Russia is planning “serious provocations” at Zaporizhia station

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday that Russia was planning “serious provocations” at the Moscow-controlled Zaporizhia nuclear power plant.

Zelensky’s remarks came far Kyiv and Moscow exchanged accusations planning an operation at the facility, which is the largest of its kind in Europe.

“I alerted Emmanuel Macron that the occupation forces are preparing dangerous provocations at the Zaporizhia plant,” Zelensky said in a statement after a phone conversation with the French president. “We agreed to keep the situation under maximum control with the International Atomic Energy Agency.”

The Ukrainian army had warned earlier Tuesday of Possible preparation for a provocative operation On the territory of the Zaporizhia Power Plant in the near future.

He pointed to “external objects resembling explosive devices placed on the outer ceiling of the third and fourth reactors” at the site.

The army pointed out that “its detonation is not supposed to cause damage to the energy units, but it may suggest that it was bombed by the Ukrainian side,” noting that Moscow may “deliberately mislead in this regard.”

In Moscow, an adviser to Russia’s nuclear agency Rosatom, Rinat Karsha, accused Kiev of planning an attack on the facility.

Karsha said in a statement to Russian television, “Today we received information that I am authorized to announce … On the fifth of July, at night, under cover of darkness, the Ukrainian army will try to Attacking the Zaporizhia Nuclear Power Plant“.

He accused Ukraine of planning to use “high-precision and long-range weapons” as well as drones.

Russia and Ukraine regularly exchange accusations of endangering the security of the facility since the outbreak of the war in February 2022.