A day after the partial collapse of a hydroelectric dam in Russian-held territory. New Kakhovkaon South UkraineThe water level continued to rise along both its banks. Dniepercausing massive destruction. Television footage is circulating around the world showing houses being swept away by the river and civilians trying to save what can be saved, while gunfire from the opposing sides rumbles in the distance.

Vice Prime Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov, during a visit to the city of Kherson, liberated in November last year by Ukrainian troops, said that the spilled water caused the explosion of mines planted in the area by Ukrainian troops. Russian army and threatens to introduce infectious diseases and dangerous chemicals into flooded areas. Local authorities said 1,582 houses were flooded on the right bank of the river, which is controlled by Ukrainian forces, and 1,457 civilians were evacuated from their homes overnight.

For their part, the Russians declared a state of emergency in the affected areas on the occupied eastern bank of the river, where, according to the TASS news agency, some 2,700 houses were flooded and nearly 1,300 people were evacuated, while about 100 were left stranded and seven were missing. . The causes of the disaster were not clear until last night, and both sides continue to blame each other. White House national security spokesman John Kirby said the US government is “not sure” who caused the dam collapse and is working with the Ukrainian side to find out why. The New York Times report said that most experts believe the collapse was caused by the detonation of explosives inside the dam structures, while the possibility that it was due to missile strikes or systemic damage to the facility, although not ruled out, is considered less likely. Another CNN report cited the testimony of a Ukrainian officer that Russian soldiers were washed away and drowned by a dam spill. He claimed that the Russians had blown up the dam to prevent a Ukrainian counterattack. “The destruction of one of the largest reservoirs in Ukraine is a completely conscious act of the Russians,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said yesterday, adding that many areas are threatened by a shortage of drinking water. For his part, Secretary General of the Russian Security Council Nikolai Patrushev argued that the United States, Britain and NATO “coordinate the actions of Ukraine”, therefore they are “responsible” for the destruction of Nova Kakhovka, which, according to Moscow, provoked Kiev.

In the midst of all this, Tayyip Erdogan thought he had another chance to claim the role of mediator in an international crisis. The Turkish President called Zelensky and Putin and suggested that they, through Turkey’s mediation, form an international commission of inquiry to investigate the incident, along the lines of negotiations on the export of Ukrainian grain from the Black Sea ports.

According to officials in Kyiv, the Ukrainian counter-offensive has not yet begun.

On the combat front, the Russian Defense Ministry said yesterday that the Ukrainians launched a series of attacks in the Bakhmut area in the Donetsk region, but were effectively repulsed. However, Oleksiy Danilov, secretary of the National Security Council of Ukraine, said that despite Moscow’s statements, the long-awaited Ukrainian counterattack had not yet begun, adding: “When we start the counterattack, everyone will know this, everyone will see it.” “with my own eyes”. In addition, yesterday the Russian Defense Ministry reported that Ukrainian saboteurs blew up a section of the Togliatti-Odessa pipeline, through which Russian ammonia is transported to the Kharkov region. It is the largest such pipeline in the world and will take at least three months to repair, according to Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, who threatened that Moscow might not renew an agreement to export Ukrainian grain.

Meanwhile, Volodymyr Zelenskiy told Politico last night that Ukraine had nothing to do with the sabotage of the Nord Stream gas pipeline. “I am the president and I give orders. Ukraine did not attack. I would never do that,” he said.

The message from the West to Russia in the face of the Ukrainian counterattack will be NATO’s June 12-23 air training exercise in Germany called Air Defender 23. This is the largest such exercise in the history of the Alliance, which will involve 250 aircraft and 10,000 soldiers from 25 member countries.

Commission warning in Warsaw

The Polish government appears to be trying to take advantage of anti-Russian sentiment, intensified by the war in Ukraine, to push for authoritarian measures against domestic opposition. At least that’s what the Commission fears, whose spokesman said yesterday that Brussels would send a letter to Warsaw warning about a controversial law to combat “unscrupulous Russian influence” in Poland. The liberal RO (Civic Platform) party, which ruled the country from 2007 to 2015, claims the new law was designed to prevent party leader and former prime minister Donald Trump from running in Tusk’s general election next fall. The Commission’s warning letter is the first step in bringing the Polish government to the European Court of Justice. The US government has also expressed concern. The law in question would legalize judicial investigations to determine whether a party is under “Russian undue influence.” Poland’s European Affairs Minister Szymon Shinkowski said his government would “react in a calm tone, with legal and political arguments, to any concerns of the European Commission.” President Andrei Duda said he would propose amendments to the controversial law. Last Sunday, large opposition demonstrations took place in Warsaw and other cities.