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Hanno Charisius and Patrick Illinger
If the current reports on the war situation in Ukraine are only half correct, Russian troops are currently controlling the area in northern Ukraine where the Chernobyl nuclear power plant is located. However, the reason for this is probably less to be found in the power plant ruins themselves than in the geographical location. The reactor that exploded in 1986 and the surrounding 30-kilometer protection zone are located directly on the border with Belarus, less than 100 kilometers as the crow flies from Kiev. So from the point of view of the Russian forces advancing from Belarus, Chernobyl is on the most direct route to Kiev.