LONDDON, August 8. /TASS/. Russia’s embassy in the United Kingdom has called on "Kiev’s Western sponsors" to stop shifting the blame for attacks on the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant onto Russia and press Ukraine’s authorities to ensure the plant’s physical security.
"Armed provocations by the Kiev regime against Europe’s largest nuclear power plant are reprehensible and unjustifiable. They should be considered what they are - acts of nuclear terrorism that gravely imperil the lives of millions of people in Ukraine and across the European continent," the embassy said in a statement posted on its website. "Instead of continuing to play the blame game Kiev’s Western sponsors need to unequivocally condemn the reckless actions of their Ukrainian clients and send clear public signals that commit Kiev to ensure the physical security and uninterrupted operations of the Zaporozhye NPP."
"The Russian Federation categorically rejects repeated and unfounded accusations that have found their way into UK media regarding Russia’s alleged culpability for the tensions around the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant. The speculations that Russia bears responsibility for the NPP shelling are even more absurd in light of the presence of Russian servicemen at the power plant," the embassy stressed.
The Zaporozhye NPP is Europe’s biggest nuclear power plant. With a capacity of around 6,000 megawatt, it generated a fourth of Ukraine’s electricity. Since 1996, it was part of Ukraine’s Energoatom generating company. In March 2022, control over the nuclear plant came over to Russian forces. Now, the plant is operating at 70% of its capacity due to the oversupply of electricity on the liberated territories of the Zaporozhye region. It is planned to supply electricity from the plant to Crimea.