Ukraine on Thursday formally sacked and branded a traitor the Ukrainian engineer appointed by Moscow to head Europe's largest nuclear facility, the Zaporizhzhia plant, which is under Russian occupation.

Yuri Chernichuk, the facility's chief engineer, said on Wednesday that he had agreed to take the post because it was "in my opinion the only correct decision."

Rosenergoatom, the Russian nuclear operator put in charge by Moscow, confirmed his appointment.

On Thursday, Ukraine's nuclear agency Energoatom formally sacked Chernichuk for "collaborative and treasonous activities".

Petro Kotin, who heads Energoatom, said Chernichuk had "betrayed Ukraine" and gone "over to the side of the enemy".

"Instead of making every effort to free the station as soon as possible, he decided to help Russian occupiers legalise its criminal seizure and now incites other workers to do the same," Kotin said on Telegram.

"The Russian occupiers are putting more and more pressure on the pro-Ukrainian staff of the plant, intimidating and blackmailing you. But there is only one decent way out -- to hold on!" he said.

"The transition to Russian structures will make you direct assistants of the aggressor, and therefore enemies of your own compatriots."

Russia seized the Zaporizhzhia power plant in southern Ukraine soon after invading the country in February.

Russia and Ukraine have for months accused each other of shelling around the plant.

The UN's atomic watchdog in November denounced strikes on the plant's territory, calling for a "stop to this madness."

Related Links
Nuclear Power News - Nuclear Science, Nuclear Technology
Powering The World in the 21st Century at Energy-Daily.com

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

Ukrainian named as new head of Russian occupied Zaporizhzhia plant
Moscow (AFP) Nov 30, 2022
A Ukrainian engineer on Wednesday was appointed the new head of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, occupied by Russian forces since the first days of their offensive in Ukraine. Yuri Chernichuk, the plant's former chief engineer, said he had agreed to take the post because it was "in my opinion the only correct decision." His appointment was confirmed by Moscow's Rosenergoatom, the Russian nuclear operator which has de facto managed the plant - Europe's largest - since its occupation by Ru ... read more