Beautiful Virgin Islands

Saturday, Sep 06, 2025

Global outcry after Russia seizes Ukraine nuclear plant

Global outcry after Russia seizes Ukraine nuclear plant

A fire broke out at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, the largest in Europe, and Ukraine said it was shelled by Russian troops.
Authorities say the facility is now safe and radiation levels are normal.World leaders have accused Russia of endangering the safety of an entire continent, and Ukraine's president accused Russia of "nuclear terror".

US President Joe Biden urged Moscow to stop its military activities around the site, while Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the "horrific attacks" from Russia "must cease immediately".

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the "reckless" attack could "directly threaten the safety of all of Europe". All three leaders spoke to Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky by phone.

Zelensky, meanwhile, said Russia wanted a repeat of Chernobyl, the site of the world's worst nuclear disaster in 1986.

"If there is an explosion, it is the end of everything. The end of Europe," he said.

Russia's defence ministry blamed the attack on Ukrainian saboteurs, calling it a "monstrous provocation" without providing evidence.

A video feed from the nuclear plant showed blasts lighting up the night sky and sending up plumes of smoke.

Buildings around one of the plant's six power units have been damaged without affecting its safety, according to Ukraine's nuclear inspectorate.

Workers at the plant said the fire - which has since been extinguished - broke out at a training building outside the plant's perimeter, and that only one of the plant's six reactors was operational.

One resident who lives nearby said he saw the Russian military attacking the site. "It is just terrorism... It is worrying not just for our region, but for Ukraine and for the world," Kirill Dovzhik told the BBC.

The UN's nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said the fire had not affected the plant's "essential" equipment and there was no increase in radiation levels.

But the IAEA said it was in "full 24/7 response mode" due to the "serious situation" at the power station.

Ukrainian emergency services said they were initially blocked from getting to the scene of the blaze, prompting President Biden to publicly call on Russia to allow firefighters into the site.

Boris Johnson said he would seek an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council on Friday over the attack.

Experts said attacking a nuclear plant was unprecedented, and the situation was still very dangerous.

Dr Graham Allison, a nuclear security expert at Harvard University, said the "worst case" would be if a fire at the plant caused a meltdown and prompted a release of radioactivity that contaminated the surrounding area for years.

But he also said it was more likely Russian forces were trying to "close down the supply of electricity to the surrounding area", rather than attack the plant.

The plant, located around 550km (342 miles) southeast of the capital Kyiv, generates almost a quarter of all electricity in Ukraine. It lies on the river Dnieper, northeast of the city of Kherson which is said to have been occupied by Russian forces.

The Russian military has also seized control of the Chernobyl nuclear plant, the site of the worst nuclear disaster in history.

News of the latest incident at Zaporizhzhia caused share prices in Asia to fall sharply.

In other developments:

In the port city of Mariupol in southern Ukraine, residents are without power and water supplies because of relentless Russian shelling

In the north, the cities of Chernihiv and Kharkiv have again come under fire, while there are reports that the city of Sumy has been surrounded by Russian troops

A second round of peace talks between Russia and Ukraine agreed to provide humanitarian corridors to evacuate civilians from conflict zones

More than one million people have fled Ukraine since the invasion began last week.

Despite punishing international sanctions, Russia's President Vladimir Putin said his offensive was going "strictly according to schedule, according to plan".

He has put his nuclear forces on high alert because of "aggressive statements" by the West.

Western ministers will hold crisis talks in Brussels on Friday as they seek to show their support for Ukraine.

UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss called it "one of the biggest days of diplomacy" with allies prepared to "tighten the vice around Putin's war machine" by targeting the Russian economy with more sanctions.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Trump Threatens Retaliatory Tariffs After EU Imposes €2.95 Billion Fine on Google
Tesla Board Proposes Unprecedented One-Trillion-Dollar Performance Package for Elon Musk
US Justice Department Launches Criminal Mortgage-Fraud Probe into Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook
Escalating Drug Trafficking and Violence in Latin America: A Growing Crisis
US and Taiwanese Defence Officials Held Secret Talks in Alaska
Report: Secret SEAL Team 6 Mission in North Korea Ordered by Trump in 2019 Ended in Failure
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Florida Murder Case: The Adelson Family, the Killing of Dan Markel, and the Trial of Donna Adelson
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Big Tech Executives Laud Trump at White House Dinner, Unveil Massive U.S. Investments
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
‘Looks Like a Wig’: Online Users Express Concern Over Kate Middleton
Brand-New $1 Million Yacht Sinks Just Fifteen Minutes After Maiden Launch in Turkey
Here’s What the FBI Seized in John Bolton Raid — and the Legal Risks He Faces
Florida’s Vaccine Revolution: DeSantis Declares War on Mandates
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
"The Situation Has Never Been This Bad": The Fall of PepsiCo
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
The Fashion Designer Who Became an Italian Symbol: Giorgio Armani Has Died at 91
Putin Celebrates ‘Unprecedentedly High’ Ties with China as Gazprom Seals Power of Siberia-2 Deal
China Unveils New Weapons in Grand Military Parade as Xi Hosts Putin and Kim
Queen Camilla’s Teenage Courage: Fended Off Attempted Assault on London Train, New Biography Reveals
Scottish Brothers Set Record in Historic Pacific Row
Rapper Cardi B Cleared of Liability in Los Angeles Civil Assault Trial
Google Avoids Break-Up in U.S. Antitrust Case as Stocks Rise
Couple celebrates 80th wedding anniversary at assisted living facility in Lancaster
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
The White House on LinkedIn Has Changed Their Profile Picture to Donald Trump
"Insulted the Prophet Muhammad": Woman Burned Alive by Angry Mob in Niger State, Nigeria
Trump Responds to Death Rumors – Announces 'Missile City'
Court of Appeal Allows Asylum Seekers to Remain at Essex Hotel Amid Local Tax Boycott Threats
Germany in Turmoil: Ukrainian Teenage Girl Pushed to Death by Illegal Iraqi Migrant
United Krack down on human rights: Graham Linehan Arrested at Heathrow Over Three X Posts, Hospitalised, Released on Bail with Posting Ban
Asian and Middle Eastern Investors Avoid US Markets
Ray Dalio Warns of US Shift to Autocracy
Eurozone Inflation Rises to 2.1% in August
Russia and China Sign New Gas Pipeline Deal
China's Robotics Industry Fuels Export Surge
Suntory Chairman Resigns After Police Probe
Gold Price Hits New All-Time Record
Von der Leyen's Plane Hit by Suspected Russian GPS Interference in an Incident Believed to Be Caused by Russia or by Pro-Peace or by Anti-Corruption European Activists
UK Fintechs Explore Buying US Banks
Greece Suspends 5% of Schools as Birth Rate Drops
Apollo to Launch $5 Billion Sports Investment Vehicle
Bolsonaro Trial Nears Close Amid US-Brazil Tension
European Banks Push for Lower Cross-Border Barriers
Poland's Offshore Wind Sector Attracts Investors
Nvidia Reveals: Two Mystery Customers Account for About 40% of Revenue
Woody Allen: "I Would Be Happy to Direct Trump Again in a Film"
×