Kremlin accuses Kyiv of blowing up Kakhovka dam, Ukraine responds 

Russian propaganda media reported Peskov’s statement.

Peskov says the Kakhovka dam destruction is a provocation by Ukraine.

"We can already state with certainty that this is a deliberate sabotage by the Ukrainian side. This sabotage could potentially have very serious consequences for several tens of thousands of the region’s residents, environmental consequences, consequences of a different nature that are yet to be established," the spokesman said.

He also claims that in this way Ukraine is trying to "deprive Crimea of water" because it "cannot achieve its goals in the counteroffensive" that allegedly began 2 days ago.

"The water level in the reservoir is dropping. And accordingly, the supply to the canal is sharply reduced. Apparently, the sabotage is also related to the fact that having launched a large-scale offensive 2 days ago, the Ukrainian armed forces are now failing to achieve their goals. These offensives are drowning," he added.

Putin's spokesman says that Russia was not involved in the dam’s destruction.

Ukraine’s NSDC Secretary Oleksiy Danilov addressed Peskov accusations on the United News telethon.

"They are choking with rage that they cannot resolve the issue militarily, and so they are now coming up with various unfounded nonsense," he said.

Danilov reminded that since March last year, the Kakhovka HPP has been completely under Russian control, with no Ukrainian military present. 

"It's hard for me to tell what this man is babbling about. I'm used to this man with a mustache saying nonsense to justify the aggression against our country," added the NSDC Secretary.

He said that Ukraine was aware that Russian troops planted explosives in the dam last fall.

"They have decided to use them at this moment to prevent our counteroffensive.... So we have nothing to do with the explosion, no matter what the Kremlin says," Danilov concluded.

• On Tuesday, June 6, Russian occupying forces blew up the Kakhovka dam, completely destroying it. As a result, the evacuation of residents from high-risk areas in the Kherson region has started, and the President of Ukraine has called for an emergency meeting of the Security and Defense Counci.