Russian nuclear chief accuses Ukraine of killing Zaporizhzhia power plant worker in drone attack

MOSCOW, June 18 - The head of Russia's state nuclear corporation Rosatom on Thursday accused Ukraine of killing a key worker in a drone attack near the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southeastern Ukraine.

There was no immediate response from Ukraine and Reuters could not independently verify the statement.

Russia took control of the plant, the largest nuclear power station in Europe, soon after its forces entered Ukraine in 2022 and both sides regularly accuse each other of endangering its safety with military action.

Alexei Likhachev, head of Rosatom, said in a statement that Ukrainian drones had attacked the nearby city of Enerhodar on Wednesday, where most of the station's employees live.

He said one power plant employee working at a repair workshop had been killed and that doctors were fighting for the life of a second employee injured in the same attack.

"This is the plant's core personnel, on whom the safe operation of equipment at Europe's largest nuclear power plant directly depends," Likhachev said. In April, Russia said another worker from the plant had been killed in a Ukrainian drone attack. REUTERS