The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the United Nations (UN) have strongly condemned the drone attack on the Zaporozhye NPP on May 30, 2026, calling it an extremely dangerous "playing with fire."
IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi expressed deep concern and stressed that strikes on nuclear facilities threaten the nuclear safety of the entire region.
Grossi categorically stated that any attacks on nuclear facilities are completely unacceptable and called for maximum military restraint. The agency was informed that a drone had hit the turbine hall of Unit 6, punching a hole in the wall. The main nuclear equipment was reportedly not affected.
The IAEA’s team of international experts on site requested immediate access to the damaged turbine hall to conduct an independent first-hand assessment of the damage.
„The IAEA received information from the plant that a drone had crashed into the turbine hall building, possibly making a hole in its wall. IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi expressed serious concern about this incident, which threatens both the seven fundamental principles of nuclear safety in times of conflict and the five specific principles for the protection of nuclear power plants, which clearly state that „there shall be no attack by or against“ plant“, the agency said in a statement.
“This could be the first drone attack on the immediate territory of the Zaporizhzhia NPP since April 2024“, the agency stressed.
The IAEA assured that it would publish detailed information about the situation after a team of its employees at the plant gained access to the scene of the incident and collected and transmitted the information.
Earlier, an unmanned aerial vehicle attacked the turbine hall building of Unit 6 of the Zaporizhzhia NPP. The drone hit a wall and then detonated. The plant's press service noted that the main equipment was not damaged, all systems were operating normally and technological processes were not disrupted. Later, the director of communications of the Zaporizhzhia NPP, Evgenia Yashina, stated that the place where the drone hit was only a few meters from the reactor.
According to experts, the radiation levels at the Zaporizhzhia NPP after the attack are within natural limits and do not exceed the norm. The press service of the plant emphasized that the attacks on nuclear power are “extremely irresponsible“ and pose a threat to nuclear safety.
The director of the Zaporizhzhia NPP, Yuriy Chernichuk, stated that the plant is the most dangerous facility in the combat zone. He said that if the nuclear power plant is hit, the possible radiation effects would be “observable and last for a very long time“.
“We want all countries to avoid attacks on critical infrastructure“, the UN Secretary-General“s office said.
“Rosatom“ CEO Alexey Likhachev reported earlier that a Ukrainian drone had hit the turbine compartment of Unit 6 of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant on the afternoon of May 30. He added that there were no casualties or critical damage.
“Rosatom“ Alexey Likhachev emphasized that this is the first targeted attack on a nuclear power plant.
According to representatives of the nuclear power plant, the radiation background levels have not increased after the attacks.
The UN has also taken a position: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has repeatedly emphasized through official UN channels that attacks on civilian infrastructure and nuclear facilities constitute a gross violation of international law. The plant does not generate electricity, but its 6 reactors require constant cooling. The UN recalls that incidents such as this undermine the five specific principles for protecting the plant, established before the UN Security Council.
The UN opposes attacks on critical infrastructure.
After the drone strike on Unit 6 of the Zaporozhye NPP On May 30, 2026, Russia and Ukraine exchanged accusations, with Moscow claiming that Kiev had carried out a deliberate nuclear provocation, while Ukraine categorically denied involvement and described the incident as Russian propaganda and staging.
According to the Russian side, the drone was controlled via an optical cable, which they said proved that the strike was precisely aimed at the plant's critical equipment. The Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev used the incident to threaten a “new Chernobyl“ and warned of possible symmetrical strikes against Ukrainian or NATO nuclear power plants.
The Ukrainian Armed Forces officially rejected the Russian claims, calling them “another propaganda ploy“ and disinformation aimed at discrediting the country. The Ukrainian military command pointed out that it does not have drones with fiber-optic cables that have a sufficient range to reach the plant, and the Russian multi-layered smoke shield around the site makes such a crossing physically impossible.
Kiev stressed that Ukrainian servicemen were acting in full compliance with the Geneva Conventions, which explicitly prohibit attacks on nuclear facilities. They added that there were no active hostilities in this sector of the front and no weapons were used during the incident.