Putin orders emergency aid for areas flooded after Kakhovka dam breach

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - President Vladimir Putin on Thursday instructed emergency services to provide aid to Russian-controlled areas that were flooded after a breach at the Kahkovka dam in southern Ukraine.

A Kremlin statement said Putin discussed the current situation in the region affected by the incident with Vladimir Saldo, the Russian-installed governor in Kherson.

“Vladimir Putin instructed the Ministry of Emergency Situations to provide all necessary assistance to households affected by the flood, in full compliance with the standards of the Russian Federation,” the statement said.

The Russian leader also ordered an analysis of the needs that emerge in the region, it added.

Russia and Ukraine on Tuesday blamed each other for blowing up the Kakhovka dam, which flooded neighboring settlements, endangered crops, threatened water supplies and led to evacuation of residents.

Moscow accused Ukraine of attempting to cut Crimea off the freshwater it receives from the Kakhovka Reservoir, formed by the dam, while Kyiv claimed that Russia tried to slow an expected counteroffensive.