FALSE: Earthquakes in the Chernivtsi region are caused by underground nuclear tests

Information is being spread online claiming that the cause of frequent earthquakes in the Chernivtsi region is underground nuclear weapons testing. As evidence, propagandists cite statistics showing an increase in the number of earthquakes in the region after 2022.

However, this is false. Earthquakes in the Chernivtsi region are caused by activity in Romania’s Vrancea seismic zone. No organization that monitors nuclear tests has recorded any on the territory of Ukraine.

We were unable to find the original source of the statistics in the post. Most likely, the screenshots were simply fabricated, as the cited earthquake data does not match data from research centers. For example, according to observations by the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre, in 2015, at least nine earthquakes were recorded in Ukraine, not one as stated in the post.

The post’s claim of a sharp increase in the number of earthquakes since 2022 does not reflect reality. Earthquakes are characteristic of the Chernivtsi region because the region is located near Romania’s seismically active Vrancea zone, which is the main source of seismic danger for Ukraine.

The fake claims that earthquakes in the region regularly occur at a depth of about three kilometers. However, this information is also untrue. Officially recorded earthquakes in the Chernivtsi region between 2020 and 2024 occurred at depths ranging from two to seven kilometers.

Nuclear weapons tests cannot be hidden. Differences in depth and the nature of the energy source generate different types of seismic waves. This allows seismograms to distinguish an earthquake from a nuclear test. Global seismological centers monitor nuclear tests and record such signals. For example, in February 2013, during a nuclear weapons test in North Korea, signs of the explosion were recorded by 94 seismic stations. In Ukraine, however, seismological centers have not recorded any nuclear tests.

Propagandists claim that Ukraine is using materials from nuclear power plants to create nuclear weapons. However, for such production, weapons-grade uranium must be enriched to over 90%. Nuclear reactors, including those at Rivne and Khmelnytskyi NPPs, use low-enriched uranium at levels of 3–5%, which is not suitable for nuclear weapons production. Ukraine does not have infrastructure for reprocessing spent nuclear fuel, which makes its reuse and enrichment impossible, so the post’s claim about the Chornobyl NPP is also false. Moreover, in 2012, Ukraine completely eliminated its stockpile of highly enriched uranium.

Ukraine continues to comply with the provisions of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. Additionally, in 2000, Ukraine ratified the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, while Russia withdrew from it in 2023. Neither the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) nor the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization has reported any nuclear tests on the territory of Ukraine.