The comparison seems to be everywhere these days. “It’s like nuclear weapons,” a pioneering artificial intelligence researcher has said. Top A.I. executives have likened their product to nuclear energy. And a group of industry leaders warned last week that A.I. technology could pose an existential threat to humanity, on par with nuclear war. People have […]
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Russian Missile Strike Hits Ukrainian Hospital
KYIV, Ukraine — Explosions far behind the front lines shook Ukraine on Friday, as a Russian missile demolished part of a hospital complex and apparent Ukrainian strikes hit Russian-occupied cities, in their escalating, long-range aerial war. The attack on a medical center in the central city of Dnipro killed at least two people, left three […]
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Confusion in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia Region as Russia Issues Evacuation Order
KYIV, Ukraine — People living in Russian-occupied areas of southern Ukraine described in recent days an atmosphere of confusion, defiance and scarcity, as the occupation authorities ordered tens of thousands of civilians to evacuate in the face of a looming Ukrainian offensive. The New York Times communicated with more than a dozen people in occupied […]
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Why I Don’t Worry About Nuclear Waste
On a visit to the site of the Fukushima nuclear plant meltdown in Japan in February, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York did something refreshing: She discussed radiation exposure and nuclear waste without fanning fear. The radiation she got from her visit — about two chest X-rays’ worth — was worth the education she received on […]
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China Is on Track to Become Nuclear Superpower, Ushering in New Age
WASHINGTON — On the Chinese coast, just 135 miles from Taiwan, Beijing is preparing to start a new reactor the Pentagon sees as delivering fuel for a vast expansion of China’s nuclear arsenal, potentially making it an atomic peer of the United States and Russia. The reactor, known as a fast breeder, excels at making […]
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Germany Quits Nuclear Power, Ending a Decades-Long Struggle
It began as a movement of pacifists chaining themselves to fences outside nuclear power plants. Five decades later, the effort to close German nuclear power plants will end with echoes of the Cold War era in which it began, as Russia’s war in Ukraine is a reminder of both the risks and promise of nuclear […]
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Inside Saudi Arabia’s Global Push for Nuclear Power
For years, Saudi Arabia has pressed the United States to help it develop a nuclear energy program, as Saudi leaders look beyond oil to power their country. But talks about a nuclear partnership have dragged on, largely because the Saudi government refuses to agree to conditions that are intended to prevent it from developing nuclear […]
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Some Ukrainians Refuse to Leave Avdiivka Despite Russian Bombardment
When the shelling starts, the people who remain in the devastation of Avdiivka hardly flinch. In truth, the shelling barely stops. In this ravaged town in eastern Ukraine, the thud of Russian artillery reverberates every minute or two. “Do you hear? It’s flying,” one resident said as a rocket passed overhead. “Then there is a […]
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Torture and Turmoil at Ukrainian Nuclear Plant: An Insider’s Account
KYIV, Ukraine — By the time Russian soldiers threw a potato sack over his head and forced him to record a false video statement about conditions at Europe’s largest nuclear facility, Ihor Murashov had already witnessed enough chaos at the plant to be deeply worried. Mr. Murashov, the former director general of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear […]
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U.N. Official Heads to Ukrainian Nuclear Plant as Safety Fears Grow
The United Nation’s chief nuclear energy official met on Monday with President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine to discuss what he describes as increasingly dire fears about a battle-scarred nuclear plant on the front line of the war, ahead of his first visit to the plant in almost seven months. The official, Rafael Mariano Grossi, director […]
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Biden to Announce Nuclear-Powered Submarine Deal with Australia and Britain
WASHINGTON — President Biden plans to announce on Monday a landmark agreement with the leaders of Britain and Australia to develop fleets of nuclear-powered attack submarines that the three nations would use to strengthen their naval forces across the Asia-Pacific region as China bolsters its own navy. The purchase and training agreements on submarines amount […]
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Why Russia Has Such a Strong Grip on Europe’s Nuclear Power
The pinched cylinders of Russian-built nuclear power plants that dot Europe’s landscape are visible reminders of the crucial role that Russia still plays in the continent’s energy supply. Europe moved with startling speed to wean itself off Russian oil and natural gas in the wake of war in Ukraine. But breaking the longstanding dependency on […]
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Russia Blasts Ukrainian Cities, Including Biggest Use of Advanced Missiles
KYIV, Ukraine — Russia launched its biggest aerial barrage in weeks on Thursday, blasting targets across Ukraine with a diverse array of weapons, including its newest hypersonic missiles, in what it said was retaliation for an armed incursion into Russian territory last week. Volleys of missiles streaked into Kyiv and other cities overnight and in […]
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Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Outage Amid Russian Shelling Prompts Fiery U.N. Response
The head of the United Nations’ atomic watchdog expressed astonishment on Thursday about international complacency over safety at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in southern Ukraine, where several hours earlier Russian shelling had again cut power to the plant and left workers resorting to using backup generators to maintain safety. It was the sixth time the […]
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Russian Attacks Intensify in Eastern Ukraine Ahead of Expected Offensive
KYIV, Ukraine — Russian forces attacked dozens of Ukrainian positions across the eastern front, the Ukrainian military said on Monday, as Moscow’s assaults widened and intensified ahead of what Kyiv has warned could be the Kremlin’s largest offensive since the first weeks of the war. The Ukrainian General Staff, which is responsible for military strategy, […]
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