“Powerful explosions” were reported around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in eastern Ukraine on Saturday and Sunday, ending a “period of relative calm” there and raising new concerns of possible accidents, the International Atomic Energy Agency said. Russian state news agency Tass, citing a Rosenergoatom official, reported that Ukrainian forces were firing at the nuclear plant. Ukrainian energy agency Energoatom blamed Russian forces for the shelling. The Washington Post could not independently verify these claims.
Ukraine live briefing: ‘Powerful’ blasts around nuclear plant; Pentagon chief warns of ‘dangers of disorder’
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin framed the Western position on Ukraine as one of “moral clarity” in a fiery speech and painted a dark picture of what a world in which Russia triumphed would look like — stressing that nuclear proliferation could become a reality.
Speaking Saturday at the Halifax International Security Forum in Canada, Austin said, “Putin’s war of choice shows the whole world the dangers of disorder.” He called out North Korea and Iran, accusing the nations of supporting Russia’s assault on Ukraine.
Here’s the latest on the war and its ripple effects across the globe.
4. From our correspondents
Help from inside occupied territories — at times beyond the reach of Ukraine’s missiles and artillery — has been key for Kyiv in pulling off some of its most brazen attacks, write Isabelle Khurshudyan and Kamila Hrabchuk.
Source: WP
