Russian Drone Strikes Nuclear Fuel Storage Facility Near Chernobyl
Russian Drone Strike Chernobyl Nuclear Facility June 2026
Ukrainian officials reported that a Russian drone struck a building at the Centralized Spent Fuel Storage Facility, located approximately 15 kilometers from the disused Chernobyl nuclear power plant, in the early hours of Sunday, June 7, 2026. According to Kyiv’s General Staff and state atomic agencies, the strike partially destroyed a container-receiving building. Officials confirmed that no spent nuclear fuel was present in the affected structure at the time of the attack, and a resulting fire was successfully extinguished.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned the incident as an “extremely vile” and deliberate act, accusing Moscow of targeting critical nuclear infrastructure to escalate tensions. While characterizing the strike as a dangerous provocation, the Ukrainian government stated that radiation readings at the site have remained within normal background levels. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has been informed of the strike and confirmed that its team currently stationed at the Chernobyl site will conduct an inspection to assess the extent of the damage.
This attack follows a week of intense aerial activity, during which Moscow launched a massive wave of missiles and drones across multiple Ukrainian regions. Russia has not issued a public statement regarding the reported strike on the Chernobyl-area facility. The incident has drawn sharp criticism from the international community, with IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi describing the targeting of nuclear sites as “completely unacceptable” and a direct violation of fundamental safety principles.
