Topline
Russian forces quickly moved to seize control of the Chernobyl nuclear site after invading Ukraine Thursday, sounding alarms from Ukrainian officials about the possibility of an “ecological disaster” like the one that occurred there in 1986—here’s what we know about Russia’s targeting of the site.
A sign warns of radiation contamination near old apartment buildings in Pripyat, Ukraine, where the … [+]
Key Facts
Russian forces seized the site around 1 p.m. EST Thursday, according to Ukrainian officials hours after the Russian invasion of Ukraine began.
The seizure set off a cascade of warnings from Ukrainian officials about the dangers of warfare near the site and Russian control of the site, with Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak saying it is “impossible to say the Chernobyl nuclear power plant is safe” and the seizure is “one of the most serious threats” in Europe, mirroring Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s tweet earlier Thursday.
There are storage facilities for “unsafe nuclear radioactive waste” in the Chernobyl zone, according to a Ukrainian Interior Ministry adviser, Anton Gerashchenko, the Washington Post reported.
Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry tweeted Russian forces capturing Chernobyl could lead to “another ecological disaster” and repeat the 1986 nuclear disaster, which occurred about 60 miles north of the Ukrainian capital Kyiv.
A Russian security source told Reuters that Russia wanted to capture the Chernobyl zone to send a message to NATO not to take any military action.
The nuclear site holds historical significance to Russia, as Mikhail Gorbachev, who was the president of the Soviet Union when the Chernobyl nuclear disaster occurred, has said that the accident “was perhaps the real cause of the collapse of the Soviet Union” even more so than his policy to restructure the economic and political system.
Key Background
During a botched routine test, an explosion destroyed a reactor at Chernobyl’s nuclear power plant in Pripyat, Ukraine, on April 26, 1986. The blast killed at least 28 people and caused the world’s worst nuclear accident. Around 4,000 people died from cancer after exposure to high doses of radiation and another 5,000 died from less radiation exposure, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Nations and the World Health Organization. The accident sent radiation as far away as the United Kingdom, which is around 1,500 miles apart from Ukraine. USA Today reported, based on data obtained from the Ukrainian Health Ministry, that more than 2 million people, including around 450,000 children, continue to receive medical observation, treatment, or support because of the explosion in 1986.
Tangent
Before the Chernobyl accident, Gorbachev launched a policy supporting “openness” of ideas and expression, which, the Slate reports, allowed anger over the government’s delayed response to the nuclear disaster to spread among citizens, including those who had not questioned the government’s competence.
Further Reading
Russian troops seize Chernobyl nuclear power plant, Ukrainian official says (CNN)
Russian forces take Chernobyl zone, Ukraine says, raising fears of ‘ecological disaster’ (Washington Post)
What happened at Chernobyl? What to know about nuclear disaster (USA Today)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/lisakim/2022/02/24/what-we-know-about-russias-seizure-of-chernobyl/