Cherson hit particularly hard
Kremlin: Putin does not travel to occupied flood zones
6/8/2023 3:32 p.m
The Russian-occupied part of the Ukrainian city of Kherson is suffering particularly badly from the consequences of the destruction of the Kakhovka dam. However, Kremlin boss Putin will not get an idea of the situation on the ground. Unlike Ukraine President Zelenskyy.
Unlike Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin does not want to travel to the southern Ukrainian region of Cherson, which was flooded after the dam was destroyed, at least for the time being. “No, there are currently no such plans,” said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, according to the Interfax agency, in response to a question from journalists. In Cherson, the left bank of the Dnipro River, which is occupied by Russian troops, has been particularly hard hit by the floods caused by the breach of the important Kakhovka dam.
Putin commented on the destruction of the dam on Wednesday and spoke of a catastrophe – both for people and for the environment. The TASS news agency quoted the president as saying from a statement by the Kremlin that it was a barbaric act by Ukraine.
Peskov accuses Ukraine of sustained shelling
The dam in the city of Nowa Kachowka was destroyed on Tuesday night. Like many international experts, Ukraine blames Russia for the disaster. The government of the attacked country is convinced that Moscow had the dam blown up in order to hinder the planned Ukrainian counter-offensive. Moscow rejects this and blames Kiev. Experts also believe it is possible that the dam, which Russia has long controlled, was poorly maintained and burst under the pressure of the water masses.
Kremlin spokesman Peskov meanwhile accused the Ukrainian side of hampering the Russian evacuation work by sustained shelling from the right bank of the river. This could not be independently verified. Kiev had previously made similar allegations against the Russians, who have occupied large parts of Cherson in the course of their more than 15-month war of aggression.
The Ukrainian President Selenskyj had arrived in the morning in the part of Cherson controlled by his troops, which also includes the regional capital of the same name, Cherson. According to his own statements, he got an idea of the evacuation measures there. Meanwhile, according to the governor of the Kherson Oblast, Russia is bombing the city of the same name. Olexander Prokudin reported on Telegram that nearby coastal areas had also been shelled. A Reuters reporter in Kherson says he heard what appeared to be artillery fire. He could not give any details.