Briefing on radiation security threats by the chief of nuclear, biological and chemical protection troops Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov
The Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation has information about Kiev regime’s planning to commit a provocation by exploding the so-called ‘dirty bomb’ or low-power nuclear warhead.
The provocation is aimed at accusing Russia of using mass destruction weapon at the Ukrainian theatre of operations that would launch a powerful anti-Russian campaign in order to undermine the confidence in Moscow.
It is to be recalled that the President Zelensky announced his intention to re-establish Ukraine as a nuclear-armed State at the Munich Security Conference dated 19 February 2022.
It should also be noted that President Zelensky has repeatedly called on NATO countries to launch a strike at the Russian Federation since the beginning of the special military operation. ‘What does NATO have to do? We need pre-emptive strikes, so that they’ll know what will happen to them if they use (nukes). And not the other way around, don’t wait for Russia’s nuclear strikes...’
Recently, in an interview to Canadian TV channels on 22 October, Zelensky urged the world to strike Kremlin if Russia launches attacks at the ‘decision-making centres’ in Bankovaya street where the Office of the President of Ukraine is located.
We would like to recall the possibility of a complicated radiation situation that can evolve around the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, the largest nuclear plant in Europe.
From 24 February until now, the territory of the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant has suffered 39 fire attacks launched by the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), including 10 launched by unmanned aerial vehicles and 29 by various artillery systems.
The attacks launched by the AFU at the plant did not cause any anxiety of the world community as, according to various U.S. experts, an impact of large-calibre artillery shells to spent nuclear fuel containers will not cause a considerable risk, and the nuclear reactors are resistible to a civilian airplane crash.
However, the forecast of our experts about the radiation situation’s development furtherly confirmed by relevant European scientific organisations has shown that the release of radioactive substances will affect almost whole Europe.
Moreover, despite the visit of the IAEA Director General R. Grossi, the AFU have not abandoned their attempts to carry out a subversive operation to capture the plant. On 1, 15, 30 September and 17 October, special units of the AFU attempted to land their forces through the Kakhovka reservoir and to take the nuclear power plant under control.
According to the available information, two organisations of Ukraine have been directly ordered to create the so-called ‘dirty bomb’. The works are at their concluding stage.
Moreover, we have information about contacts between the Office of the President of Ukraine and representatives of the United Kingdom regarding the possible reception of technologies to create nuclear weapons.
With this purpose, Ukraine has got relevant production and scientific capacities.
There are enterprises of nuclear industry in Ukraine that possess stockpiles of radioactive substances that can be used for creating the ‘dirty bomb’. These concern three operating nuclear power plants: the Yuzhnoukrainsk, Khmelnitsky and Rovno nuclear power plants with nine storage pools for spent nuclear fuel that contain up to 1.5 thousand tonnes of uranium enriched with up to 1.5% of oxide.
Over 22,000 fuel assemblies (21,284 and 1,692 respectively) are stored at the inoperable Chernobyl nuclear power plant with radioactive waste repositories, as well as products that suppose using Uranium-235 and Plutonium-239 that constitute the backbone of a nuclear charge.
More than 50,000 m³ of radioactive waste that are also apt as the backbone for creating the ‘dirty bomb’ can be stored at the recently established enterprise ‘Vektor’ designed for radioactive waste reprocessing at the radioactive waste disposal sites ‘Buryakovka’, ‘Podlesny’, and ‘Rossokha’ at Pridneprovsky chemical plant.
Moreover, the Eastern Mining and Processing Plant extracts uranium ore at two of the three shafts with a capacity of up to 1,000 tonnes per year (the plant includes three shafts for extracting uranium ore, two of them – Ingulskaya and Smolinskaya – are operable, while one of them – Novokonstantinovskaya – is currently under construction).
It is also to be emphasised that Ukraine has at its disposal a scientific base: the Kharkov Institute of Physics and Technology. Its scientists were involved in the nuclear programme of the USSR where various testing systems are still in operation, including Uragan thermonuclear systems. The second base is the Institute for Nuclear Research of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine located in Kiev. Its BBP-M reactor is used for research that supposes the employment of high-activity radioactive materials.
I want to recall that the ‘dirty bomb’ constitutes a container with radioactive isotopes and explosive charge. In case of exploding the charge, the container is to be destroyed, and the radioactive substance is to be pulverised by a blast wave that produces radioactive contamination at large areas, and can cause a radiation morbidity.
Uranium oxide that forms part of spent fuel elements stored at spent nuclear fuel and storage pools of nuclear power plants can be used as the radioactive substance. Moreover, it concerns the radioactive substances derived from the spent nuclear fuel storages of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.
The Kiev regime plans to camouflage the explosion of this kind of ordnance under an extraordinary effect of Russian low-power nuclear warhead that contains highly enriched uranium in its charge. The presence of radioactive isotopes in the air will be recorded by the sensors of the International Monitoring System installed in Europe with further accusation of the Russian Federation of using tactical nuclear weapons.
It is to be noted that this kind of information warfare technologies have already been used by the West in Syria when the White Helmets were filming propaganda footage about the employment of chemical weapons by the governmental forces there.
One of the most resonant and widely distributed episodes is the provocation committed by the abovementioned non-governmental organisation and their patrons on 4 April 2017 in Khan Sheikhoun.
Pay attention to the picture where the people who are taking samples of soil have no individual protection means. But it does not seem to bother anyone! Especially those who took the decision to launch a missile strike at the territory of the sovereign country.
Using this provocation as a pretext, the Americans launched the missile strike at Shayrat airbase without waiting for an investigation to begin and, all the more, a decision of the UN Security Council, grossly violating the international law.
This scenario is highly probable to be used in this case, too.
Detonation of a radiological explosive device will inevitably lead to radiological contamination covering up to several thousands of square metres.
To summarise, Ukraine has got a motive to use the ‘dirty bomb’, as well as scientific, technical and production capacities to create it.
Ukraine expects ‘dirty-bomb’ provocation to intimidate the population, increase the flow of refugees, and accuse the Russian Federation of nuclear terrorism.
The Ministry of Defence has arranged for countering possible provocations of Ukraine: the means and forces are alerted to operate amid radioactive contamination.