The US Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken, stated that Russia uses the occupied Zaporizhzhia NPP as a military base that serves as a kind of "nuclear shield" for the occupiers.
Reuters writes about it.
According to him, Russian troops are constantly firing at Ukrainian forces from the territory of the NPP, and in return they do not receive a decent response, since the Armed Forces cannot prevent an accident at the plant.
The occupiers traditionally deny such claims. The representative of the Russian Federation at the UN stated that "there are no military formations at the NPP, except for a limited number of military personnel necessary to control its security."
At the same time, the Russian-appointed occupation authorities of the Zaporizhzhia oblast announced the expectation of a visit by representatives of the International Atomic Energy Agency to the NPP. The occupiers say they are ready to provide alleged evidence of the "attacks" on the Zaporizhzhia NPP by the Armed Forces.
- On July 20, the occupation authorities of the city of Enerhodar, Zaporizhzhia oblast, announced an "attack" on the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant with kamikaze drones.
- On July 21, "Enerhoatom" reported that Russian troops placed equipment and explosives in the engine room of power unit No. 1 of the Zaporizhzhia NPP. In particular, the military arsenal is located in close proximity to the main oil tank, which contains flammable oil that cools the steam turbine. It also contains explosive hydrogen, which is used to cool the generator.
- The next day, July 22, the Armed Forces showed a video of a drone attack on Russian positions near the Zaporizhzhia NPP. At the same time, the drones hit only the objects of the invaders, not the buildings of the station.