Burc Eruygur
21 January 2026•Update: 21 January 2026
ISTANBUL
Ukraine said that it restored power supply to the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant after the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said it lost all off-site power following “widespread military activity” on Tuesday.
A statement by Ukraine’s Energy Ministry on Tuesday said that all facilities at the plant, including the New Safe Confinement and spent nuclear fuel storage, are currently supplied with electricity from the country’s integrated power system and are operating under normal conditions.
“Radiation levels at the industrial site and within the Exclusion Zone do not exceed established control limits. The plant has sufficient fuel reserves and fully operational backup power sources in case of renewed attacks,” the statement further said.
It noted that there currently is no direct threat to the population or the environment, and that energy specialists and plant personnel continue to monitor the situation under enhanced safety protocols.
It criticized such actions as “absolutely unacceptable,” accusing Russia of violating “all fundamental principles of nuclear and radiation safety” and of threatening “not only the safety of Ukraine but that of the entire European continent.”
The statement added that Ukrainian Energy Minister Denys Shmyhal and IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi agreed on the need to convene an extraordinary meeting of the IAEA Board of Governors to assess the consequences of Russian attacks on the country’s energy system.
Earlier Tuesday, the IAEA said on US social media platform X, citing Grossi, that the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant lost all off-site power following "widespread military activity this morning."
According to the statement, Grossi said power lines to other nuclear power plants in Ukraine were also impacted, and that the IAEA is "actively following developments in order to assess impact on nuclear safety."
Ukrainian authorities reported Russian airstrikes on multiple regions, including the capital Kyiv and its surrounding region, as the country battles a state of emergency declared in its energy sector last week.
The Russian Defense Ministry said it launched "massive" overnight strikes on "Ukrainian military industrial enterprises, energy and transport infrastructure facilities used by the Ukrainian Armed Forces, ammunition depots, and long-range drone production facilities."
Situated near the now-abandoned city of Pripyat in the north of the Kyiv region, the Chornobyl plant is the site of an incident considered to be the world's worst nuclear disaster.
An explosion at the plant’s fourth reactor in 1986 resulted in the spread of radioactive material over the surrounding territory, prompting the Soviet Union to create an exclusion zone with a radius of 30 kilometers (18.6 miles).
