Chernobyl is thousands

of kilometres from where I live. Nuclear power plants have also changed dramatically since the disaster at the Chernobyl power plant. 

Neither of those things lessen the danger from Chernobyl. It is still a very, very unstable and dangerous place. 

The Ukraine has fifteen nuclear power plants. They provide the country with about half its energy needs. At least four of them are very old and due for decommissioning. More were or are being built.

I know very little about nuclear power plants but I have been led to believe that modern plants are much safer than the old Chernobyl style plants.  I also find it difficult to believe that even Putin would deliberately attack nuclear power plants with the aim of destroying them. The results would be a catastrophe of unimaginable proportions for Russia as well as the Ukraine and surrounding countries. There are other ways of cutting off the power supply.

Putin also has nuclear weapons and is threatening to use them. Will he? There are likely to be cyber attacks first - and they can be just as effective. They can also be effective on a global scale.

Putin has been preparing for all this for many months. In doing so he will ignore the wishes of his own people. They remain largely ill-informed anyway because state media is so tightly controlled.

I don't support the death penalty but I would like to see Putin captured and incarcerated in solitary confinement - perhaps on a very small and very remote island with no access to communications of any sort.