“Forty years ago, the world faced one of the worst nuclear
disasters — the fourth reactor of the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant exploded. A
significant amount of radioactive material was released into the environment.
Hundreds of thousands of people have been dealing with the consequences of that
tragedy for years,” he wrote on Telegram.
Zelenskyy said a sarcophagus was built over the destroyed
reactor to contain the radiation, and that more than 40 countries later helped
cover it with the New Safe Confinement to prevent another disaster.
“These two structures are what protect against radiation
releases and contamination. Maintaining and protecting them is in everyone’s
interest,” the president said.
At the same time, Zelenskyy said, Russia’s war has again
pushed the world toward the risk of a man-made nuclear accident: Russian-Iranian
Shahed drones regularly fly over the plant, and one of them struck the
confinement last year.
“The world must not allow this nuclear terrorism to
continue, and the best way is to force Russia to stop its insane attacks,”
Zelenskyy said.
The president also honored the memory of all those who gave
their lives responding to the Chornobyl disaster.