Forty years ago, the USSR triggered the worst nuclear disaster in history — the accident at the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant. Today its successor state, Russia, is creating a new one. This time, Europe's largest nuclear plant is in the crosshairs.

The Chornobyl disaster was the product of a system in which nuclear operating standards were sacrificed to plan fulfilment, expert warnings were ignored, and staff worked under pressure. When people cannot work to professional standards, nuclear facilities become dangerous.

To control the plant, Russia needs Ukrainian nuclear workers — the only people who know how this specific facility operates. They stayed at the plant under threat of occupation, ensuring continuous oversight of the nuclear reactors. They consciously refused to cooperate with Rosatom — and that is exactly why Russia is persecuting them.

Among the 37 people currently held illegally are 14 ZNPP workers and one retired former employee. For refusing to cooperate, they are charged with "espionage," "terrorism," and "high treason." Sentences range from 11 to 25 years. Thirteen of them are held in complete isolation, with no right to contact their families or lawyers.

Of the 159 licensed specialists, only 22 remain at the plant. This is not a staffing problem — it is the precondition for a disaster. Every persecuted worker is not only a victim of political persecution but also an additional nuclear risk for all of Europe.

Freeing these people is not only a question of justice. It is a question of Europe's nuclear safety.

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