Russia bears "primary responsibility" for the Kakhovka dam destruction in Kherson Oblast as it had started the war in the first place, European Commission spokesperson Dana Spinant said on June 9.
"Russia is there, bombing and shelling, and Ukraine is defending itself, so Russia has primary responsibility for what is happening in Ukraine... and this is the first statement you have to keep in mind when looking into this incident and anything else," Spinant told a press conference.
The official said that the European Commission condemned Russia's continued attacks in any form and place on Ukrainian territory.
"We will do whatever we can to support the people impacted (by the Kakhovka dam breach)," Spinant added.
A day before, the White House made a similar statement, saying that while it was still assessing who destroyed the dam, Russia was ultimately to blame because it controlled the Kakhovka plant.
The dam of the Russian-occupied Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant on the Dnipro River was destroyed on June 6, sparking a humanitarian and environmental disaster across southern Ukraine. According to Ukraine's Southern Command, the dam was blown up by Russian forces.
On the same day, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced that the bloc would help Ukraine with the aftermath of the Kakhovka dam destruction, which caused large-scale flooding in Kherson and Mykolaiv oblasts.
Daria Shulzhenko
(Updated: )
