Not only the military, but also nuclear workers of the Russian Federation are responsible for the crisis at the Zaporizhzhia NРP, says an atomic energy expert

Russia has something to blackmail Ukraine in the nuclear sphere. Its goal is very simple — to cause maximum damage to the Ukrainian energy system, both generating and distribution capacities. Professor Ludvig Lytvynskyi, an expert in atomic energy, said about this on November 21.

“In particular, not only the Zaporizhzhia site was shelled, but also the sites of other nuclear plants, subjected to rocket attacks. It was about partially destroying the energy supply infrastructure. I want to emphasize that I categorically disagree with the words of Mr. Grossi, who stated that he is against shelling, whoever is behind it. Ukraine does not stand and did not stand behind them. Due to the fact that our artillery is located tens of kilometers away, unlike Russian artillery, and the families and loved ones of our artillerymen live nearby, unlike the Russians, who live hundreds and sometimes thousands of kilometers away. Therefore, it is not necessary to shift from a sick head to a healthy one,” he said.

According to the expert, not only the military of the Russian Armed Forces, but also the employees of Rosatom are responsible for the crisis at the ZNPP.

“The misunderstanding, which is considered to be a specialist, but in fact is a criminal named Romanenko, allegedly the temporary director of the Zaporizhzhia NPP, appointed by Rosatom, and therefore not only the military bears full responsibility, but also the nuclear workers of the Russian Federation, who also participate in it What is happening is creating a crisis situation at the site of the Zaporizhzhia station,” said Lytvynskyi.

If the Russian army leaves Energodar and the entire Zaporizhzhia NPP, the risk of an accident at the plant will be reduced to zero.

“The IAEA cannot force, it has the status of an organization that only gives recommendations, and its recommendations to withdraw the troops of both Ukraine and Russia from the vicinity of the ZNPP are of no importance. In my opinion, what the international agency should have done, they should have done it on March 4, when the ZNPP site was occupied. They should have given a serious recommendation to the entire world community to abandon the use of Russian technologies, to stop the construction of new nuclear power plants, and the use of nuclear fuel produced by the Russian Federation. The IAEA did not do this, so I can call them in one word – “starbursts”, – added Ludvig Lytvynskyi.

It will be recalled that the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Mariano Grossi said that powerful explosions rocked the area of the Zaporizhzhya NPP the day before yesterday evening and yesterday morning. He once again appealed to both sides of the conflict to agree and introduce a nuclear safety zone around the ZNPP as soon as possible. In recent months, Grossi has conducted intensive consultations with Ukraine and Russia regarding the creation of such a zone, but so far without an agreement.

The occupiers have turned the ZNPP into a military base and are brutally torturing the station’s energy workers. One person died after being bullied by the Russians Specialists of the Zaporizhzhia NPP, who were released from the captivity of the Russians, told about the tortures they managed to survive and the cruelty used by the invaders. Terrible stories were published by journalists of The Wall Street Journal. As noted, the Russians brought military equipment into the station’s bunkers, which are intended for workers in case of a nuclear threat. One of the first to feel the brutality was Igor Murashov, the director of ZNPP — on the first day of the full-scale invasion, a sniper aimed at him.

According to the ex-chairman of ZNPP, the morale of most specialists is broken. He personally survived captivity — sitting on the stone floor of a basement prison, masked people accused him of “treason to Russia.” Murashov heard how the invaders interrogated his driver. To establish control over the station, the Russians detained many workers, from technical staff to managers.

“A unit of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) ran underground prisons near the plant where they beat detained workers with clubs and batons, shot them in the legs and elbows, deprived them of food and attached electrodes to their ears and fingers.

Some were held and tortured in an underground facility, which the Russians called “Dira”. One underwater repairman, Andriy Honcharuk, who was put into a coma in that pre-trial detention center, later died, the plant’s employees report,” said the testimonies of freed prisoners in the publication.

In general, the Russians detained more than 200 ZNPP specialists, dozens more are considered officially missing. According to Murashov’s testimony, detainees are imprisoned, tortured, their wives are summoned and threatened.

Station contractor Volodymyr Zhaivoronok survived repeated beatings with butts in captivity, where he was held for 53 days. Now he does not have a nail, which was removed by investigators, and there are wounds on his wrists. Also, according to “Energodar”, 11,000 employees of the ZNPP fled, and about 3,000 people remained. The occupation of the largest nuclear power plant in Europe and its seizure by the military was the first in the history of the nuclear industry.

As reported in “Energoatom”, the occupiers do not allow the IAEA to the Zaporizhzhia NPP to check the condition after the shelling.

According to Energoatom, the Russians are carrying out secret construction on the territory of the station and may be preparing a terrorist act in this way. The Russians have also chosen a new tactic of nuclear blackmail and are purposefully shelling Ukraine’s energy system. 

The president of “Energoatom” Petro Kotin told about it.

About 500 Russian soldiers are stationed at the ZNPP, their armored vehicles are hidden in machine rooms and in underground bunkers designed to shelter personnel in the event of a nuclear accident, The Economist journalists write. Even more aggressors are in the occupied satellite city of Energodar.

“The Russians use the station as a military base. They understand that no one from Ukraine will fire at the station, simply that no one will attack the station. This is a safe place to store their military equipment and personnel,” Kotyna is quoted as saying.

The head of Energoatom added that the Russians wanted to connect the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant to the controlled Crimean grid in order to steal Ukrainian electricity. But they were unable to do so due to damage to power stations caused by hostilities.

“Now it seems that the occupiers are no longer trying to re-establish contact,” Kotin said.

The enemy continues to shell civilian infrastructure in the Zaporizhzhia region, destroying apartments and houses of civilians. During the past day, the occupiers destroyed 58 houses.

This was reported by the Zaporizhzhia Regional Military Administration, Ukrinform reports.

“According to the report of the main administration of the national police in the Zaporizhzhia region, during the past day, the occupiers fired at civilian infrastructure in the area of the settlements of Dorozhnyanka, Chervone, Malynyvka, Novodanilivka, Orihiv, Kamianske, Primorske, Stepnohirsk, Novotroitske, Zaliznychne, Mala Tokmachka, Shcherbaki, Novodanilivka, Poltavka , Novoandriivka, Preobrazhenka, Olhivske, Komyshuvakha, Gulyaipole,” the summary says.

58 reports were received about the destruction of houses (apartments) of citizens and infrastructure objects as a result of shelling by Russian military personnel.

During the past day, only 78 people were evacuated from the temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine, including 11 children.

Oleksandr Starukh, the head of the Zaporizhzhia Regional Military Administration, said this.

“The invader kidnapped 559 Ukrainian citizens, 219 of whom are still being held hostage,” he said.

According to him, 81 shellings were recorded in Zaporizhzhia region last day, the majority of which targeted infrastructure facilities. There are no victims among the civilian population.