The Russian “authorities” of the annexed part of the Kherson region of Ukraine have declined access to representatives of the United Nations who want to deliver humanitarian aid to the areas affected by the destruction of the Kakhovka HPP dam, as per a statement by the Humanitarian Coordinator for Ukraine Denise Brown.
“The Government of the Russian Federation has so far declined our request to access the areas under its temporary military control. The UN will continue to engage to seek the necessary access.
“We urge the Russian authorities to act in accordance with their obligations under international humanitarian law,” Brown said in a statement.
He noted that the UN had been engaging with the Russian and Ukrainian governments regarding effective delivery of humanitarian aid to all people affected by the destruction of the Kakhovka dam. Brown promised that the UN would “continue to do all it can to reach all people <…> who urgently need life-saving assistance, no matter where they are”.
On 16 June, Russia’s Permanent Representative to the UN Office in Geneva Gennady Gatilov said that Russia was prepared to discuss the topic of the UN delivering humanitarian aid to the affected areas.
“We have never refused to cooperate and we always tell them that any delegation or mission that they send has to be sent in accordance with the Russian law, thus through the territory of the Russian Federation,” Gatilov said.
He also claimed that the Russian authorities would consider “the security situation” when making a decision. According to him, “the situation is currently intense over there, and various unpleasant incidents could happen to international organisations and their representatives”.
On 6 June, the dam of the Kakhovka HPP collapsed in the Kherson region. The Ukrainian and Russian authorities accused each other of blowing it up.
Researchers with the Norwegian NORSAR institute analysed the data on seismic signals on the day of the destruction. “The signals indicate that there was an explosion. The magnitude estimate is between 1 and 2,” scientists said in their report. The New York Times wrote that the dam had been possibly destroyed after an explosion had gone off in a technical passageway located in the building’s foundation. The dam’s base contained a technical passageway that served as the entryway into the machine hall controlled by Russian forces.
Volunteers previously complained that Russia’s Emergency Ministry had not been evacuating the residents of the town of Oleshky who had been waiting for help, while the activists themselves had not been allowed to enter the town. On 10 June, it was reported that relatives had been unable to locate and reach at least 395 people from Oleshky, the city of Hola Prystan, and the villages of Krynky and Kokhany.
The occupation “government” of the region reported that 35 people had died following the destruction of the dam. Ukraine’s Ministry of Internal Affairs stated that 17 people had died.
