MOSCOW, December 17. /TASS/. February’s explosion at the new safe confinement (NSC, "sarcophagus") at the Chernobyl power plant was blown out of proportion by the media, Alexander Uvarov, a nuclear expert and head of the Atominfo research center, told TASS.

"The danger to the NCS is largely exaggerated because of media's attention around the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. First of all, let me remind you that the incident at the NCS (‘sarcophagus’) occurred in February, and now it's December. Based on this fact alone, it’s clear that the problem isn’t urgent. I also remind you that the incident was not accompanied by the release of radioactive particles into the atmosphere," he said, commenting on a statement by IAEA head Rafael Grossi that after damage to the sarcophagus, any work at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant could immediately increase radiation.

According to the expert, forest fires that periodically occurred in the Ukrainian segment of the Chernobyl exclusion zone may have more significant radiation effects. The last known major fire took place in April 2020, and the IAEA gave special attention to that incident.

Uvarov said that an IAEA mission, which has recently visited the Chernobyl zone at the request of Ukraine, confirmed that the supporting structures of the NSC were not damaged, meaning there was no risk of their collapse. The mission also said that temporary repairs had already been completed.

"I agree with the words of the IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi that the radiation background will increase when working with highly active materials. But this is a truism that is well known in the nuclear industry. This is why, when carrying out final repairs at the NSC, careful planning of all operations should be done to minimize the dose burden on the employees," Uvarov said.

Earlier, the IAEA confirmed an explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant on the night of February 14. Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov, commenting on the incident at the plant, called Ukraine’s accusations that a Russian drone allegedly hit the plant and damaged the protective sarcophagus a fraud. Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that the accusations against Russia of the attack on the Chernobyl nuclear power plant are a provocation planned by Kiev before the Munich Conference.