Symbolic imageMoscow has moved its accusations to the diplomatic arena: on Thursday its foreign ministry demanded a response from the international community over a drone strike it blames on Ukraine, saying external power failed for an hour. Still unconfirmed independently.
The Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in southern Ukraine has been under Russian control and operated by the state company Rosatom since the war began in 2022. Moscow and Kyiv blame each other for strikes in and around the site, and each side's account of incidents there is contested.
Russia says a Ukrainian drone hit the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant on Saturday, cutting external power for one hour. On Thursday its foreign ministry called for a response from the international community.
Russia's UN envoy Vasily Nebenzya said on Wednesday that Ukraine is attacking staff at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in order to cause a man-made disaster. Rosatom head Alexey Likhachev accused Ukrainian forces of using drones at night to mine the access road, disrupting shift changes, food deliveries and emergency medical transport; the claims, carried by TASS, are unverified.
Rosatom says a Ukrainian combat drone struck inside the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant overnight into Sunday. The Russian operator reports no explosion and unchanged radiation levels.