Ukraine wants to Hold Russia accountable for environmental damage in occupied Crimea
The Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine has established a working group to assess the damage from the oil spill in Sevastopol Bay.
Ukraine will hold Russia accountable for environmental damage in occupied Crimea. Mykhailo Khorev, Deputy Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine, said this in a comment to "Crimea.Realities".
This refers to the oil spill in Sevastopol Bay, which occurred in early December. According to "Crimea.Realities", the spill area is 85 thousand m².
"Responsibility for oil spills in Sevastopol during the occupation lies with the occupying country. A working group has been created, which, together with the prosecutor's office of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, is developing methods for assessing this damage. We want to link them to war crimes and file these lawsuits in international courts," Khorev said.
"Crimea.Realities" reported that the oil spill occurred during the dismantling of the anti-submarine ship "Kerch", which was part of the Russian Black Sea Fleet. The ship was decommissioned at the end of 2014, after a fire broke out in the stern compartments of the vessel.
Russia occupied Crimea after an illegal referendum on March 16, 2014. The annexation of the peninsula to the Russian Federation is not recognized by Ukraine and most countries of the world. Currently, there is a checkpoint regime between mainland Ukraine and Crimea, and Kyiv de facto does not control the peninsula.