Russian troops “with no clue” about nuclear security are reportedly running the Chernobyl power plant with more than 200 staff working at gunpoint.
And there are now fears that Vladimir Putin is planning a “terrorist attack” on the plant, claim reports.
The Chernobyl nuclear plant was an early strategic target for the Russian forces and fell on February 24 with employees since working long shifts and under extreme pressure.
The daughter of one of the nuclear engineers at the plant says that it is now at serious risk with staff struggling and being made to work 12 hour shifts at gunpoint.
“Basically, the power plant is held by people who have no clue about the nuclear security protocols,” Natalia Ruemmele told Fox News.
And with power supply to Chernobyl having been cut off, according to Ukraine authorities, it is now working from reserve diesel generators with a “48-hour capacity” according to the the transmission system operator Ukrenergo, say reports.
"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 Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba tweeted.
He asked the international community "to urgently demand Russia to cease fire and allow repair units to restore power supply."
The Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine believes Putin is planning a 'technological catastrophe' at the power station.
Intel chiefs warned that the disaster will be blamed on the Ukrainians and said Putin is prepared to commit 'nuclear blackmail' on the world if his invasion fails.
The Intelligence Directorate wrote on Facebook : "According to the available information - Vladimir Putin ordered the preparation of a terrorist attack at the Chernobyl nuclear station.
"The creation of a technological catastrophe is planned at the controlled Russian forces of the CAEC (Chernobyl), the responsibility for which the occupiers will try to translate to Ukraine.
"At the moment, the CAEC is completely disconnected from the monitoring systems of the International Atomic Energy Agency (MAGATE). The station has been disrupted. The resource of existing diesel generators is calculated for 48 hours of security systems to support.
"Occupiers refused to give access to the station Ukrainian repairman. Instead, there, according to the instruction of Alexander Lukashenko, 'Belarusian specialists' came in. Among them, under the guise of atomic (experts) also enter Russian dissidents to organise a terrorist attack."
Ukraine's intel chiefs added: "Without getting the desired result from the ground military operation and direct negotiations, Putin is ready to commit to the nuclear blackmail of the world community for the sake of actions to support Ukraine."
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has expressed concern about the situation at Ukraine's Chernobyl nuclear power plant on Friday.
Ukraine said on Wednesday there was an increased risk of a radiation leak at Chernobyl, which suffered the world's worst nuclear accident in 1986, after a high-voltage cable was severed during fighting and electricity to the plant was cut off.
Russia's energy ministry said on Thursday Belarusian specialists had restored the electricity supply and Russia's defence ministry said it had agreed to allow a Ukrainian repair team to access power lines in the area around the plant.
But Ukraine's state nuclear power regulator said the external power supply had still not been restored, and Kyiv has told the UN nuclear watchdog that it has lost contact with the plant.
"The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development is extremely concerned by recent developments at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant (ChNPP) in Ukraine," the EBRD said in a statement.
"The EBRD, which has been managing over 2.5 billion euros in international funds to transform Chernobyl since 1995, believes that recent events are putting in jeopardy the achievements of decades of successful international collaboration to secure the site."
The EBRD said an uninterrupted power supply to Chernobyl must be maintained. It also said it was important to have monitoring and control systems operating, normal shift rotations should be resumed after their disruption during fighting, and supplies must be maintained to staff operating the plant.
Any military action on the site itself was "extremely dangerous" to a storage facility for spent nuclear fuel and inspections by the Ukrainian regulator and the International Atomic Energy Agency were needed, it said.
