Russia has been urged to stop attacks on nuclear facilities in Ukraine, after the European Union said strikes had damaged the protective structure at Chernobyl and fighting continued around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.
The statement by the European Commission and High Representative on Foreign Policy Kaja Kallas marked 40 years since the Chernobyl disaster, describing it as one of the gravest nuclear accidents in history and saying its toll was long obscured by Soviet secrecy, the Commission said on Saturday.
Russia’s strikes have hit Chernobyl’s “New Safe Confinement” — the large structure built to contain the remains of reactor 4 — undermining work funded through international support worth €2.1 billion.
Russia’s seizure and continued occupation of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, described as Europe’s largest nuclear facility, has increased risks to human life and environmental protection.
The EU statement also said attacks on Ukraine’s wider energy infrastructure threatened the stable power supply required for the safe operation of nuclear facilities.
EU funding and repair costs
The EU said it had financed more than €1 billion of activities supporting nuclear safety, nuclear security and radiation protection in Ukraine.
The Commission and Kallas stated the EU was the largest donor to international funds managed by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development to make the Chernobyl site environmentally safe, including more than €423 million towards construction of the New Safe Confinement.
An additional €37 million was provided last year through the EU’s Instrument for Nuclear Safety Cooperation for nuclear safety in Ukraine, with part of that support intended for urgent repairs to the New Safe Confinement.
Final repairs to damage caused by a Russian drone strike would require at least €500 million in additional funding.
The EU called on Russia to comply with the “Seven Indispensable Pillars for Nuclear Safety and Security during an armed conflict”, and said Russia should compensate for damage and return full control of the Zaporizhzhia plant to Ukraine.
