Russia intensifying pressure on captured nuclear plant’s staff - intelligence

The Russian invasion forces are increasing pressure on Ukrainian personnel of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, the facility held by the Russians since March 2022, forcing them to obtain Russian passports and sign contracts with Russia’s nuclear generation operator Rosatom.

This was reported by the Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine’s Defense Ministry, Ukrinform reports.

"Russian invaders demand that several hundred Ukrainian employees of the ZNPP obtain passports of the aggressor state and sign contracts by December 31, 2023," the agenct noted.

As part of the coercion effort, the Russians exert psychological pressure on Ukrainian specialists, selectively depriving them of access to workplaces without warning, canceling their passes.

Among Ukrainian staffers who snub the demand regarding Russian passports and contracts with Rosatom, Russian security operatives are attempting to sow distrust, creating conditions for anonymous reporting through special bots on Telegram.

At the same time, dissatisfaction is growing among Russian energy specialists deployed at the ZNPP over unfulfilled promises about the terms of their deployment to the temporarily occupied facility. According to available intelligence, instead of two months, Moscow orders that they remain at the site for six months or longer, since it is difficult to find qualified specialists in Russia willing to replace them.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, the nuclear safety system at the Zaporizhzhia NPP continues to degrade. According to the State Nuclear Regulation Inspectorate, Russians staffers deployed at the plant are deemed incompetent.

The Zaporizhzhia NPP has remained under the control of Russian occupation forces since early March 2022. Since then, the plant has gone into backup emergency operation mode due to blackouts eight times.