Russia needs to withdraw troops from Zaporizhzhia NPP - NATO Secretary General

Russia needs to withdraw its military forces from Zaporizhzhia NPP, its behavior threatens the safety of the plant.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said this to journalists before the start of the NATO Summit in Vilnius, Ukrinform's own correspondents report.

"On the situation in Zaporizhzhia (Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant - ed.) our message to Russia is that they need to withdraw their forces. Because the way they now behave in Zaporizhzhia is undermining the security of this biggest nuclear power plant in Europe," Stoltenberg commented on how NATO would respond in the event of a nuclear accident at the occupied ZNPP.

The NATO Secretary General also commented on Russia's nuclear rhetoric, calling it "dangerous and reckless".

"Russia must know that nuclear war can never be won and never been fought. NATO allies, of course, monitoring closely what Russia is doing. We condemn the announcement that Russia will deploy tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus. We are monitoring closely what they are doing," he said.

At the same time, Stoltenberg added that so far NATO "has not seen any changes in Russia's nuclear deployment posture that would require changes on our side". He assured of the Alliance's readiness to defend each ally "against any potential threat".

As Ukrinform reported, the United States warned the Russian leadership of inevitable responsibility if Russia creates a nuclear disaster at the Zaporizhzhia NPP.