Russia Strikes Nuclear Power Plants: Escalation Undermining European Security

Russia is striking nuclear facilities: a dangerous escalation that undermines European security! The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) announced that three key Ukrainian nuclear power plants – Khmelnytskyi, Rivne, and South Ukraine – were forced to urgently reduce electricity production.

The reason is the latest series of intentional strikes by Russia against the electricity transmission infrastructure, including substations that supply the reactors. The loss of high-voltage lines leads to an automatic transition to lower power – the only measure that can prevent an accident in conditions of unstable external power supply.

According to a number of international and Ukrainian analysts, the latest attacks outline a clear pattern of escalation, in which critical energy infrastructure and facilities in the immediate vicinity of nuclear power plants become targets. Thus, Russia systematically increases the risk of a nuclear accident, which would have a cross-border character and would affect the whole of Europe.

Experts emphasize that attacking substations and key points around nuclear power plants is not just a military act, but a strategy of destabilization, aimed at putting Ukraine under pressure through the threat of a potential radiation disaster.

The reduction in the capacity of three nuclear power plants simultaneously is unprecedented in the course of the full-scale war.

Chronology of Russian strikes against Ukrainian nuclear power plants (2024–2025)

The attacks against Ukrainian nuclear power plants are no longer isolated incidents, but a consistent practice. The IAEA has repeatedly warned that any hit, even on auxiliary infrastructure, increases the risk of an accident.

Although the first attacks began in 2022, it is 2024 and 2025 that mark the most acute and systematic escalation.

2024

April 7, 2024 – Drone strikes on the Zaporizhzhia NPP

The IAEA confirms the hitting of the territory of the plant, including the dome of the 6th reactor. This is the first direct hit on reactor infrastructure since 2022.

September 2, 2024 – ZNPP with one remaining working external line

Russian shelling damages high-voltage equipment, leaving the plant with minimal power supply – a situation that the IAEA defines as “extremely dangerous”.

November 2024 – Reactor shut down and forced power reduction

Following a combined missile and drone strike, the Khmelnytskyi, Rivne, and South Ukraine NPPs reduced production, and one reactor at the Rivne NPP was disconnected from the grid as a protective measure.

2025

February 14, 2025 – Drone hits the protective sarcophagus of Chernobyl

A Russian drone hits the “New Safe Confinement” structure, piercing over 300 holes and causing a fire. The IAEA reports that the radiation level remains stable, but experts warn of long-term structural risks.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reacted strongly: “The strike on Chernobyl is not just an attack on a Ukrainian object – it is an attack on global safety. This sarcophagus is a shield for the whole world. Russia is consciously playing with things that cannot be played with.”

Spring–summer 2025 – Artillery strikes around ZNPP

The IAEA reports constant shelling, black smoke, and damage to facilities. The plant remains without external power several times and goes into emergency mode.

November 7–8, 2025 – Strikes on power substations

Key substations connected to the Khmelnytskyi and Rivne NPPs are seriously damaged. Both plants are forced to reduce capacity while the electricity transmission connection is restored.

November 19, 2025 – New massive strike, three NPPs reduce power urgently

The Khmelnytskyi, Rivne, and South Ukraine NPPs again lose part of their high-voltage lines. Four reactors reduce their power to avoid emergency shutdown.

For the first time in the history of civil nuclear energy, nuclear facilities are becoming a systematic military target. Direct hits – especially in Chernobyl and Zaporizhzhia NPP – exceed all previous notions of acceptable risk and call into question the global ability to ensure nuclear safety in conditions of war.

The IAEA has repeatedly insisted on a “nuclear safe zone,” but Russia continues to militarize and shell territories around the NPPs.

Each subsequent strike increases the likelihood of an incident that will affect not only Ukraine, but the whole of Europe. And if the international community does not react decisively, the next warning may already be too late.