuclear experts to assess the damage and assess security and security in the wide nuclear complex where the “situation has rapidly deteriorated”.

On the battlefield, the Russian Defence Ministry claimed on 13 August that it had taken full control of Picsky, a village on the outskirts of Donjeck, while Ukraine's military command said the “fierce fights” continued in the village.

Russian troops and Kremlin-backed rebels are trying to capture Ukrainian-controlled areas in the north and west of the town of Donjeck, but the Ukrainian Army said 13 August that its forces had prevented a overnight advance towards the smaller cities of Bakhmu and Avwitivka.