A day after the explosion of the Kakhovka dam, the recriminations between Russia and Ukraine continue.
Ukraine's ambassador to the United Nations, Serhiy Kislitsa, accused Moscow of setting off a "bomb of mass environmental destruction", causing "the biggest man-made disaster in Europe in decades", speaking of "ecological and technological terrorism" and "yet another example of its genocide of Russia against the Ukrainians".
At the same time, the roads have turned into "rivers" and thousands of citizens are forced to evacuate the settlements.
The humanitarian disaster is enormous
About 1,500 homes have been flooded so far and the water continues to flow uncontrollably - Kiev says sabotage, Moscow a deliberate provocation.
Vladimir Leontiev, the Russian-appointed mayor of Nova Kalkhova, initially tried to deny that there had even been damage to the dam, calling the reports "nonsense". But he later confirmed that the dam has been damaged "due to a severe terrorist attack. Despite this, there is no question of an urgent evacuation of the population from the area." In connection with them, the Kremlin considers as "nonsense" what the Ukrainians claim about the guilt of the Russians.
Vladimir Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said that "the sabotage operation at the Nova Kakhovka dam was planned and carried out on the order of the Kiev regime. The goal of the Ukrainians was to deprive Crimea of water."
Satellite images provided by Maxar Technologies revealed the extent of the destruction at the dam.
What did the Americans say?
However, the US government says that “it is too early to draw any conclusions about what exactly happened at the Nova Kakhovka Dam. The competent US agencies are working closely with the Ukrainian ones and are carefully studying the case."
