The head of Crimea Sergey Aksenov called it a crime and an attempt to create a humanitarian disaster to block the water supply to Crimea via the North Crimean canal from Ukraine, adding that criminal cases should be initiated against the organizers of the water blockade.
Earlier, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said that the water blockade of Crimea by Ukraine could be qualified as a violation of Kiev's obligations under international agreements.
"By blocking the North Crimean canal, through which more than 2 million residents of the Peninsula received more than 80% of fresh water, Kiev committed a crime. This can be regarded as an ecocide, as state terrorism and an attempt to create a large-scale humanitarian catastrophe in the region. And certainly as a gross violation of fundamental human rights," Aksenov wrote on his page in "Vkontakte" social network .
He supported the statement of the Russian Foreign Ministry regarding the water blockade, adding that Russia should open criminal cases against its organizers. "I believe that criminal cases should be initiated in Russia against the organizers of the water blockade. And then the case will reach the international tribunal," Aksenov wrote.
Previously, Ukraine provided up to 85% of Crimea's fresh water needs through the North Crimean canal running from the Dnieper. However, after the reunification of Crimea with Russia, the water supply through the canal to the Republic was completely stopped unilaterally. The issue of water supply was solved at the expense of reservoirs of natural filling, which over the past year have become significantly shallower due to low precipitation. In Simferopol, since August, a regime water supply to homes has been introduced.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
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Based on materials from RIA Novosti