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IRAN'S nuclear plants are disasters waiting to happen as they are vulnerable to potential drone attacks that could trigger a disastrous meltdown.
Both a Chernobyl-style nuclear disaster and the potential for sparking a devastating regional conflict hang over sites, it was warned in a new report.
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Dr Bahram Ghiassee, Associate Fellow at the Henry Jackson Society, penned the new paper which warns of the threat posed to Iran's nuclear facilities.
It comes after a string of apparent attacks and sabotage against the sites over the last few years amid the regime's apparent quests of nuclear weapons.
The expert warned the sites remain highly vulnerable to attack - and potentially could trigger a nuclear disaster like Chernobyl or Fukushima.
And it is also feared an attack on the Iranian nuclear plants could trigger a war in the Middle East, potentially roping in Russia as they help to operate one of Iran's key sites.
Iran's Bushehr nuclear power plant is strategically placed on the Persian Gulf, and also supplies power to the regime's key ally Russia.
Speaking to The Sun Online, nuclear expert Dr Ghiassee explained how the vulnerability of Iran's nuclear sites, coupled with the greater accessibility of drones and the political tensions in the region could add up to an extremely volatile mix.
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Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant in the southwest of Iran represents a major risk, he said, particularly if drones were used to attack its power or water supply.
"This is the only site in Iran prone to a Fukushima-style disaster," he said, referencing the 2011 nuclear accident in Japan which triggered the evacuation of 154,000 people.
"Although it can't simply be destroyed by drones, as the reactor is surrounded by reinforced concrete, drones could be used to destroy the cooling water systems, forcing it to shut down.
"This extensive damage, in conjunction with simultaneous drone attacks to the power system, could possibly result in a meltdown.
"That is not a remote possibility."
Such a meltdown would obviously be catastrophic, not least the estimated 300,000 people who live close to the Bushehr plant, but could have far broader implications for the global balance of power as a whole.
With the United Arab Emirates' Barakah Nuclear Power Plant on the other side of the Gulf, Dr Ghiassee went on, any incident at Bushehr could disrupt the entire Gulf, not least the crucial shipping route.
The Gulf region produces nearly one-third of the world's oil and holds more than half of the world's crude oil reserves as well as a significant proportion of the world's natural gas reserves.
Terrorist groups have used drones in the region to attack oil processing facilitates in Saudi Arabia - sparking huge fires and disrupting global oil supplies.
But Bushehr also plays another key role in geopolitics which, if disrupted, could prove potentially catastrophic.
"Bushehr takes fuel from Russia to produce nuclear energy, then most of that electricity goes back to Russia."
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Dr Ghiassee said. "It has Russian workers stationed there. Any attack on such a Russian-dominated facility could spark a war with Russia."
Russia's influence in the Middle East is well-known, including in its support for autocratic regional leaders such as President Bashar al Assad of Syria and Turkey's head of state Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Just as dangerous radiation from the 1986 Chernobyl disaster reached as far as Western Europe, so Ghiassee warns that any disaster at Bushehr could lead to a major amount of radiation affecting millions.
Likewise, residual radiation from Fukushima was found in small doses as far away as California on the opposite side of the Pacific Ocean.
Thankfully, Ghiassee says, such a disaster is unlikely as Iran's biggest enemy in the region, Israel, also has ties with Russia, and would not want to sabotage them and trigger further tensions.
We don't know what the standard of these facilities are
Dr Bharam Ghiassee
But he does warn that a Uranium Conversion Facility in Isfahan is particularly at risk of drone attacks, as most of its facilities containing the volatile nuclear material are above ground.
"Iran has the full spectrum of nuclear facilities," he said, "but Iran is not a member of the International Nuclear Safety Commission, so we don't know what the standard of these facilities are."
Two nuclear fuel enrichment plants in Fordow, near the capital Tehran, and Natanz could also be the target of lone-wolf attacks targetting their "ancillary" facilities such as water supply, electricity, and ventilation for cooling the materials.
With such unstable materials, any potential imbalance could be catastrophic.
Finally, a Heavy Water Plant in Arak could also be a potential target, Ghiassee claims.
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Heavy water, which is denser than regular water, is used as a coolant in nuclear power plants.
It is produced and stored in high columns above ground, making them an obvious target for drones.
Although it is not toxic to humans in small doses, it can be devastating to local wildlife, while the knock-on effect to Iran's nuclear industry could be huge.
Russia is said to take much of Iran's nuclear fuel because it doesn't want it to be repurposed for nuclear weapons.
It comes just months after the UN's nuclear watchdog warned Iran could build a nuclear weapon in "months".
The country's hardline president Ebrahim Raisi, is reported to have been speeding up the country's nuclear program.
A report in November from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said Tehran now has 17.7kg of uranium enriched to 60% purity.
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That is one level below weapons grade and marked a steep rise from the 10kg the country had at the time of the last report in August 2021.
It comes after last week Iran released a video threatening to assassinate former president Donald Trump.