The Russian forces began to withdraw of the facilities of the defunct nuclear power plant Chernobylafter taking control of it from the first day of the invasion, on February 24, a senior US defense official said on Wednesday.
the russian army began to withdraw from Gostomel airport, northwest of kyiv, and “Chernobyl is another area where they are starting to reposition some of their troops, moving out, away from the Chernobyl facility and into Belarus,” the official said. “We think they’re leaving, but I can’t tell you they’re all gone,” he added.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has stopped receiving live data from Chernobyl since March 9, and last Sunday expressed concern about the lack of staff turnover at the plant since March 20.
Russian mobilization
The Antonov military airport in Gostomel was attacked by Russian forces on February 25one day after the start of the invasion of Ukraine.
Pentagon spokesman John Kirby indicated that “less than 20%” of the Russian forces whose advance on kyiv was prevented by the Ukrainian resistance are “starting to reposition” in direction to Belarus.
“We estimate that are relocating to Belarus. We don’t have an exact number, but that’s our preliminary estimate,” he added during a news conference, noting that none of the units appeared to leave the outskirts of Ukraine.
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“If the Russians were serious about de-escalation, because that is what they say, they would send them home. But that is not what they are doing,” the spokesman said.
disaster of 86
The plant’s No. 4 reactor exploded in 1986, causing the worst civilian nuclear disaster in history. The other three were gradually closed after the disaster, the last in 2000.