Power Restored at Ukraine’s Chernobyl

Russian forces seized Chernobyl soon after it invaded Ukraine on February 24 Sergei SUPINSKY AFP/File
Russian forces seized Chernobyl soon after it invaded Ukraine on February 24 Sergei SUPINSKY AFP/File
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Power Restored at Ukraine’s Chernobyl

Russian forces seized Chernobyl soon after it invaded Ukraine on February 24 Sergei SUPINSKY AFP/File
Russian forces seized Chernobyl soon after it invaded Ukraine on February 24 Sergei SUPINSKY AFP/File

Power has been restored at Ukraine's Chernobyl nuclear power station, the site of the world's worst nuclear disaster in 1986, the International Atomic Energy Agency said late Monday.

Separately, Ukraine's state nuclear operator Energoatom accused the Russian military of detonating ammunition at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station in the country's south.

"Ukraine has informed IAEA that external power had again today been restored to the (Chernobyl) Nuclear Power Plant after line had been again damaged 'by the occupying forces'," the UN's atomic watchdog tweeted.

"Staff had restarted operations to reconnect the plant to the electricity grid."

Energy operator Ukrenergo had earlier said the power line supplying the Chernobyl plant had been "damaged by the occupying forces," after Russian forces invaded Ukraine on February 24 and seized the power station in the first days of the assault, according to AFP.

The retired Chernobyl nuclear reactors -- enclosed in a giant steel and concrete sarcophagus -- had also lost power early last week but supply was restored Sunday.

The power station has emergency diesel generators that can kick in when electricity is needed to power security systems including the cooling systems for the spent nuclear fuel storage facility, Ukraine's nuclear power inspection body SNRIU said last week.

Ukrenergo said Chernobyl "cannot be left without a reliable energy supply".

The 1986 explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant killed hundreds and spread a radioactive cloud across Europe.

On March 4, Russian forces shelled and captured the Zaporizhzhia plant, Europe's biggest nuclear power station, raising alarm in Europe over a possible nuclear catastrophe.

Ukraine's Energoatom accused the Russian military of detonating ammunition near a reactor.

"And they are continuing to conduct explosions at Europe's largest nuclear facility," Energoatom said on messaging app Telegram, urging the International Atomic Energy Agency to take action.

It said it was currently unclear if radiation levels had changed at the station.

The IAEA said it was "aware of reports that Russian forces have carried out munition explosions at the site of the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant today" and was seeking information about the situation from Ukraine.

Energoatom also claimed that 11 representatives of Russia's state nuclear corporation Rosatom were at the Zaporizhzhia plant and taking part in the explosions, accusing Rosatom of violating "all established international rules and requirements of nuclear and radiation safety."



German Politicians Decry Elon Musk's AfD Support as 'Intrusive' Election Influence

Elon Musk walks on Capitol Hill on the day of a meeting with Senate Republican Leader-elect John Thune (R-SD), in Washington, US December 5, 2024. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/File Photo
Elon Musk walks on Capitol Hill on the day of a meeting with Senate Republican Leader-elect John Thune (R-SD), in Washington, US December 5, 2024. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/File Photo
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German Politicians Decry Elon Musk's AfD Support as 'Intrusive' Election Influence

Elon Musk walks on Capitol Hill on the day of a meeting with Senate Republican Leader-elect John Thune (R-SD), in Washington, US December 5, 2024. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/File Photo
Elon Musk walks on Capitol Hill on the day of a meeting with Senate Republican Leader-elect John Thune (R-SD), in Washington, US December 5, 2024. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/File Photo

US billionaire Elon Musk drew criticism from German politicians from the government and opposition on Sunday for an opinion piece he wrote backing the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) which they deemed "intrusive" outside influence.

The support of the AfD from Musk, who is set to serve US President-elect Donald Trump's administration as an outside adviser, comes as Germans are set to vote on Feb. 23 after a coalition government led by Chancellor Olaf Scholz collapsed.

The commentary published in German in the Welt am Sonntag newspaper, flagship of the Axel Springer media group, expanded on a post by Musk on social media platform X last week in which he wrote "only the AfD can save Germany" and praised the party's approach to regulation, taxes and market deregulation, Reuters reported.

In response to the publication of his commentary, the editor of the newspaper's opinion section said on X that she had resigned.

Friedrich Merz, leader of the opposition Christian Democrats and current favorite to succeed Scholz as chancellor, said in an interview with the Funke Media Group: "I cannot recall a comparable case of interference, in the history of Western democracies, in the election campaign of a friendly country."

Merz described the commentary as "intrusive and pretentious".

Saskia Esken, co-leader of Scholz's Social Democrats (SPD), vowed fierce resistance to attempts by state actors as well as the rich and influential to influence Germany's elections.

"In Elon Musk's world, democracy and workers' rights are obstacles to more profit," Esken told Reuters. "We say quite clearly: Our democracy is defensible and it cannot be bought."

Welt's editor-in-chief designate defended the decision to publish the commentary, saying that democracy and journalism thrive on freedom of opinion, including polarising positions.

The AfD is running second in opinion polls and might be able to thwart a centre-right or centre-left majority. Germany's mainstream, more centrist parties have pledged to shun any support from the AfD at the national level.