Ukraine is targeting Russian soldiers who shoot at Europe's largest nuclear power plant or use it as a shooting range, as the G7 nations, fearful of a nuclear disaster, urged Moscow to withdraw its forces from the plant.
Ukraine and Russia have exchanged accusations over a series of shelling incidents at the Zaporizhzhia facility in southern Ukraine. Early in the war, Russian troops took control of the station.
"Every Russian soldier who shoots at the plant or uses it as cover must understand that he becomes a special target for our intelligence agents, special services, and army," President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in an evening address on Saturday.
Zelenskiy, who did not provide any details, reiterated Russia's claim that the plant was being used as nuclear blackmail.
The plant dominates the south bank of the Dnipro River's vast reservoir. Ukrainian forces controlling towns and cities on the opposite bank have been heavily bombarded by Russian forces.
Mykhailo Podolyak, Ukraine's presidential adviser, accused Russia of "hitting the part of the nuclear power plant where the energy that powers the south of Ukraine is generated."
"The goal is to cut us off from the (plant) and blame it on the Ukrainian army," Podolyak wrote on Twitter (NYSE:TWTR).
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which is attempting to inspect the plant, has warned of a nuclear disaster if fighting does not cease. Nuclear experts are concerned that fighting will damage the plant's spent fuel pools or reactors.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for the creation of a demilitarized zone around the Zaporizhzhia facility, which is still staffed by Ukrainian technicians.
For weeks, Kiev has said it is planning a counteroffensive to retake Zaporizhzhia and neighboring Kherson provinces, the largest portion of territory Russia seized after its Feb. 24 invasion that is still in Russian hands.
Earlier, Russian and Ukrainian forces fought for control of Chornobyl, the still-radioactive site of the world's worst nuclear disaster, raising fears of a disaster.
DEEPENS DIPLOMATIC RIFT
Russia's invasion, which it describes as a "special military operation" to demilitarize and "denazify" its smaller neighbor, has strained relations between Moscow and Washington, with Russia threatening to cut ties.
The US has led Ukraine's Western allies in supplying it with defensive weapons as well as punitive sanctions against Moscow.
According to a senior Russian official, Moscow has informed Washington that if the United States Senate passes legislation designating Russia as a "state sponsor of terrorism," diplomatic ties will be severely harmed and may be severed.
According to TASS, a senior Russian foreign ministry official warned on Saturday that any seizure of Russian assets by the US would completely destroy bilateral relations.
"We warn the Americans about the long-term consequences of such actions, which are neither in their nor our interests," said Alexander Darchiev, head of the ministry's North American Department. He didn't specify which assets he was referring to.
Darchiev stated that the United States' influence in Ukraine has grown to the point where "Americans are increasingly becoming a direct party in the conflict."
Wary of being drawn directly into the conflict, the United States and Europe have refused Ukraine's request to establish a no-fly zone to assist it in protecting its skies from Russian missiles and warplanes.
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