The Ukrainian nuclear power plant Zaporizhiaoccupied by Russian troops and the target of recent bombing, was “totally” disconnected this Thursday from the national electricity grid, reported Ukraine’s energy operator, who blamed the situation on “the invaders.”
“Both reactors in operation of the plant were disconnected from the network. Consequently, the actions of the invader led to the total disconnection [de la central de Zaporiyia] of the electrical network, for the first time in its history,” said the operator Energoatom.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) He noted that he had been “informed by Ukraine” of the loss of connection to the national grid, but indicated that the plant “remains connected” through the “neighboring thermal power plant, which can provide emergency electricity.”
The Ukrainian authorities believe that Moscow It is proposed to divert energy from the plant, the largest in Europe, to the Crimean peninsula, annexed by Russia in 2014.
The United States on Thursday condemned any such attempt.
“The electricity that [Zaporiyia] produces legitimately belongs to Ukraine and any attempt to disconnect the plant from the Ukrainian power grid in order to direct it towards occupied areas [por Rusia] unacceptable,” State Department spokesman Vedant Patel said.
Russia seized the Zaporizhia plant, in the south of the country, at the beginning of March, a few days after having invaded Ukraine.
In the last weeks, Moscow and Kyiv they accused each other of bombing the site, which has six reactors with a total capacity of 6,000 megawatts.
A “highly volatile” situation, which “underlines the real danger of a nuclear disaster”, according to the IAEA.
train bombing
On Wednesday, the Russian bombing of a train at the Chaplino station (center) left 25 civilians dead, according to the latest official Ukrainian balance.
Russia, for its part, indicated having attacked “a military train” and having killed “more than 200 reserve soldiers of the Ukrainian Armed Forces“.
The attack coincided with the 31st anniversary of the independence of Ukraine, a former Soviet republic.
Ukraine acknowledged on Monday the death of nearly 9,000 soldiers since the beginning of the conflict, a balance that, according to observers, could actually be much higher.
On the Russian side, some 80,000 soldiers would have died or been wounded, estimated at the beginning of August a senior official of the US Department of Defense.
The Russian President, Vladimir Putinsigned a decree this Thursday that will increase the number of members of the Armed Forces by 10% starting in January, up to two million members, including 1.15 million soldiers.
cluster bombs
Since the withdrawal of Russian forces from around kyiv at the end of March, most of the fighting has centered in the east, where Moscow has been gaining ground, and in the south, where Ukrainian troops say they have launched several counter-offensives.
Russia also bombards other regions with long-range missiles, although kyiv and areas near the capital are rarely hit.
The net Coalition Against Cluster Munitions (CMC) denounced on Thursday in its annual report that Moscow used massive cluster bombs in Ukraine, causing hundreds of civilian casualties and damaging homes, schools and hospitals.
The High Commissioner of UN for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, urged Putin to cease “the armed attack against Ukraine” and called for the demilitarization of the Zaporizhia plant.
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