© afp
Russian troops yesterday occupied the largest nuclear power plant in Ukraine and Europe, after an attack that caused a fire without consequences in radioactivity levels, but which paralyzed the world in fear of a new atomic catastrophe.
“We have survived a night that could end history. The history of Ukraine. The history of Europe,” Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelensky said after Russian shells hit the Zaporizhia nuclear plant, some 150 kilometers north of the Crimean peninsula.
The firefighters extinguished the fire that broke out in a building and a laboratory, according to the Kiev authorities, after a few hours of alarm in which the specter of a new nuclear catastrophe hovered over Chernobyl in 1986 in the same Ukraine, when this The country was part of the Soviet Union.
Ukraine’s atomic plant inspection agency confirmed shortly after that “there have been no changes in the radiation situation” at the plant, whose territory was left in the hands of Russian forces. Of the six blocks, the first was put out of service, numbers 2, 3, 5 and 6 are in the cooling process and 4 is operational, he said.
“Europe must be prevented from dying of a nuclear disaster,” Zelensky declared, calling for tougher sanctions against Moscow.
The Russian attack caused worldwide shock. US President Joe Biden immediately contacted Zelensky and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and condemned Russia’s “irresponsibility”.
On February 24, at the start of the Russian invasion, fighting broke out near the former Chernobyl power plant, some 100 kilometers north of Kiev, which has been in the hands of Russian troops ever since.
New negotiations. On the ninth day of the offensive, the prospect of a ceasefire seems remote. In a second round of negotiations on Thursday, both sides only agreed to create humanitarian corridors to evacuate civilians. Ukraine is counting on a third round of negotiations with Russia this weekend, said one of the Ukrainian envoys Mikhailo Podoliak.
That information was confirmed by the office of the head of the German government, Olaf Scholz, who spoke by phone with Putin, the chancellery in Berlin said.
But dialogue is only possible if “all Russian demands” are accepted, Putin however warned in that conversation, according to the Kremlin.
Putin also denied that Russian forces are shelling Ukrainian cities, despite images of destruction in recent days from Kiev, Kharkiv (east), Mariupol (southeast) and other cities.
In a conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday, Putin had demanded “the recognition of Russian sovereignty over Crimea (annexed in 2014) and the demilitarization and ‘denazification’ of the Ukrainian state and the promise of its neutral status.” .
Moscow justifies its invasion as an operation to protect the population of the breakaway regions of Donbas, in eastern Ukraine.
“A hell”. The Russian invasion, apparently slowed down in Kiev and Kharkov (northeast), is progressing in the south. Zelensky called on Western countries to “close the sky” over Ukraine to Russian warships or to deliver planes to Ukraine. But NATO assured yesterday that its planes will not act in Ukraine, thus closing the door to the creation of a no-fly zone.
“We think that if we do that, we will end up having something that can become an all-out war in Europe, engulfing many other countries and causing much more human suffering,” Stoltenberg said. Western countries have delivered weapons to Ukraine, but have focused their response on a battery of sanctions to isolate Russia diplomatically, economically, culturally and in sports.
This Friday shots were heard in Bucha, northwest of Kiev, where destroyed Russian armor could be seen. To the east, smoke could be seen rising from bombed-out depots.
Some 350 kilometers east of the capital, the situation has also turned “hell” in Okhtyrka, and is “critical” in Sumy, according to local authorities.
In the strategic port of Mariupol (southeast), the humanitarian situation is “terrible” after 40 hours of uninterrupted bombing, including schools and hospitals, said Deputy Mayor Sergei Orlov.
On Thursday, the Russians consolidated the capture of Kherson (290,000 inhabitants, south), their first major victory to date, and intensified their bombardments against other urban centers.
At least 47 people died that same day in an attack on residential areas, including schools, in Chernigov (north), authorities reported yesterday in a new balance revised upwards.
More than 1.2 million refugees have fled Ukraine for neighboring countries since the start of the invasion and millions of others have become internally displaced, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
Press gag. At the domestic level, Moscow yesterday tightened its control over the press and increased repression against NGOs that defend human rights and help migrants. Putin has signed into law a bill that introduces prison sentences of up to 15 years for false news about the Russian military. The president also signed a bill that would allow fines or jail time for requiring sanctions against Russia.
For its part, the Russian communications regulatory agency, Roskomnadzor, announced the blocking of access to the Facebook social network within Russian territory in response to alleged cases of “discrimination” against the country’s media. “Millions of ordinary Russians will be left without reliable information and prevented from communicating,” lamented Nick Clegg, former British vice-premier Nick Clegg, today vice president of Global Affairs for Meta, the parent company of Facebook.
Roskomnadzor also “limited” access to the Russian-language edition portals of the BBC, the German international broadcaster Deutsche Welle and other independent media.
Two well-known NGOs, the emblematic Memorial for the defense of human rights and another dedicated to helping migrants, were raided by the police in Moscow, according to the two organizations.