The only thing holding the Russian Federation back from direct attacks on nuclear power plants is the potential threat of a radiation cloud for its cities, – opinion

Nuclear power plants on Ukrainian territory are still operating. However, the question remains open about possible attacks from Russia on these objects. And, probably, only the potential threat of a radiation cloud for Russian cities is keeping the aggressor country from such a step. This opinion was expressed on the FREEDOM TV channel by the former head of the State Inspectorate for Nuclear Regulation of Ukraine (2017-2021), Grigory Plachkov.

“The situation at the Zaporozhzhia nuclear power plant is slightly different than at our other nuclear power plants. After all, all six nuclear power units there have been transferred to a “cold shutdown” state. At the same time, in the territory controlled by Ukraine, some power units are under repair, and some are at 100% capacity,” he said.

The expert emphasized that during the construction of nuclear power plants in Ukraine, including the Zaporozhzhia NPP, possible military attacks on such facilities were not taken into account.

“Reactor vessels are designed to withstand the fall of light aircraft, but not to be hit, as was the case, for example, with the Trypillya Thermal Power Plant and four missiles in a row…”, he says.

Plachkov noted that military operations continue, and what will happen next is very difficult to predict.

“I think that disrespected Russia is really stopped from attacking nuclear power plants only by the fact that the radiation cloud can also affect some Russian cities. Because this is the third year of the war, there have been arrivals nearby and overflights of nuclear power plants, but there have been no direct attacks on reactor vessels yet. Therefore, let’s hope that there is enough intelligence, and missile strikes will not be carried out on objects such as nuclear power plants,” concluded Grigory Plachkov.

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Let us recall that on April 18, during a special meeting of the European Council, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Russia had destroyed almost all of Ukraine’s thermal power generation. It is possible that the aggressor’s next targets could be the infrastructure of nuclear power plants and distribution networks.