EditUkraine warns of ‘critical’ nuclear risk at Zaporizhzhia as EU demands Russian withdrawal
This escalation underscores anxieties over Russia's intentions for the facility, potentially enabling reactor restarts under Rosatom oversight
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy issued a stark warning on Tuesday (30 September) about a “critical” situation at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Europe’s largest such facility, where ongoing shelling has severed external power supplies for a record seventh day.
With emergency diesel generators now the sole lifeline for cooling the plant’s six shutdown reactors, the crisis has escalated fears of a potential meltdown, prompting a forceful EU response calling for an immediate Russian pullout.
Zaporizhzhia, seized by Russian forces in the early weeks of Moscow’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, has become a persistent flashpoint for nuclear safety concerns. The plant, capable of powering up to 4 million homes before the war, currently generates no electricity but requires constant power to circulate cooling water through its reactors and spent fuel pools. This marks the 10th disconnection from the grid since the conflict began, but the longest outage yet, surpassing previous blackouts that were typically resolved within hours or days.
In his nightly video address, Zelenskyy highlighted the dire conditions: “This is the seventh day. There has never before been such an emergency situation at the Zaporizhzhia plant. The situation is critical. Russian shelling has cut the plant off from the electricity network.” He noted that one of the diesel generators had already failed, leaving the facility increasingly vulnerable. “This is a threat to everyone. No terrorist in the world has ever dared to do with a nuclear power plant what Russia is doing now. And it is right that the world not remain silent.”
The outage began on September 23 when the last remaining 750 kV transmission line was severed, amid mutual accusations of sabotage. Ukraine blames Russian artillery fire for preventing repair crews from accessing the damaged infrastructure, while Moscow claims Ukrainian strikes targeted the lines.
Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN’s nuclear watchdog, confirmed in a late Tuesday statement that the plant was relying on eight operational diesel generators, with nine in standby and three under maintenance. “While the plant is currently coping thanks to its emergency diesel generators – the last line of defence – and there is no immediate danger as long as they keep working, it is clearly not a sustainable situation in terms of nuclear safety,” Grossi said.
The IAEA chief, who recently met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow to discuss the issue, emphasized that military activity on both sides had blocked essential repairs.
“Neither side would benefit from a nuclear accident,” he added, urging both parties to cooperate with IAEA teams stationed at the site. The agency reports sufficient diesel reserves for up to 20 days, but experts warn that prolonged reliance on backups heightens risks, especially given the plant’s frontline location near intense fighting.
Radiation levels remain normal, with no immediate meltdown threat, as the reactors have been in cold shutdown for over three years, generating minimal residual heat.
The European Union swiftly condemned the developments in a statement from its spokesperson on Wednesday, framing the outage as a direct consequence of Russia’s “war of aggression.” “Last week, the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) has again lost connection to its last external power supply… This is the longest and most severe outage, in particular as military activity continues to prevent the repair and reconnection of power lines,” the statement read.
It explicitly called on Russia “to immediately cease all military operations around the nuclear plant to enable the urgent restoration of power lines.”
The EU reaffirmed its backing for the IAEA’s seven indispensable pillars of nuclear safety, particularly pillar four mandating a “secure off-site power supply from the grid for all nuclear sites,” along with five principles tailored to Zaporizhzhia.
Dismissing Moscow’s attempts to assert ownership as “illegally” invalid under international law, the bloc demanded: “Russia must immediately, unconditionally and completely withdraw all its forces, military equipment and other unauthorised personnel from the ZNPP and the whole territory of Ukraine.” Only restoring “full control” to Ukraine’s legitimate authorities, the EU argued, offers a “lasting solution to minimise the risk of a nuclear accident with global implications.”
Reports indicate Moscow is constructing new power lines to link Zaporizhzhia to its own grid, potentially enabling reactor restarts under Rosatom oversight – a move Ukraine and Western allies view as a violation of safety norms and a ploy to entrench occupation.
Ukrainian officials, including Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha, have accused Russia of manufacturing the crisis to justify such integration, while NGOs like Greenpeace warn it could “irreversibly collapse” global nuclear safeguards.
As of Wednesday, the plant remained off-grid, with IAEA monitors reporting intermittent military activity nearby.
With Reuters and EEAS press release
Caption: File photo. A picture taken during a visit to Enerhodar organised by the Russian Defence ministry shows the main entrance of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in Enerhodar, southeastern Ukraine, 14 June 2023. EPA/SERGEI ILNITSKY
Updated: October 1, 2025 - 06:34
