If nuclear plant blows up, it will be 10x larger than Chernobyl, says Ukraine foreign minister

Russian army is firing from all sides upon Zaporizhzhia NPP, the largest nuclear power plant in Europe, he tweeted

An Ukrainian soldier holds an anti-tank launcher at a frontline, northeast of Kyiv on March 3, 2022.

A fire has broken out at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine and the Russian army was shelling it from all sides, Ukraine Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Twitter on Friday after a local mayor also reported a Russian attack there.

Reuters could not immediately verify the information.

Also read: Ukraine nuclear plant on fire after Russia shelling

"Russian army is firing from all sides upon Zaporizhzhia NPP, the largest nuclear power plant in Europe," Kuleba's tweet said.

"Fire has already broke out. If it blows up, it will be 10 times larger than Chornobyl! Russians must IMMEDIATELY cease the fire, allow firefighters, establish a security zone!" Kuleba wrote, referring to the 1986 accident in the Chernobyl nuclear power plant when the country was part of the Soviet Union, considered the worst nuclear disaster in history.

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