Chernobyl’s 40th anniversary marked by strikes and nuclear warnings
Ukrainian forces also struck an oil refinery in Yaroslavl, deep inside Russian territory, Ukraine´s General Staff said Sunday.
The strikes sparked fires at the facility, which processes 15 million tons of oil a year and produces gasoline, diesel and jet fuel for the Russian military. Russia did not immediately comment, News.Az reports, citing Daily Mail.
Ukraine has developed its own long-range drones, which can reach targets some 1,500 kilometers (900 miles) inside Russia. It has used them recently against Russian oil facilities as Moscow looks to boost its exports after the Trump administration gave it a temporary waiver from sanctions to ease supply constraints. Kyiv officials complain that Russia will use the additional revenue on new weapons to hit Ukraine harder.
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Ukraine´s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy marked the anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster to warn that Russian attacks risk repeating history.
"Through its war, Russia is once again bringing the world to the brink of a man-made disaster - Russian-Iranian Shaheds regularly fly over the plant, and one of them struck the confinement last year," he wrote on Facebook.
"The world must not allow this nuclear terrorism to continue, and the best way is to force Russia to stop its reckless attacks," he said.
Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, echoed those concerns during a visit to Kyiv, saying repairs to the plant´s damaged outer protective shell must begin immediately. IAEA assessments show the damage sustained after a strike last year has already compromised a key safety function of the structure, he said, warning that years of inaction could heighten danger to the original sarcophagus beneath it. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development said repairs would require at least 500 million euros ($586 million).
Ukrainian officials say a Russian drone struck the outer shell of the plant´s New Safe Confinement structure - a $2.1 billion archlike enclosure completed in 2019 over the remains of Reactor No. 4 - in February 2025. Moscow denied targeting the plant, alleging Kyiv staged the attack.
By Leyla Şirinova
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