Following the launch of Russia's invasion of Ukraine on Thursday (24/2), Russian troops seized the disused Chernobyl nuclear power plant. Observers and scientists are highlighting the dangers of Chernobyl falling into Russian hands.
Chernobyl reactor 4 melted in 1986. This disaster killed 31 people and sent radioactive plumes across Europe that could potentially cause thousands of other premature deaths.
Chernobyl ceased to be an active power plant site in 2000. Yet its occupation, even as an abandoned and occupied facility, offers some insight into nuclear power in Ukraine, the war, and the potential risks of fighting around the old infrastructure.
Why did Russia take Chernobyl?
The capture of Chernobyl by Russia is not so much related to its ambition to control certain radioactive substances, but rather to its geographical position which is considered strategic.
Pripyat, the evacuated ghost town where the Chernobyl facility is located, is located along a direct highway to the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv. The city is also surrounded by swamps.
This clearly relied location on the west side of the river, allowed the Russians to direct tanks, armored vehicles, and artillery into position, without being swallowed or stuck in most of the marshes.
As Russian helicopters and other planes raced ahead to secure the airport, slower-moving ground troops took and maintained safe routes between difficult terrain. Chernobyl, happens to be a safer area, and is one of the areas along an important route.