World’s response to ZNPP situation is insufficient: Zelenskyy holds talks with Biden, Trudeau and Duda

Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported on his conversation with the Prime Minister of Canada on Telegram.

"I held the first of a series of important phone calls - with Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau. I’m grateful to him for his recent visit to Kyiv and to Canada and all Canadians for their continued support of Ukraine," the President of Ukraine said.

He noted that he had shared with Trudeau information on the current battlefield situation, Ukrainian assessments of the attempted coup in Russia and the impact of this situation on the course of hostilities.

Zelenskyy also drew attention to the threatening situation created by Russian occupying forces at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.

"The world's insufficient reaction to Russia's blowing up of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant dam and the attempt to blow up the dam at the Kryvyi Rih reservoir allows the occupiers to prepare a terrorist attack with radiation leakage at the ZNPP," the leader said.

He also added that he expects a principled response from Ukraine's partner countries, including at the NATO Summit in Vilnius.

On June 25, Volodymyr Zelenskyy also had a conversation with Joseph Biden.

"A positive and inspiring conversation. We discussed the course of hostilities and the processes taking place in Russia. The world must put pressure on Russia until international order is restored," the President said.

The leaders discussed further expansion of defense cooperation with a focus on long-range weapons. 

"We coordinated our positions on the eve of the NATO Summit in Vilnius, discussed further work on the implementation of Ukraine's Peace Formula and preparations for the Global Peace Summit," Zelenskyy wrote.

The Ukrainian leader also thanked Biden "for unflagging support of Ukraine, especially for Patriot." He noted that it is important to further increase Ukraine's capacity to protect its skies. And he thanked for the support of the fighter jet coalition.

"I am grateful for the readiness of the United States and the American people to stand side by side with Ukraine until the full liberation of all our territories within internationally recognized borders," the President of Ukraine thanked.

In addition, on Sunday, June 25, Zelenskyy had a phone conversation with Andrzej Duda.

The leaders discussed the latest developments in Russia and how they could affect the course of hostilities and the security situation in the region.

Zelenskyy spoke about the battlefield situation and the threatening situation created by Russian troops at the Zaporizhzhia NPP.

"We coordinated our positions on the eve of the NATO Summit in Vilnius and other international events," Zelenskyy added.

In his traditional evening video address, Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized that the world does not pay enough attention to the Russian threat at the Zaporizhzhia NPP.

"Unfortunately, the world's attention to the existing Russian threat at the Zaporizhzhia NPP is still insufficient. Just as the reaction to the Russian blowing up of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant and the deliberate attempt by Russian terrorists to hit the dam of another reservoir in Kryvyi Rih was insufficient," the President said.

According to him, the scenario with the mining of the ZNPP has obviously already been approved for terrorists.

"We must take very specific steps – all together in the world – to prevent any radiation accidents," the leader added.

The threat of a terrorist attack and the situation at ZNPP

Russian troops occupied Zaporizhzhia NPP in late February 2022. Since then, personnel and military equipment have been permanently stationed there, which the invading forces store in the machine rooms and from time to time bring to positions to shell the territories of the Nikopol district, Dnipropetrovsk region, located on the other side of the Kakhovka reservoir.

An IAEA monitoring mission is working there to ensure that the plant is not used as a military base, that the plant is not attacked or fired upon, and that external power supplies are not interrupted. However, blackouts at the NPP occur constantly. Since last year, Russian troops have started bringing explosives to ZNPP.

In May 2023, Russian forces had placed explosives in the turbine room of the fourth power unit of the occupied Zaporizhzhia NPP. They also almost completely destroyed the emergency preparedness and response system at the nuclear power plant.

On June 22, IAEA Director General Grossi said after visiting ZNPP that the situation there was extremely unstable.

On the same day, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that intelligence had received information that Russia was considering a scenario of a terrorist attack on the temporarily occupied ZNPP that would cause a radiation release. He also emphasized that the world has enough power to prevent any radiation incidents - it needs to put pressure and act.

Meanwhile, Russian leader’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov called Zelenskyy's statement a lie.

In turn, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine expects a clear assessment by the IAEA of Russia's criminal actions and has appealed to the international community, in particular the G7 and the EU, to take urgent measures to prevent a nuclear disaster at the Zaporizhzhia NPP.

In the event of a terrorist attack on the Zaporizhzhia NPP in Enerhodar, the Russian occupying army will not be able to control its consequences. A report by the Institute for the Study of War suggests that Russia may be signaling preparations for sabotage at the plant in an attempt to dissuade the Ukrainian Armed Forces from conducting counteroffensive operations in the area.

Ukraine’s Ministry of Health has issued a warning regarding the uncontrolled use of potassium iodide, which Ukrainians may resort to due to fears of an accident at the Zaporizhzhia NPP. The Ministry emphasizes that the improper and unregulated use of potassium iodide can be hazardous to one's health and life.

Ukraine’s Ministry of Internal Affairs has also deployed relief headquarters, and rescuers will conduct training to eliminate the consequences of a possible Russian terrorist attack on the Zaporizhzhia NPP.

The head of Ukraine’s Main Directorate of Intelligence, Kyrylo Budanov, said that Russia has completed preparations for a terrorist attack on the Zaporizhzhia NPP.