Russian forces targeted a spent nuclear fuel storage facility near Ukraine's Chernobyl power plant, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.
According to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Sunday's attack severely damaged a fuel reception building located just meters away from storage holding 'a large amount of nuclear material.' The IAEA said it was informed of the incident by Ukraine.
President Zelenskyy called the attack 'extremely heinous' and accused Russia of using Shahed drones. He said: 'At present, there are no indicators exceeding normal background radiation levels. But there is certainly an increase in Russia's brazenness, which has long exceeded all limits.'
Ukraine's national nuclear agency, Energoatom, said no spent fuel was stored in the building at the time of the attack. The resulting fire was extinguished and no casualties were reported.
Russia has not publicly commented on the alleged strike on the facility, located about 15 km (9 miles) from the Chernobyl plant, site of the world's worst nuclear disaster. In a statement, the IAEA said a team would visit the site soon 'to assess the impact.'
Russian drone and bomb strikes also hit other areas of Ukraine. In the southern Zaporizhzhia region, a 56-year-old minibus driver was killed. In the central Dnipropetrovsk region, a 59-year-old man died and a 35-year-old man was injured by drones and bombs falling on two districts.
According to the Ukrainian air force, Russia targeted the country with 236 drones overnight, of which 215 were intercepted.
The attacks came as world leaders gathered in the United Kingdom to discuss increasing pressure on Moscow over the four-year war. President Zelenskyy was scheduled to meet leaders of France, Germany and the UK in London later Sunday to discuss the way forward.
In an open letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier this week, Zelenskyy proposed a face-to-face meeting and expressed readiness for a 'full ceasefire.' However, Putin rejected the offer, arguing there was no point in such a meeting at this time.
