08 April 2023, Saturday, 15:07 1028

AFU In October Tried To Recapture Zaporizhzhia NPP From Russians, But Failed

Editor: Tetiana Herasimova

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In October last year, Ukrainian defenders tried to recapture the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (Enerhodar, Zaporizhzhia Region) from the Russians, but the operation was unsuccessful.

It was stated in the story by the British newspaper Times, Ukrainian News Agency reports.

It is noted that representatives of the occupation administrations and the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation at the end of October reported that the Armed Forces of Ukraine tried to land troops and storm the nuclear power plant.

Ukraine has not officially acknowledged attempts to storm the power plant, but representatives of the Ukrainian military intelligence, special forces and naval forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine told the Times on condition of anonymity the details of the operation.

The Zaporizhzhia NPP at that time had been under the control of the invaders for more than six months.

The Russian military used its territory to shell Ukrainian cities across the Dnieper.

On the night of October 19, about 600 Ukrainian soldiers, carrying heavy machine guns, MK-19 grenade launchers and anti-tank weapons, tried to move to the left bank of the Dnieper on 30 boats.

"The idea was that only infantry could participate in the battle. They will not be able to use artillery against us, since this is a nuclear plant," one of the military told the publication.

However, Ukrainian defenders did not expect such serious resistance to them.

"The Russian military built a very dense defense, mined everything. When we began to approach, they even pulled up tanks and artillery and began to fire at us right on the water," the Ukrainian military said.

While special forces boats sailed across the Dnieper, the Ukrainian military fired on Russian positions, in particular with the help of HIMARS.

"As a result, only a small group of Ukrainian soldiers managed to get to the shore. They engaged in a three-hour shootout with the Russian army on the outskirts of Enerhodar, but then they were forced to retreat," the Times article said.

The publication notes that due to the risk of radiation leakage, such an attempt at a force assault raises questions even among Ukrainian officials who are convinced of the need to return the nuclear power plant to Ukrainian control.

President of the Ukrainian nuclear power generating company Energoatom Petro Kotin suggested that it would be possible to return the Zaporizhzhia NPP after the Ukrainian army moved south towards Melitopol and Crimea.

"This is the only option (to return the NPP) without direct shelling and direct attack on the station territory. It is very dangerous to do such things (shoot) next to nuclear materials," he said.

As Ukrainian News Agency earlier reported, on March 29, the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi arrived for the second time at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant occupied by Russia.

On March 27, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Grossi met in Zaporizhzhia and discussed the security of the Zaporizhzhia NPP.

Since September 2022, the IAEA mission has been operating at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia NPP.