Date: June 7, 2026 l By Ebere Emmanuel
A Russian drone has struck a nuclear fuel storage facility near the decommissioned Chernobyl power plant in northern Ukraine, damaging part of the site and triggering a fire, Ukrainian officials said, in an attack that has renewed international concerns over the safety of nuclear infrastructure during the war.
Ukrainian authorities said the Shahed-type drone hit a building linked to the Centralised Spent Nuclear Fuel Storage Facility, located within the Chernobyl exclusion zone. The structure reportedly serves as a reception and handling point for spent nuclear fuel from Ukraine’s nuclear energy programme.
Emergency teams quickly extinguished the resulting fire, and officials confirmed that no personnel were injured in the incident. Importantly, no spent nuclear fuel was stored in the affected building at the time of the strike, reducing the immediate risk of radioactive contamination.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned the attack as a “deliberate” and “extremely vile” act, accusing Russia of escalating its campaign against critical infrastructure. He said the strike highlighted what he described as a growing pattern of nuclear safety risks linked to Russian military operations.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed it had been briefed on the incident and said its team would inspect the site to assess the damage. The agency noted that while a significant facility was impacted, radiation levels in the surrounding area remained within normal limits.
Ukrainian state nuclear operator Energoatom also reported that monitoring systems showed no spike in radiation levels following the strike, easing fears of an immediate environmental disaster.
The attack adds to a series of incidents involving nuclear-linked infrastructure since the start of the war, including previous strikes near Chernobyl and repeated threats surrounding the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Europe’s largest nuclear facility.
Russia has not issued an official response to the latest allegations. However, Moscow has previously denied responsibility for similar attacks on Ukrainian nuclear sites.
Analysts warn that continued strikes near nuclear facilities, even if they do not directly damage reactor cores or fuel stocks, significantly increase the risk of escalation and could lead to catastrophic consequences if miscalculation occurs.
As the war intensifies, the Chernobyl strike underscores the fragility of nuclear safety in active conflict zones and the growing urgency of international efforts to prevent further attacks on sensitive nuclear infrastructure.