US sees no signs that Russia will blow up nuclear power plant or use nuclear weapons
John Kirby, Strategic Communications Coordinator at the U.S. National Security Council (Getty Images)
The United States is keeping a very close eye on Russian nuclear weapons and the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant seized by the Russian army. So far, there are no signs of a nuclear strike, according to a statement made by John Kirby, the Coordinator for Strategic Communications at the U.S. National Security Council.
"We have the ability near the plant to monitor radio activity, and we just haven’t seen any indication that that threat is imminent, but we’re watching it very, very closely," Kirby said regarding the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.
When asked about Russia's plans to use nuclear weapons against Ukraine, Kirby said that Russia is a nuclear state, and the US has been monitoring Russian strategic posture and its nuclear capabilities
"Outside of the blustery rhetoric, we’ve seen no indication that there is any intent to use nuclear weapons inside Ukraine," he said.
Kirby assured that the United States has not seen anything "that would compel us to change our own strategic deterrent posture."
Nuclear weapon threat
Russia and Belarus, close allies in the war against Ukraine, agreed earlier this year to deploy part of Moscow's tactical nuclear arsenal in Belarus. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced plans to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus for the first time.
President Joe Biden said that the threat of Vladimir Putin using tactical nuclear weapons is "real."
Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant
Russian forces seized the largest nuclear power plant in Europe, the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, in March 2022. Kyrylo Budanov, the head of Ukrainian military intelligence, said that Russia had completed preparations to blow up the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, with the cooling system and four power units rigged with explosives. He explained that without cooling, nuclear reactors can melt down within a period of 10 hours to 14 days.
