In another dangerous escalation, Russia has accused Ukraine of launching a drone strike on the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant, which sparked a fire and damaged an auxiliary transformer, resulting in a 50% reduction in the output of reactor number three.
Several other energy facilities were also reportedly targeted during the overnight strikes, involving likely hundreds of drones. Russia’s military said that it intercepted nearly one hundred of them across various locations in the south.
Kursk Nuclear Power Plant’s news service reported that the fire was quickly brought under control and with no injuries. Radiation levels remained normal, according to local reports.
However, the press service also noted that two other reactors are currently not generating power, though one of them is undergoing scheduled maintenance. Reutersadditionally details, “Ukraine launched a drone attack on Russia on Sunday, forcing a sharp fall in the capacity of a reactor at one of Russia’s biggest nuclear power plants and sparking a huge blaze at the major Ust-Luga fuel export terminal, Russian officials said.”
Kursk region’s acting governor, Alexander Khinshtein, swiftly condemned the “threat to nuclear safety and a violation of all international conventions.” The site lies some 40 miles from the Ukrainian border.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) weighed in on the Sunday attack, saying the agency is monitoring the situation and that radiation levels around the Kursk plant remain normal.
The IAEA statement, however, did not mention expressly that the damage was due to a Ukrainian drone attack. It only said it “is aware of media reports that a transformer at the Kursk NPP in Russia has caught fire due to military activity. While the IAEA has no independent confirmation of these reports, [Director General] Rafael Grossi stresses that ‘every nuclear facility must be protected at all times.'”
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