ECHOES OF CHORNOBYL On the 40th anniversary of the Chornobyl disaster

RETURN TO THE TOPIC: WAR AND THE ENVIRONMENT

Abstract

The review summarizes the roundtable's work dedicated to the 40th anniversary of the Chornobyl catastrophe, reinterpreted in the context of the current Russian war against Ukraine (also known as the Russo-Ukrainian war). Participants discussed the causes and consequences of the Chornobyl disaster, its environmental, historical, humanitarian, and existential aspects, as well as its connection to the USSR's colonial practices and the Russian Federation's postcolonial policies, in an interdisciplinary manner. It was emphasized that the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian war poses a challenge to environmental safety and humanity's nuclear security. This calls for responsibility to prevent a new catastrophe and for actions to stop Russian aggression as soon as possible.

Russia's aggressors aim to destroy our homes and land. Ukraine's resistance continues the national liberation struggle that has persisted for more than three hundred years to defend our socio-cultural oikos (A. Yermolenko).

The modern world underscores the inseparable link between consciousness and action, suggesting that everyone must act as an ecologist in the broad sense—as a representative of their national community (Ye. Bystrytskyi). From a historical perspective, the Chornobyl disaster is not a finished event but an ongoing process, and its documentation is likewise ongoing. The full-scale Russian invasion has created new challenges that we must address promptly (N. Zaletok). Military actions violate natural and man-made barriers that localize radioactive contamination in the Chornobyl zone and also catalyze adverse changes in radioactive processes. As a result, a new type of radiological risk emerges, requiring a reassessment of existing criteria for the stability of the Chornobyl zone's natural and man-made system as a whole (D. Hryhorenko). S. Hrabovsky highlighted the symbolic aspects of Chornobyl history, the circumstances surrounding the Chornobyl NPP's construction, and the consequences of the nuclear catastrophe. The following main stages can be distinguished in the artistic interpretation of the Chornobyl disaster: official Soviet art since April 1986; art by disaster-relief workers, displaced persons, and those who lived near the exclusion zone; folk artists or representatives of traditional art; contemporary Ukrainian art and art after the full-scale Russian invasion. At the same time, many topics for artistic development remain, and they should be grounded in historical context and archival sources (O. Semenik). The Chornobyl accident is not only a man-made disaster but also a moral and ethical catastrophe that endures to this day (N. Boichenko). S. Balinchenko provided a comparative analysis of the situations of displaced persons after the Chornobyl accident and of people who had to leave their homes since the Russian invasion in Ukraine in 2014 and 2022.

At the same time, the roundtable participants highlighted that the Chornobyl disaster, with its ecocidal consequences, was not only a tragedy and trauma for the Ukrainian people but also a catalyst for the revival of national identity. It became a factor in the formation of civil society and the restoration of Ukraine's independence, a struggle that continues today (R. Samchuk, W. Wolkowskyi).

The round table became not only a tribute to the memory of the Chornobyl disaster but also an important contribution to understanding its causes and aftermath in light of modern realities, given that nuclear terrorism, blackmail, and the exploitation of fear of radioactive contamination are integral to the policy and criminal practice of Russia and Russian aggressors.