Ukraine is sounding the alarm over Russian missiles flying over its nuclear power plants daily, a tactic it fears could lead to nuclear accidents.
Ukrainian Energy Minister German Galushchenko shared that recent Russian assaults forced one nuclear facility to shut down on August 26 after a substation was hit. Since then, missiles have increasingly been flying over Ukraine’s three major nuclear plants, which are crucial as they supply nearly 60% of the country’s electricity.
“This involves three active nuclear stations,” Galushchenko stated. He noted that while one plant went into emergency shutdown in central Ukraine, the other two targeted facilities are located further west, close to the EU border.
The minister expressed heightened fears about nuclear safety, recalling similar concerns when Russia took control of Ukraine’s largest nuclear power station at Zaporizhzhia in 2022, where the reactors remain offline due to ongoing threats.
Galushchenko advocates for expanding nuclear energy in Ukraine, highlighting its potential to provide stable and necessary power, despite the high costs involved.
According to him, recent Russian strikes show more precision compared to earlier attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. The attack on August 26 resulted in minor disruption, as the company managing the energy grid, Ukrenenergo, managed to swiftly repair the affected transformers. Unfortunately, some emergency repairs were delayed because Russia used cluster munitions, which complicated recovery efforts.
Galushchenko emphasized that targeting substations linked to nuclear power plants indicated a strategic approach by Russia. “They have altered their drone and missile flight paths to go near or above nuclear facilities,” he warned, noting that such incidents, once rare, have now become a daily occurrence.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also raised concerns in a UN address about Russian intentions to strike the country’s nuclear installations.
Statistics reveal that Russia has ramped up its drone strikes nearly 70% over the past month, increasing from 790 in August to 1,339 in September, according to reports from Ukraine’s air force.
Galushchenko expressed uncertainty about Russia’s limits on targeting nuclear facilities but remarked that hitting a reactor would have drastic consequences for Russia’s state nuclear corporation, Rosatom, jeopardizing its global projects.
Recent months have seen critiques directed at Ukraine’s state nuclear firm, Energoatom, for failing to construct robust protective shelters for its substations. Although the company initiated tenders for these safety structures in late September and early October, building them can take up to a year.
In response to the criticism, Energoatom claimed that these accusations were part of an “information attack” against them, asserting that information about the safety measures in place is classified to prevent aiding Russian operations.