Ukraine filed a complaint to International Criminal Court regarding Kakhovka dam attack

On June 6, Russian troops blew up the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant on Russia-held territory, according to the Ukrainian government. Ukraine has already filed a complaint with the Hague Tribunal.

There is no official response from the International Criminal Court yet, and the dialogue is ongoing, an advisor to Ukraine’s Prosecutor General Maksym Popov stated.

Ukraine has filed a complaint to the ICC

Ukraine’s Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin has already submitted a document to the Office of the Prosecutor General of the ICC. In particular, he provided initial information on the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant explosion.

“We have given the green light to the ICC Prosecutor General’s Office to conduct an objective, impartial investigation on their part,” Popov said.

He noted that Ukraine has several reasons and grounds for going to the court in The Hague.

“First and foremost, we partially lack access to this territory, which gives grounds to take into account the principle of complementarity provided for by the Rome Statute for the International Criminal Court to investigate this case, – said the advisor to the Prosecutor General.

Popov also added that since there are many manipulations about who exactly blew up the dam, it would be helpful for the international justice body to conduct its own objective and impartial investigation. In particular, to establish what kind of weapon was used to blow up the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant.

At the same time, he emphasized that since the first days of the full-scale war, Kakhovka HPP has been under Russian occupation. Therefore, there are preliminary conclusions, and it is obvious to all experts involved in explosive expertise that Ukraine could not and did not even have the opportunity to blow up its hydroelectric power plant in any way.

“Therefore, it is quite obvious that the Russian side carried out this explosion,” the advisor to the Prosecutor General emphasized.

Up to 80 Ukrainian settlements could be flooded

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced his intention to apply to the ICC on the day of the explosion. He emphasized that Russia should be held criminally liable for the ecocide provoked by the explosion of the Kakhovka dam.

He emphasized that the blowing up of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant dam had caused severe natural, social and humanitarian challenges. In particular, 35 to 80 settlements could be flooded. The authorities are now trying to solve the issue of providing residents with drinking water not only in the flooded areas but also in neighbouring regions.

“The consequences of the tragedy will be clear in a week. When the water goes away, it will be clear what is left and what will happen next. All teams are working in parallel; everyone is on the spot,” the head of state added.

Russia must be held accountable – Zelenskyy

Ukrainian President also spoke about Ukraine’s steps in the international scene to bring to justice all those responsible for the ecocide.

Zelenskyy noted that last year, Ukrainian intelligence warned that the invading Russian troops had mined the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant dam and its associated risks.

Ukraine’s Deputy Minister of Defense Hanna Malyar said that the Kremlin was trying to deter the Ukrainian Armed Forces with the dam destruction. Still, the explosion of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant would not hinder the offensive operations of Ukraine.

Kakhovka dam was mostly likely destroyed by a deliberate explosion inside the dam

As reported by The New York Times, a deliberate explosion inside the Kakhovka dam most likely caused its collapse, according to engineering and munitions experts, who said to the NYT that structural failure or an attack from outside the dam was possible but less plausible explanations.