“In the event of a nuclear accident, we wouldn’t even know where to hide”. The sentence sums up the seriousness and degree of vulnerability of the Ukrainian population if the bombing of the Zaporiya nuclear power plant were to end in the worst possible way.
Bombardments spawn every time major concern in the international community. And it is that while Russia and Ukraine blame each other for the attacks on the Ukrainian plant, the largest in Europe, specialists warn of the serious risk of nuclear accident in the area.
The seriousness of the situation is perceived in a particularly distressing way by the Ukrainian population, which has to live with the possibility of a nuclear accident on a daily basis. While the Ukrainian counteroffensive bodes well, there is much fear about how Russian troops will respond to an increasingly adverse scenario.
“They don’t want to understand that they are fucked! Yes, of course nuclear power scares us. Take the example of Chernobyl. I don’t know what the Russians are thinking. They are crazy. In fact, I’ll tell you they are a bunch of idiots”, said Yuri, a 40-year-old Ukrainian soldier who is preparing to return to the front lines, speaking with Radio France International (RFI).
His wife, Genia, has been living in a shelter since the beginning of the war with the couple’s two children, aged 13 and 12, but she doesn’t think this is enough to protect them. For the woman, who regularly goes to the front to supply her husband and her companions, a nuclear disaster It scares him infinitely more than bombs.
“In the event of a nuclear accident, we wouldn’t even know where to hide,” says Genia. Our radiation shelter would be useless“, explains to RFI the superficial concern for the uncertain fate that opens before them.
“During a war, we worry even more about our children. At least we lived a little. But our children have not yet experienced anything“, she says with tears in her eyes.
Rafael Grossi: the situation “is very serious”
The situation It’s very serious”, said Argentina’s Rafael Grossi, director of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The damage occurred in “fairly sensitive” areas, but the reactors had not been affected despite the large number of impacts in the area.
The agency condemned the attacks “deliberate and direct” without placing responsibility on Russian or Ukrainian forces. While Moscow accuses the Ukrainian army of firing more than “twenty large-caliber shells”, Kyiv, through the voice of the Ukrainian nuclear agency, accuses Russia of organizing “again, nuclear blackmail” and to put “the whole world in danger”.
Grossi spent weeks trying in vain a safety zone is established around the center.
Exasperated, he launched a final appeal on Sunday: “Whoever it is, stop this madness! Atomic Energy Watchdog inspectors should, in theory, inspect the plant this Monday. There are two inspectors on site. They were unable to leave on Sunday because the situation was too dangerous, the IAEA said.
Source: AFP and RFI
Source: Clarin
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.