Nicolas Tonev, edited by Juliette Moreau Alvarez
modified to
10:14 a.m., October 31, 2022
The International Atomic Energy Agency is going to Ukraine, at Moscow’s request, to verify that the Ukrainians are not preparing a “dirty bomb”, as Vladimir Putin claims. According to him, kyiv wants to drop one and then accuse Russia of carrying out a nuclear strike.
It is a new strategy of the Kremlin in its communication war against Ukraine: to wave the red rag of unconventional weapons which kyiv would prepare the use. Moscow accuses the Ukrainians of having had a biological weapons program and of seeking to erase the traces of the preparation of a so-called dirty bomb. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is expected to carry out inspections this week in Ukraine, a mission loudly demanded by Vladimir Putin.
By “dirty bomb”, specialists mean an ordinary explosive device, surrounded by a radioactive mass. At the moment of the explosion, what kills or destroys immediately is the deflagration, like another bomb. To this, however, is added the vaporization of radioactive materials, with long-term effects. The areas remain dangerous, closed for a long time to civil or military activities, and a fear settles on the spot for the local populations.
Simple production
The manufacture of the device is simple, because the radioactive material does not necessarily come from a nuclear power plant or from military production. It can come from an industry or from the hospital sector like cobalt 60. The challenge for Vladimir Putin is to preventively indict Ukraine. According to him, kyiv would drop a dirty bomb and then accuse Russia of carrying out a nuclear strike. The Russian president also dramatizes the affair by emphasizing that Serguei Chouigou, his Minister of Defense, informed his Western counterparts of Ukrainian intentions.
The IAEA has warned that it obviously won’t visit every site where radioactive material is found, as it is simply impossible. Note, however, that it is quite possible that one of them is accidentally bombed and that this creates a dirty bomb effect.