Ukraine and Russia trade claims over fire at nuclear power plant

On Sunday, Yevgeny Balitsky, the Kremlin-installed governor of Zaporizhzhia, said a fire had broken out at the cooling towers of the power plant.

He blamed Ukrainian shelling, but asked for “calm”, adding that there had been no radiation spike around the plant.

Mr Zelensky also said there was no detected radiation spike or danger of a nuclear leak – but accused Russia of purposefully starting the fire in an attempt to “blackmail” Kyiv.

In the early hours of Monday, Vladimir Rogov, another Kremlin-installed official, said the fire had been “completely extinguished” in a Telegram post.

The nuclear power plant has been under the control of Russian troops and officials since 2022. It has not produced power in more than two years and all six reactors have been in cold shutdown since April.

In a statement posted on X, UN nuclear watchdog the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said its experts had witnessed “strong dark smoke” coming from the plant following “multiple explosions”.

It said the plant had reported “an alleged drone attack” on one of the cooling towers at the site.

“No impact has been reported for nuclear safety,” the IAEA added.

In a later statement, the IAEA said it had requested “immediate access to the cooling tower to assess the damage”.