Chernobyl, shield compromised: "The dome no longer isolates radiation." The IAEA warns: urgent repairs are needed.

The international safety alert at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant is once again escalating dramatically. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has raised the alarm, saying that the protective dome built to seal reactor number four, the epicenter of the worst nuclear accident in history, has suffered such serious damage that it can no longer perform its primary function: preventing the release of radiation. The findings come at a particularly delicate time for the country, as war enters on day 1.382 with new, massive Russian bombings.

The IAEA inspection and the deterioration of the dome

Last week, a team of IAEA experts completed a comprehensive inspection of the "New Safe Confinement," the gigantic steel and sliding concrete casing installed between 2016 and 2019 to enclose the old sarcophagus. Director General Rafael Grossi explained that the casing has "lost its main safety functions," including containment capacity, although the load-bearing structures and monitoring systems are not permanently compromised. Some emergency repairs have already been carried out, but the IAEA has clarified that these are not enough: a comprehensive and timely intervention is needed to prevent further deterioration of the structure and avert the risk of new leaks or collapses that could cause radioactive leaks.

The February 14 drone attack and the fire at the nuclear site

The current crisis stems from an attack on February 14, when a drone with an explosive warhead struck the dome's roof, starting a fire and breaching the metal surface. Ukraine immediately blamed Russia, releasing a video showing the impact and the flames that had engulfed the structure; Moscow, however, denied any wrongdoing. At the time, the IAEA reassured the authorities that radiation levels had remained stable, but a thorough inspection revealed that, despite the absence of radioactive leaks, the integrity of the shield was severely compromised.

The birth of the New Safe Confinement and its strategic role

The damaged dome is the so-called New Safe Confinement, successor to the sarcophagus hastily constructed in 1986 after the explosion of reactor 4. Designed to last a hundred years, the new structure is a colossal 36.000-ton steel arch, built thanks to an international consortium funded by 40 countries and costing approximately two billion euros. Its purpose is to prevent any release of radioactive material and, in the long term, allow for the safe dismantling of the old reactor. The war, however, has complicated all maintenance and monitoring activities: already in 2022, Russian troops had occupied the plant area for over a month, interrupting or slowing critical operations and exacerbating the vulnerabilities of the entire complex.

Chernobyl Today: A Fragile Site in the Heat of War

The current situation further highlights the extent to which the war is endangering not only Ukraine, but the nuclear security of all of Europe. The IAEA has confirmed that the dome's control systems have not been irreversibly damaged, but the structure's current inability to ensure radiation containment poses a danger that requires immediate action. Any further attack, vibration, or mechanical stress could amplify the damage, while the ongoing conflict makes planning large-scale repairs extremely complex, requiring stable international cooperation and extremely delicate operations.

The military context: night bombings and growing tension

The alarm over the dome comes amid new large-scale Russian bombings. Overnight, according to Ukrainian sources, hypersonic missiles and attack drones struck several regions of the country, confirming the intensification of Russian operations in recent weeks. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, aware of the potentially catastrophic scope of the joint nuclear and military threats, will be in London on December 8th for a summit with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. The Chernobyl dossier will inevitably be one of the most pressing issues on the table.

The potential consequences and the urgency of interventions

According to the IAEA, the shield's current inability to contain any leaks from the reactor's internal components makes the site vulnerable to worst-case scenarios. No radioactive leaks or anomalies in external radiation levels have been reported so far, but the loss of the containment barrier poses a structural risk. A new attack—or even a simple failure due to exposure to atmospheric agents—could escalate into a continent-wide nuclear emergency. For this reason, the Agency's experts insist on the need to complete repairs, not only to address existing damage but also to ensure the shield's stability over the decades.

The weight of memory and the fragility of the present

The 1986 Chernobyl disaster continues to cast a long shadow over European and world history. At the time, Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union, and the radioactive cloud reached much of the continent. Even today, there is no definitive estimate of the number of victims.

The construction of the new safety shell was supposed to mark the definitive closure of a tragic chapter, guaranteeing a century of protection. Last February's attack and the current impossibility of carrying out comprehensive maintenance have instead brought Chernobyl back to the center of global concern, demonstrating how war can reawaken risks once thought under control.