UN chief António Guterres calls on Ukraine and Russia to stop military activities near the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. There have been several shelling there in the past week, but Kyiv and Moscow keep pointing the finger at each other.
Guterres speaks of an unacceptable situation and says he is seriously concerned. If the parties continue shelling, damage to the nuclear power plant or other nuclear facilities is looming. And that could have catastrophic consequences, according to the UN chief.
For the time being, no increased radiation has been measured and the power station does not appear to have suffered any damage. But if the shelling continues, it could just happen.
The Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant is located in the town of Enerhodar in southeastern Ukraine. It is the largest nuclear power plant in Europe. On March 4, shortly after the outbreak of war, the Russians captured the plant. Since then, Russia has skillfully transformed the plant into a heavily guarded military base.
Violence around the nuclear power plant flared up again last week. Russia and Ukraine blame each other for the shelling. Also Thursday, shelling was reported again, but again Kyiv and Moscow pointed at each other.
Ukrainian energy company Energoatom said the plant was shelled five times on Thursday. But the Russians say Ukraine has tried to attack the nuclear power plant twice in one day.