Dam failure in Ukraine: Turkish president proposes establishment of an investigation commission

While both Russia and Ukraine have accused each other of the collapse of a dam and large-scale flooding in southern Ukraine, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been mediating by holding individual telephone talks with the leaders of both countries to propose the establishment of an investigative committee to investigate the cause.

The dam of the Kahouka hydroelectric power plant in Kherson Oblast, southern Ukraine, burst and caused large-scale flooding, and Ukraine's Emergency Agency announced that as of the evening of the 7th, Japan time, a total of about 2600,4 buildings were flooded in the area on the west bank of the Dnipro River alone.

In addition, the Ukrainian prosecutor's office said that more than 7,<> people live in the affected area and that "the destruction of the dam is a war crime" and will hold Russia responsible.

The Ukrainian side claims that the dam burst was blown up from the inside by the Russian army, while the Russian side claims that it was due to the sabotage of the Ukrainian army, and accusations continue to be exchanged.

Against this backdrop, President Erdogan of Turkey held separate telephone talks with President Putin of Russia and President Zelensky of Ukraine on November <>.

According to the Turkish President's Office, President Erdogan proposed to President Zelensky that a commission of inquiry to investigate the cause could be established, saying, "A committee consisting of experts from Russia and Ukraine, as well as the United Nations and Turkey could be established to conduct a detailed investigation."

On the other hand, he also conveyed to President Putin that "it is important that a comprehensive investigation be conducted" and that he would play a coordinating role toward the establishment of an investigative committee.

According to the Russian President's Office, Putin claimed that "Ukraine is making a risky gamble to escalate tensions at the behest of the West."

President Zelensky has made it clear on SNS that he "conveyed the humanitarian and environmental impact of Russia's terrorist acts," and President Erdogan seems to want to lead to a breakthrough in the situation by embarking on mediation himself.