Evidence gathering underway to bring Russia to justice for blowing up Kakhovka dam – EU Commissioner

Despite a logical assumption that Russia is responsible for the blowing up of the dam of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant (HPP), physical evidence is needed to bring the perpetrators to justice.

The relevant statement was made by European Commissioner for Justice Didier Reynders in a commentary to Ukrinform.

When asked about progress in collecting such evidence, considering that the investigators do not have access to the crime scene itself, as it is now controlled by Russian occupation troops, Reynders admitted that they “don’t have any real intelligence capacity at the EU level”. Hence, they are working on the basis of all the information coming from member states.

Reynders also asked some U.S. colleagues about their intelligence.

“My reaction in the morning of that event was to have a phone call with Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin. I have listened very carefully. He said it was not the bombing. So it was possibly an explosion of the mines in the dam due to the Russian presence there,” Reynders noted.

At the same time, it is “a description on a logical basis”, while the investigators need some strong evidence to conduct the case and bring Russia to justice, Reynders added.

The European Commissioner also stressed the importance of conducting parallel investigations by Ukrainian law enforcement agencies and the International Criminal Court (ICC), which are now underway.

According to Reynders, there are other methods of obtaining evidence, including the intelligence data and information from research facilities that might have recorded the explosion with special equipment.

A reminder that, on the night of June 6, 2023, Russian invaders blew up the dam of the Kakhovka HPP.