A Russian attack drone struck the protective shelter covering the ruined 4th reactor of the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on February 14. This was reported by The Kyiv Independent.
The explosion damaged the structure, but according to Ukrainian officials, emergency crews quickly extinguished the fire.
As of now, radiation levels remain stable, and monitoring efforts are ongoing to assess any potential risk of contamination.
"A Terrorist Threat to the Entire World"
Zelensky released a video of the explosion, calling it an unprecedented act of nuclear terrorism and a direct threat to global security.
“This is a terrorist threat to the entire world," Zelensky said. "The only country in the world that attacks nuclear sites, occupies power plants, and wages war without any regard for the consequences is today’s Russia.”
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed the attack, stating that the drone struck the roof of the sarcophagus, which was built to contain the radiation from the 1986 Chornobyl disaster—the worst nuclear accident in history.
The Chornobyl explosion on April 26, 1986, contaminated vast areas of Ukraine, Belarus, and Russia, forcing thousands of people to evacuate and leaving a lasting impact on global nuclear safety policies.
Chornobyl is located just 130 kilometers north of Kyiv, and was seized by Russian forces in the first days of the full-scale invasion in 2022.
Russian troops held the plant’s staff hostage, raising serious concerns about a potential nuclear disaster. When they retreated on March 31, 2022, radiation levels had spiked due to the movement of heavy military vehicles, which stirred up contaminated dust.
Now, Ukraine’s Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko is urging the international community to take urgent action, calling the strike on Chornobyl’s containment shelter "an attack on the entire continent."
Zelensky also linked the attack to Russia’s wider war strategy, warning that Putin is preparing for more aggression, not negotiations.
Outrage at Munich Security Conference
The attack occurred on the same day as the Munich Security Conference, where Ukraine’s delegation is meeting with Western leaders.
Ukraine’s Presidential Chief of Staff Andriy Yermak said there was fury among global officials, many of whom remember the world’s efforts to help contain the 1986 disaster.
The Ukrainian government has pledged to provide detailed evidence of the attack to U.S. officials and other Western allies.
