DISINFO: Russia does not strike nuclear facilities as Ukraine does

This is a recurring disinformation narrative from pro-Kremlin outlets about nuclear issues, accusing Ukraine of war crimes and crimes against humanity and concealing Russia’s complicity in such crimes.

This claim follows a series of baseless accusations related to the Kursk and Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plants. There is no credible or independently verifiable evidence supporting these claims. These fabrications are primarily aimed at inciting fear in the international community regarding Russia's nuclear facilities, as well as justifying Russia's military control over these nuclear sites.

The disinformation claim twists a statement by IAEA head Rafael Grossi regarding the deteriorating security situation at the Zaporizhzhya NPP, which is currently under Russian control. Grossi mentioned that on August 23, 2024, an emergency shutdown occurred in the Ferosplavna-1 backup power line. He emphasised that the plant is situated on the front line and is subject to shelling, which has left the NPP without a stable source of electricity.

The head of the IAEA emphasised that five safety principles must be strictly observed at the plant, which is currently under Russian control. These principles include a ban on any attacks on the NPP, a prohibition against using the plant as a storage facility for weapons, and ensuring a reliable external power supply from the grid for all nuclear facilities. Both the head of the Agency and its experts have reported catastrophic violations of nuclear safety rules at the Zaporizhzhya NPP since the plant's occupation by Russian troops began in 2022.

The IAEA also emphasised that Russia continues to threaten the nuclear safety of Ukraine and the entire world with constant attacks on the country's critical infrastructure. Rafael Grossi noted that Russian shelling leads to instability in the national power grid and poses a constant risk to nuclear safety at other nuclear power plants in Ukraine. Russian shelling in August 2024 has already led to the temporary shutdown or disconnection of some reactor units at the Rivnenska NPP and the South-Ukrainian NPP. The external power supply situation at the Khmelnytska NPP and the Chornobylska NPP has also suffered, Grossi emphasizes.

“While none of the plants lost all their access to the national electricity grid – which has happened repeatedly at the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant over the past two years – I’m increasingly concerned about the growing vulnerability of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, and the potential impact this is having on the safety of all Ukraine’s operating nuclear power plants,” Director General Grossi said.

The IAEA has repeatedly called on Russia to de-occupy the Zaporizhzhya NPP and stop large-scale shelling of Ukrainian energy facilities. The IAEA once again emphasised that the Russian side has not heeded calls to immediately cease all actions against and at nuclear facilities in Ukraine.

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) warned as early as August 2022 about the risk of Russia's militarisation of the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant. A video shared by Russian opposition outlet The Insider showed that Russian military vehicles move in and around the plant, some of them (including armoured vehicles) moved into the building containing the first of the plant’s six nuclear reactors. Reports accusing Russian forces of placing explosives on the cooling pond and on the rooftop of reactors 3 and 4 of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant were issued in the summer of 2023. There have also been numerous reports of Russian troops attacking the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant (see here and here).

See similar disinformation cases claiming that the UK is supervising the preparation of a provocation at Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant by Kyiv and that Ukraine may blow the Zaporizhzhia nuclear site up to cover up the failure of the counter-offensive.