Ukraine urges IAEA action after alleged Russian drone strike near Chernobyl facility

Hind Al Soulia - Riyadh - KYIV — Ukraine on Sunday called on the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to take immediate action after accusing Russia of carrying out a drone attack on a nuclear storage facility in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone.

Ukrainian Energy Minister Denys Smyhal said a Russian drone struck one of the buildings at the Centralized Spent Fuel Storage Facility overnight, causing a fire that was later extinguished.

Smyhal said the attack partially damaged the structure and posed what he described as an “unprecedented threat to nuclear and radiation safety.”

“Such actions create risks to critical systems essential for the safe storage of nuclear materials and represent a blatant violation of international law, the principles of nuclear safety, and the IAEA fundamental safety principles,” he wrote on X.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy separately accused Russia of deliberately targeting the facility.

“As of now, there are no readings exceeding normal background radiation levels,” Zelenskyy said. “But there is certainly an increase in Russia’s brazenness, which long ago went off the charts.”

Zelenskyy also said Russian forces targeted civilian infrastructure in 13 regions across Ukraine over the past week.

“In total, over the course of this past week, Russia launched 88 missiles, more than 3,250 attack drones, and around 1,800 guided aerial bombs against Ukraine,” he said.

In response, the IAEA said its team at the Chernobyl site would inspect the facility to assess the impact of the reported strike.

IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi described the incident as “deeply concerning,” stressing that attacks on nuclear facilities are “completely unacceptable” and violate key nuclear safety principles.

Russia did not immediately comment on Ukraine’s allegations regarding the attack on the spent fuel storage facility.