Ukraine officials have fired a grim warning to Europe after its Chernobyl nuclear power plant was hit by a blackout.
Control of the plant - where a nuclear disaster took place in 1986 - has been seized by Russian troops this week.
Earlier today, Ukrainian officials confirmed that the power plant had been disconnected from the national grid.
It sparked fears that radioactive material could eventually leak from the site, as spent nuclear fuel cannot be cooled without power.
Now, Ukraine's minister of foreign affairs has issued a stark warning over the safety of the power plant, calling for a ceasefire to fix it and warning that the situation is 'putting Europe in danger'.
In a post on Twitter, Dmytro Kuleba wrote: "The only electrical grid supplying the Chornobyl NPP [nuclear power plant] and all its nuclear facilities occupied by Russian army is damaged. Chernobyl NPP lost all electric supply.
"I call on the international community to urgently demand Russia to cease fire and allow repair units to restore power supply.
"Reserve diesel generators have a 48-hour capacity to power the Chornobyl NPP. After that, cooling systems of the storage facility for spent nuclear fuel will stop, making radiation leaks imminent.
"Putin’s barbaric war puts entire Europe in danger. He must stop it immediately!"
Ukraine's nuclear operator, Energoatom, claimed this afternoon that a radiation leak from Chernobyl could spread across Europe.
It said that if spent fuel is not cooled, the temperature in holding pools would increase, leading to the 'release of radioactive substances into the environment'.
A post on Telegram added: "The wind can transfer the radioactive cloud to other regions of Ukraine, Belarus, Russia and Europe.
"In addition, ventilation at the facility will not work. All personnel there will receive a dangerous dose of radiation.
"The fire extinguishing system also does not work, and this is a huge risk in the event of a fire that could occur due to a projectile."
Appearing at her weekly press briefing earlier today, the spokesperson for Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Chernobyl was one of two power plants being controlled by Russia.
Maria Zakharova said: "During the special operation in Ukraine, control has been established over the Chernobyl and Zaporozhye nuclear power plants.
"This was done exclusively to prevent any attempts to stage nuclear provocations, which is a risk that obviously exists."
However, the United Nations body which oversees nuclear power has played down fears over the Chernobyl plant.
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The International Atomic Energy Agency believes the volume of cooling water at the plant will be sufficient to cool down spent material without the need for power.
It referred back to a statement made on March 3, which said: "Due to time elapsed since the 1986 Chornobyl accident, the heat load of the spent fuel storage pool and the volume of cooling water contained in the pool is sufficient to maintain effective heat removal without the need for electrical supply.
"Furthermore, the site has back-up emergency diesel generators available should there be a total loss of power."
More than two million people have now fled Ukraine since Russia began its invasion two weeks ago, with cities coming under attack.
