The seizure of Chernobyl by Russian forces has been branded ‘irresponsible in the extreme’ as fighting rages across Ukraine.
The Kremlin’s troops have captured the nuclear power plant during the invasion, following heavy fighting with defending troops.
An adviser to the Ukrainian Presidential Office confirmed this afternoon that the decommissioned plant had fallen after the battle.
Earlier, President Volodymyr Zelensky said his troops were ‘giving their lives’ to prevent a repeat of the worst nuclear disaster in history.
On Twitter, he said: ‘This is a declaration of war against the whole of Europe.’
Fighting had been taking place near the decommissioned reactor, which went into meltdown nearly 40 years ago, according to reports.
Moscow’s forces were said to have entered the exclusion zone from Belarus, to the north of Ukraine and a possible launchpad for an advance into Kyiv.
Speaking before the seizure was confirmed, Nick Reynolds, land warfare analyst at the Royal United Services Institute, told Metro.co.uk: ‘For Russia to not only use the exclusion zone as an axis of advance but also engage in military hostilities in the vicinity of Chernobyl, if what is being reported is accurate, is irresponsible in the extreme.
‘One would hope that the Russians have put some operational control measures in place to prevent damage to the reactor.
‘The relative lack of Ukrainian defences there confer a limited and short-term advantage, but one that is dwarfed by the risks involved.’
Mr Reynolds had previously researched Russia’s troop movements and covert activities for a report showing Mr Putin has ‘human mapping’ plans to eliminate officials who could oppose an occupation.
‘Elsewhere, the Russian offensive is unfolding largely as predicted based upon prior analysis of the Russian deployments over the last few months,’ he said. ‘Beyond that, it is too early to tell what will happen.’
Earlier today, Mr Zelensky tweeted: ‘Russian occupation forces are trying to seize the #Chornobyl_NPP.
‘Our defenders are giving their lives so that the tragedy of 1986 will not be repeated. Reported this to @SwedishPM. This is a declaration of war against the whole of Europe.’
Defence expert Alexander Khara, who is in Kyiv, around 100km south of Chernobyl, told Metro.co.uk today how he will remain in the capital to help resist any attempt to seize the city.
‘It’s a pity that Chernobyl has been seized, but it’s not critical. we’re protecting all nuclear power stations, both the decommissioned site and those that are operational.
‘Strategically, it’s not as important as Hostomel Airport to the north of Kyiv. Twenty Russian helicopters were engaged and paratroopers have landed.
‘There are unconfirmed reports of Il-76 long-range transport planes with paratroopers heading towards Kyiv, maybe near Hostomel.
‘If they succeed, the Russians will be able to land aircraft with troops, tanks and other weapons. The fighting doesn’t stop there. I will stay in my city, and in my country, and we will fight to the end.’
The airfield, also known as Antonov International Airport, around 20 minutes from the centre of Kyiv, was later said to have been captured.
The Chernobyl exclusion zone may have been targeted as a relatively unprotected area on a push towards the capital, as well as for its status as part of the critical national infrastructure and its symbolic value.
Vadym Prystaiko, the Ukrainian Ambassador to the UK, said earlier: ‘This zone is not protected because there is radiation, nobody lives there, now it comes through this particular unprotected part of our borders through Belarussian territory, so everything is happening as we saw it before.’
An airstrike earlier today hit an area around 26 miles from the exclusion zone, where the reactor is protected by a shelter to prevent radiation leaks.
A direct hit on a reactor could pose a risk of radioactive contamination to Europe, according to Ukrainian security expert Dmytro Gumenyuk.
Among those expressing outrage was journalist Hanna Liubakova, who wrote on Twitter: ‘Russian troops from #Belarus entered the Chernobyl zone.
‘Heavy fights between them and Ukrainian soldiers guarding the storage of radioactive waste.
‘We don’t know about the fallout yet. But this is an absolute madness.’
Ukrainian personnel at Chernobyl have been taken hostage, according to unconfirmed reports this afternoon.
In an update today, the Ministry of Defence said Russian troops who were based in Belarus are heading to Kyiv.
The operation includes an air assault on an airfield on the outskirts of the city, with strikes ‘delivered through a combination of Russian ground, air and sea-launched missiles and by artillery bombardment’.
Do you have a story you would like to share? Contact josh.layton@metro.co.uk
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Russia/Ukraine invasion: all you need to know
Russian forces have launched an attack on Ukraine, with swathes of the country – including capital city Kyiv, bring hit by rocket strikes.
Troops from Russia crossed the Crimea border into Ukraine in the early hours of February 24 after President Vladimir Putin gave the order for his invasion to begin.
Boris Johnson launched a scathing attack on the Russian leader as he unveiled a package of sanctions against the country, saying said Putin ‘will never be able to cleanse the blood of Ukraine from his hands’ and will be ‘condemned’ in the eyes of history.
He said President Vladimir Putin’s regime would be condemned to ‘pariah status’ after unleashing its ‘tidal wave of violence’ against its western neighbour.
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