Nato should discuss Ukraine nuclear plant at summit: Russia

MOSCOW – Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Maria Zakharova said on Sunday that the leaders of the US-led transatlantic Nato defence alliance should discuss Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant at their summit this week.

Nato leaders will meet in Vilnius in Lithuania on Tuesday and Wednesday to tackle a wide range of topics. These range from divisions over

Ukraine’s membership bid

and Sweden’s accession to boosting ammunitions stockpiles and reviewing the first defence plans in decades.

Accusing Ukraine of “systematic infliction of damage” to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, Ms Zakharova said “the Nato summit’s key attention should be devoted to it”.

“After all, the vast majority of the alliance members will be in the direct impact zone” (if something were to happen at the plant), she said on the Telegram messaging app.

Vilnius is some 1,000km from the nuclear plant, which is Europe’s largest.

Both Russia and Ukraine have

accused each other of planning to attack the plant,

which is in Russian-held territory in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region, near the front line of Russia’s conflict with Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has for days warned of the grave threat at the facility, most recently saying Russian forces had mined the roof of several reactors.

International Atomic Energy Agency experts based at the plant said they had

yet to observe any indications of mines or explosives at the plant,

but they also needed more access to be sure. REUTERS