Ukraine war: Russia arrests Ukrainians allegedly planning nuclear plant strikes, say reports
File photo.
Disclaimer: A number of claims and counterclaims are being made on the Ukraine-Russia conflict on the ground and online. While WION takes utmost care to accurately report this developing news story, we cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, photos and videos.
Russia's FSB security service said on Thursday (May 25) that two Ukrainians had been arrested for allegedly planning to target nuclear power plants in the country, news agency AFP reported, citing Russian news agencies. In a statement, the FSB was quoted as saying that a sabotage group from the Ukrainian foreign intelligence service tried to blow up some 30 power lines of nuclear power plants in Leningrad and Kalinin in early May to stop the nuclear reactors from working.
The statement said that the aim was to cause serious economic harm to Russia and damage its reputation.
The Ukrainian men brought down "a pylon carrying a high voltage line and planted mines in four pylons carrying high voltage lines from the Leningrad nuclear power station". The statement also said that explosives were planted near seven similar pylons linked to the Kalinin nuclear plan.
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The FSB is now looking for a third man of Ukrainian-Russian nationality. The security service also said 36.5 kg of explosives and about 60 detonators were found in the homes of the suspects and their alleged accomplices, the statement added.
Two Russians who helped these Ukrainians were arrested.
Further details are awaited.
Thursday's development comes amid the nuclear threat posed by Russia since the beginning of the war in February 2022. In March this year, US intelligence suggested that Russian President Vladimir Putin could use nuclear weapons to end the Ukraine war.
Russia's warning on Western arms for Ukraine
Two days back, Russia's deputy head of the Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, warned that the more destructive the weapons the West supplied to Ukraine, the higher the risk of a nuclear apocalypse.
Medvedev pointed out that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) did not appear to be taking the possibility of nuclear conflict seriously. "They are wrong. And at some point, events can move in a completely unpredictable scenario. And the responsibility will lie entirely with the North Atlantic Alliance," he told news agency RIA on Tuesday.
Russia, which has more nuclear weapons than any other country, has repeatedly said the West is engaged in a proxy war with Moscow over Ukraine that could escalate into a much bigger conflict.
(With inputs from agencies)
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