“Another Chernobyl possible”: “Flash” warns of possible Russian attacks on Ukraine’s nuclear plants

Serhii Beskrestnov, head of the Center for Radio Technologies, known as “Flash”, warned of catastrophic consequences from any possible Russian attacks on substations near Ukraine’s nuclear power plants. Any error by so-called high-precision weapons within 300 meters of a reactor could lead to “another Chernobyl”, he said.

Beskrestnov wrote about the risks online.

Why Russia may target Ukraine’s nuclear power plants

The expert was commenting on statements by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the Defense Ministry’s military intelligence agency about Russia’s preparations for possible strikes on substations at nuclear power plants.

“Flash” says nuclear power plants has effectively become Ukraine’s only remaining sources of electricity generation, adding that any attempt by Russia to cause a total blackout would require attacks on such facilities.

Beskrestnov also explained what exactly was meant.

“Each nuclear power plant has a nearby substation and switching yards that route the electricity generated at the plant into transmission lines coming from different directions. This infrastructure is effectively part of the nuclear facility. In some cases, the substation and switching equipment are about a kilometer from the reactors, in others as close as 300 meters,” he wrote.

Ukrainian nuclear power plants and nearby substations (4 photos)

Russian missile inaccuracies risk “another Chernobyl”

In this context, Beskrestnov pointed to what he described as Russia’s so-called high-precision weapons, saying they are in fact highly inaccurate. Kinzhal missiles, he said, often miss their targets, while the accuracy of Russian cruise and ballistic missiles remains poor.

As examples, Beskrestnov cited a missile strike on Ternopil in November 2025, when a residential building was hit instead of an industrial facility. He also referred to strikes on nearby apartment buildings in Kyiv during an attack on the “Luch” design bureau, and to “Shahed” drones that targeted a hydroelectric power plant but struck residential buildings in Vyshhorod.

He said such inaccuracies could have catastrophic consequences if similar attacks occurred near nuclear power plants.

“I hope Russia has enough sense not to attempt strikes on nuclear power plants, because a miss by an Iskander or Kinzhal missile could result in another Chernobyl. Almost all of Ukraine’s nuclear power plants are located close to Belarus or Russian-occupied territory, meaning any tragedy would affect everyone,” Beskrestnov concluded.