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Ukrainian Nuclear Plant 'Dangerously Close' To Accident, Atomic Watchdog Chief Warns.
Recent drone attacks on the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant in Ukraine have raised the risk of a nuclear accident to a new level, the head of the UN nuclear watchdog agency warned on April 15, calling on the UN Security Council to do everything in its power to minimize the risk.
"We are getting dangerously close to a nuclear accident. We must not allow complacency to let a roll of the dice decide what happens tomorrow," Rafael Grossi, the director of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), told the council.
Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine
RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's full-scale invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians . For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war in Ukraine, click here .
The plant has come under a series of drone attacks since April 7 for which Ukraine and Russia have blamed each other. A team of international specialists at the plant confirmed that attacks took place on April 7, and said one of the attacks hit the containment dome of the Unit 6 reactor building.
Damage to the structure was superficial, but the attack “sets a very dangerous precedent of the successful targeting of the reactor containment,” Grossi said .
The other two attacks on April 7 were in close proximity to the main reactor buildings and resulted in at least one casualty, Grossi added. In addition, experts at the site have been informed by the plant’s operators of a drone strike on the site’s oxygen and nitrogen production facility, two attacks on a training center located just outside the site's perimeter, and reports of a drone shot down above the turbine hall of Unit 6, he said without specifying when those attacks occurred. The attacks have not led to a radiological incident, but “they significantly increase the risk at Zaporizhzhya [nuclear power plant], where nuclear safety is already compromised,” Grossi said, according to a transcript of his comments posted at the IAEA’s website. "These reckless attacks must cease immediately," Grossi said. The power plant has been occupied by Russian forces since shortly after their invasion started in February 2022, and the IAEA has deployed technicians at the facility. It has been shut down but still requires electricity to power its safety and cooling systems. The plant is currently relying on just two lines of external power, and in the past year there have been at least four occasions when the plant has had only one line of external power supply, Grossi said. Grossi is also concerned about an increase in isolated drone incursions in the vicinity of the facility and in the nearby town of Enerhodar and other areas of nuclear safety degradation.
Zelenskiy Says Fighting 'Difficult' As Ukrainian Forces Repel Russian Assault On Chasiv Yar.
Russian forces shelled the border regions of Sumy and Kharkiv on May 18, wounding civilians, while pitch battles took place near the cities of Kramatorsk, Pokrovsk, and Kurakhiv, and in southern Ukraine, military and civilian officials said.
Poland To Spend Around $2.5 Billion On Securing Eastern Border, Tusk Says
Poland will invest 10 billion zlotys ($2.55 billion) in a program to secure its eastern border, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on May 18.
U.S. Military Cargo Plane Arrives In Moldova To Take Part In Emergency Response Training
A U.S. C-17 military aircraft landed on May 18 in Chisinau to support an exercise called Shield of Peace, the U.S. Embassy in Moldova said in a statement.
Final Text Of UN Resolution On Srebrenica Genocide Agreed.
Bosnia-Herzegovina’s ambassador to the United Nations has announced that the final text of a resolution on the Srebrenica genocide has been agreed.
Georgia's President Vetoes 'Foreign Agent' Law As Protesters Attacked In Tbilisi.
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili has vetoed the so-called foreign agent law targeting the media that has sparked weeks of mass protests.
More than 20 crew members of ship that collapsed in Baltimore still on board.
More than 20 crew members that were on the Dali ship when it collided with the bridge in Baltimore are still trapped on board. The members, who are from all over the world, remained below the deck when the explosion happened. They have not been ev...
Gutfeld: The fix is in
'Gutfeld!' panelists weigh in on President Biden's 'sudden 180' in debating former President Trump leading up to the 2024 presidential election. Subscribe to Fox News! Watch more Fox News Video: Watch Fox News Channel Live: FOX News Channel (FNC) ...
Russian forces expand their attacks on Ukraine around Kharkiv - May 16, 2024.
Russian forces are expanding their attacks on Ukrainian border settlements close to the northeastern city of Kharkiv, opening up a new front in the war. Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin condemned what they cast as ...
Defense accuses Michael Cohen of lying on the stand in Trump's hush money trial.
Michael Cohen, Donald Trump's lawyer and self-described fixer turned fierce critic, was portrayed as desperate for revenge against Mr. Trump. Cohen appeared blindsided when defense attorneys pointed to newly revealed phone records and accused Cohe...
Several schools in Gaza have been destroyed, UNICEF says.
Eight out of 10 schools in Gaza have been destroyed or damaged since the start of the Israel-Hamas war, according to UNICEF. The organization says the schools will need full reconstruction or major rehabilitation work to be functional again. » Su...
Was this the week the election campaign really started?.
After the Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer set out what Labour would do if it wins the election, Beth Rigby, Jess Phillips and Ruth Davidson discuss the six key policies that have been unveiled. They also talk about the major speech made by Prime ...