Ukraine presents its draft resolution on Chornobyl to UNGA

Ukrinform's correspondent in New York reports this.

Melnyk recalled that the accident at the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant on April 26, 1986, became the largest nuclear disaster in human history and had devastating consequences for Ukraine. He noted that more than 145,000 square kilometers of territory and more than 2,200 cities, towns, and villages were contaminated with radionuclides, and many thousands of Ukrainians died from radiation exposure.

According to him, about 600,000 cleanup workers received extremely high radiation doses and suffered long-term health damage, primarily cancer. He estimated Ukraine's total economic losses at tens of billions of US dollars.

He emphasized that the Chornobyl disaster was the result of a reckless experiment organized by Soviet leadership in Moscow in violation of basic safety rules. He also stated that the Soviet authorities committed a second crime by hiding the real scale of the tragedy and forcing people in Kyiv and other cities to participate in May Day parades under radioactive fallout. Melnyk noted that among the children forced to attend the parade was his wife, who had to spend hours under the scorching sun while being exposed to deadly danger.

Melnyk stated that the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant and the Exclusion Zone are located entirely on Ukraine's sovereign territory, and therefore only Ukraine has the exclusive sovereign right to initiate UN decisions concerning Chornobyl.

He sharply criticized Belarus for submitting an alternative draft resolution without consulting Ukraine and said Minsk had lost any moral authority to initiate documents on Chornobyl-related issues.

Melnyk recalled that on February 24, 2022, Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine, including through the Belarusian border, and that the Chornobyl plant was among the first targets seized. Russian forces occupied the station for 36 days, violated nuclear safety protocols, and used the site as a staging ground for their advance on Kyiv.

He cited the UNGA definition of aggression: An act by a state that allows its territory to be used by another state to commit an act of aggression against a third state qualifies as an act of aggression, stressing that Belarus allowed Russia to use its territory for the invasion.

Melnyk said that the Ukrainian draft resolution aims not only to restore affected areas but also to respond to modern risks. The document takes into account the horrific consequences of a drone strike on the New Safe Confinement at the ChNPP in February of this year and provides for preparations to mark the 40th anniversary of the accident in 2026.

He stressed the importance of using the correct Ukrainian transliteration Chornobyl, noting that the form Chernobyl comes from Soviet-era Russian transliteration and its use perpetuates imperial legacy.

Melnyk called on UN member states to support the Ukrainian document.

As Ukrinform reported, the UN General Assembly met on Wednesday to discuss and adopt the draft resolution Strengthening international cooperation and coordination of efforts to study, mitigate, and minimize the consequences of the Chornobyl disaster.

The General Assembly adopts resolutions on this issue every three years to continue UN programs and support affected areas.

First photo: picture alliance/dpa/EBRD Photostrea