Charles Michel: Destruction of Nova Kahovka dam is a "war crime"
European Council President Charles Michel said on Tuesday that Russia will have to answer for the partial destruction of a hydroelectric dam in Ukraine and called it a "war crime", reports AFP and Agerpres.
"I am shocked by the unprecedented attack on the Nova Kahovka dam," Charles Michel wrote on Twitter. "The destruction of civilian infrastructure is clearly a war crime and we hold Russia and its affiliates to account," he added.
"My thoughts go out to all the families in Ukraine hit by this catastrophe," the President of the European Council wrote, adding that he would propose aid for the flooded areas at the upcoming summit of EU leaders scheduled to take place at the end of June in Brussels.
Foreign and European Integration Minister Nicu Popescu also reacted to the destruction of the dam. In a post on his Twitter page, he wrote that the Republic of Moldova condemned the appalling destruction of the dam and called what happened "an act of barbarism", adding that it "will affect countless lives and poses significant risks for the entire region". Nicu Popescu also said that Russia must be held accountable for all crimes committed in Ukraine.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba described the destruction of the Nova Kahovka dam in southern Ukraine as "probably Europe's biggest technological disaster in decades" and a "heinous war crime".
The head of the Joint Press Centre of the Southern Defence Forces, Natalia Humeniuk, commented that the Russians had blown up part of the structure and were using another man-made blackmail map to put pressure on the Defence Forces and Ukraine.
Russian authorities have begun evacuating civilians from flooded homes after damage to the Kahovka Hydropower Plant. The head of the Nova Kahovka administration, Vladimir Leontiev, said the hydropower plant was beyond repair and would have to be rebuilt.
The destruction of the Kahovka hydropower plant's infrastructure has led to a ten-metre rise in the water level of the Dnieper River, Vladimir Leontiev said. According to Leontiev, the water level continues to rise, and residents of flooded coastal areas are being evacuated.
The Kahovka Dam, located in the Russian-occupied areas of the Herson region in southern Ukraine, was partially destroyed on Tuesday, with Moscow and Kiev blaming each other for the destruction.
The dam, which has been occupied by the Russians since the start of their offensive in Ukraine, also supplies water to the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia annexed in 2014.
Built on the Dnieper River in 1956 during the Soviet era, the dam is one of the largest such facilities in Ukraine.
