Nuclear terror by Russia. Analysis of Russian strikes on Ukrainian NPPs

Attacks on Ukrainian NPPs have been going on for three years

Russia has spent a lot of time frightening the world with its nuclear potential. Perhaps some Western politicians have been influenced by these threats. But, despite the intimidation, the Russians have actually been doing what can be called creating a nuclear threat all along.

We are talking about targeted attempts to turn off the Ukrainian nuclear power industry, which could have terrible and unpredictable consequences for both our country and the world.

From the very beginning of the full-scale invasion, the occupying country has been flying near Ukrainian NPPs. The first such arrival was recorded on September 19, 2022. A ballistic missile then hit only 300 meters from the nuclear reactors of the South Ukrainian NPP, creating a 4-meter-deep crater.

Subsequently, such missile or drone strikes on the territory or structures near nuclear power plants were repeated. According to nuclear scientists themselves, missiles and drones flying near nuclear power plants have become almost a daily occurrence.

On February 14, 2025, a Russian drone hit the shelter of the 4th unit of the Chornobyl nuclear power plant.

The infographic was prepared based on data from official Ukrainian sources, as well as the IAEA reports we analyzed during the full-scale war. The level of openness of this international organization's data on the state of Ukrainian NPPs remains debatable. According to some Ukrainian experts, some of the data should still be closed for the sake of national security

Cut off from the grid

Another threat to Ukrainian NPPs is the targeted strikes by the Russians against the Ukrainian energy sector, which aim to cut off Ukrainian nuclear power plants from the grid.

They may try to strike directly at substations near nuclear power plants or simply destroy key power transmission nodes. In this case, the plants' power units simply have nowhere to deliver the electricity they generate, and therefore, they have to stop or reduce their capacity. This can have extremely unpredictable consequences.

According to Ukrainian experts, a similar incident happened at the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant in the United States in 1979, when about 50% of the reactor core melted due to an accident. The power unit was never restored.

We have already experienced the "apocalypse"

When the Ukrainian media talk about possible threats in the future due to the shutdown of nuclear facilities, they somehow forget that we have already experienced such an "apocalypse."

On November 23, 2022, all power units of Ukrainian nuclear power plants shut down

This happened at the end of the first year of the full-scale invasion. According to Ukrainian official sources and the IAEA, a Russian missile strike on November 23 caused ALL power units of Ukrainian nuclear power plants to shut down due to emergency protection for the first time in the history of Ukrainian energy.

Then, a classic blackout occurred with the collapse of the power grid. In other words, the Ukrainian electricity generation and supply network ceased to exist as a single entity. The transformers next to the nuclear power plant were not damaged, but key power transmission hubs were destroyed.

The Russians effectively cut off the country's power supply. Although the first strikes on the power system, in particular on the Kremenchuk TPP, were made in the spring of 2022, it did not take a great clairvoyant to realize that with the onset of cold weather, the enemy would "take out" the energy sector. But despite warnings from journalists, no one was prepared.

This happened because critical industries were unprepared for such a scenario. In many residential buildings, including in Kyiv, the water supply was cut off because water utilities, which had no backup energy sources, were de-energized at the time.

In addition, when generators were miraculously found for some needs, such as water supply in pump rooms, the employees of the nearest housing office did not know what to do with them.

Then, there was a series of December attacks, but with each successive attack, more experience and generators were available in the country. Despite all the subsequent attacks, which were even more accurate and had more missiles, the situation was never as critical as it was at the end of 2022.

We see several factors preventing Russia from destroying our energy system to the ground. First of all, it significantly strengthens air defense thanks to Western partners. Also, government officials say that physical shelters have been built for critical nodes of the power system. The ongoing restoration of thermal power plants, subject to missile attacks after repairs, plays an important role. Ukrainian power engineers have also accumulated spare parts for repairs and keep them in warehouses outside Ukraine. The capacity of electricity exports has been increased.

Two regional cities and some small private businesses have installed cogeneration units that produce electricity from gas, but the scale of this generation needs to be increased many times over.

Only the international community can stop nuclear blackmail and the destruction of the Ukrainian energy system if it helps Ukraine destroy the equipment deep in Russia that is used to launch missiles. After all, it is in the interests of the entire free world. Because if Russia is not defeated militarily, missiles will fly at European cities.

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