Russian drone strikes nuclear fuel storage facility near Chernobyl, Ukraine says

A Russian drone struck a storage facility for spent nuclear fuel near Ukraine's disused Chernobyl power plant, Ukrainian officials reported Sunday. The container-receiving building was partially destroyed, but no spent fuel was present at the time, and a resulting fire was extinguished without injuries, according to Kyiv's General Staff and the state atomic agency.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha stated on X that this was not the first time Russian forces had endangered Ukrainian nuclear facilities, calling Russia's "nuclear blackmail and threats to nuclear safety" systemic and unacceptable. This incident follows a February 2025 drone attack that damaged a containment arch over the Chernobyl reactor, an event for which Russia denied responsibility.

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This is not the first time Russian forces are putting Ukrainian nuclear facilities at risk. Russia's nuclear blackmail and threats to nuclear safety are systemic, deliberate, and unacceptable.

President Volodymyr Zelensky described the strike as "extremely vile," alleging that Russia deliberately targeted critical nuclear infrastructure. He wrote on X that a "shahed" drone hit the facility, calling it an "extremely critical infrastructure facility - and an extremely vile Russian strike."

The International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed significant damage to the fuel reception building and noted nearby structures were also affected by the blast wave. Ukraine maintains that radiation levels remain within limits, and the IAEA plans to visit the site to assess the impact.

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Today, the Russians again struck the special territory around the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. A 'shahed' hit one of the buildings of the Centralized Spent Fuel Storage Facility. An extremely critical infrastructure facility - and an extremely vile Russian strike.