Shocking Warning for Ukraine's occupied nuclear plant

As the war-torn country marks today four years of bloodshed, the Zaporisizia plant remains in Russia's hands after being seized at the beginning of the invasion.

His status, who controls, who secures and how it is monitored, is not just a matter of sovereignty, but of the safety of the entire continent.

For generations Ukrainians, anxiety is based on the memory of the Chernobyl explosion in 1986.

Anna Davis, an expert on nuclear energy policy and strategy, told The Sun that <x0 million and one thing could go wrong”.

That happens while Russia uses the plant as a <x0).0 shopping card to get maximum concessions from Ukraine”, she said.

“Many things can go wrong,” warned Anna.

The expert highlighted a long list of factors, from Russia's tactics to hide information from international inspectors on the ground to simple human errors.

“It is impossible to say what a nuclear accident would look like, we can certainly say it would not look exactly like Chernobyl, but it would still be one of the greatest human disasters in Europe,” Anna added.

Situated on the banks of the Dnipro River, the Zaporisizia nuclear power plant (NPP), in the town of Enerhodar, has been occupied since March 4th, 2022, with thousands of hostage held employees.

This marked the first time in history that a functional nuclear power plant was seized in a war zone.

Since September 2022, its six reactors have been placed in various situations the ban, dependent on the fragile power supply lines from abroad and on a minimal Ukrainian staff brought to operate the facilities.

Davis said: “The questions about what might happen in the event of the accident are based on historical experiences with Chernobil and Fukushima.

We've experienced this twice before. So it is natural to ask: Is the same situation happening again?

A recent study published in Milliary Medicine magazine has tried to answer the question of what an accident meant not only for Ukraine but for the rest of Europe.

Using meteorological data and an atmospheric expansion model, researchers simulated how radiation could spread in case of a major accident.

In most of Europe, pollution levels are likely to remain relatively low, the study suggests, but the situation changes near the plant.

In areas close to Zaporisizia, pollution levels can be extremely high.

The study also shows that parts of the Balkans and Italy could be hit by high concentrations of radiation under certain atmospheric conditions.

Earlier, Ukraine's Hydrometerological Institute has mapped radioactive clouds from a possible leak, indicating that it could reach the Austrian border.

In total, 13 countries can be affected, including Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Hungary, Slovakia, Czechia and Russia.

So far, the risks have not only been theoretical.

The continuing bombings of the nearby city of Enerhodar, as well as the destruction of the Kakhovka Dam, which compromised water levels in the cooling water tank, have significantly increased the threat level.

Comparing Chernobil to Zaporizian, Davis said: “The main difference is that this is the first time a state has invaded another state's nuclear power plant.

This was never envisioned in international law as an opportunity.

We have considered terrorist attacks on the plants after 9/11... but as single attacks.

We have also considered stealing radioactive waste to be used in the bombs.

The bottom line is that this is not just a nuclear power plant, and Russia is not just an conqueror. ”

The invasion is not just military. It's also corporate.

Rosatom, Russia's state-owned nuclear energy giant, has appeared as the leading actor and beneficiary of the Zaporizia takeover.

Last year, Russia confirmed the long-term plans for the company to take over the plant and connect it to its power grid.

It is therefore impossible for this <x0-track war” vital to be handed over to Ukraine without numerous preliminary calculations.

Davis stressed that Rosatom cannot resume simply reactors, neither legally nor technically.

The plant remains Ukrainian property, and some reactors use nuclear fuel of American origin.

This means that any attempt by Russia to operate can violate American law and trigger an international reaction.

All six reactors are currently in a state of ban, a situation that requires a complex and carefully monitored process to go back.

President Volodymyr Zelensky called on American and European allies to impose sanctions on the nuclear giant and Russian individuals who benefit from his operations while living in the West.

In a moving statement on social networks last week, he warned:

“Total sanctions mean total. President Trump took strong steps sanctioning Lukoil and Rosneft.

We are grateful to him. It can sanction all of their energy, particularly nuclear energy. And that would be a powerful message for Europeans.

The Europeans have done a lot. But they still haven't sanctioned Russian nuclear power, Rosatom, people and their relatives, their children, who live with their money in Europe, the U.S., who pay with these profits for their education at European universities, who own real estate in the US.