DISINFO: Ukraine has a thermonuclear 'dirty' bomb in Mykolaiv which it will detonate and blame Russia
SUMMARY
A thermonuclear bomb is already in Mykolaiv and is intended for use as a provocation. It is assumed that the explosion [...], against the backdrop of persistent US and NATO allegations that Russia is preparing to use nuclear weapons in the run-up to or during this offensive [Ukrainian counteroffensive], will be used to say: "Russia is defeated and carried out a nuclear strike on Ukrainian troops". It will end with several tens of thousands of civilian casualties, and it will allow the United States to justify a large-scale missile attack on our troops in these regions and on the territory of Russia.
RESPONSE
Pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative claiming that Ukraine is staging a false-flag attack on its own territory in order to blame Russia. Moscow has a history of falsely accusing its opponents of staging "provocations" which either never happened at all, or were subsequently carried out by themselves or their allies.
There is no evidence to back the claim that Ukraine is preparing to use weapons of mass destruction.
After repeated accusations from Russia about the possession of a nuclear bomb (dirty bomb), Ukraine, refuting those accusations, invited IAEA experts for inspection. Safeguard inspectors will visit two locations in Ukraine, IAEA’s chief Rafael Grossi said after receiving request from Ukraine.
The narrative on the Ukrainian "nuclear bomb" is recurrent in pro-Kremlin media, with new elements emerging regularly.
Thus, on February 25, 2022, aiming to justiry the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, among others false accusations, such as rule of nazis in Ukraine, pro-Kremlin media accused Ukraine of preparation of a nuclear bomb using the Chornobyl nuclear plant facilities (quickly occupied by Russia in order to prevent this).
Just after the start of the full-scale invasion on 24 February, the Kremlin-owned RIA Novosti article stated that “Kyiv is literally one step away” from creating a tactical nuclear weapon. It alleged that the "Russophobic authorities" in Kyiv are acquiring a dirty bomb and it was one of the reasons for invasion.
In early March, the Kremlin-owned RT alleged that, based on the "evidence" from the then-occupied Chornobyl nuclear power plant, Ukraine was close to building a plutonium-based "dirty bomb".
By October 2022, Chernobyl plant is back under Ukrainian control but other places, such as Mykolaiv, are "revealed" by pro-Kremlin media as platforms for preparation of a nuclear or even thermonuclear bomb.
See more disinformation cases on nuclear threat by Ukraine.