A large Soviet-era dam in the Russian-controlled part of Ukraine’s southern Kherson region was blown up by Russian forces early on Tuesday, threatening to flood areas along the Dnieper River, according to Ukrainian officials.
"Shocked by the unprecedented attack on the Nova Kakhovka dam," Michel said in a tweet.
"The destruction of civilian infrastructure clearly qualifies as a war crime - and we will hold Russia and its proxies accountable," he added.
Michel, who chairs meetings of EU heads of state and government, pledged to propose "more assistance to the flooded areas."
Meanwhile, Andriy Yermak, a senior aide to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, said on Tuesday that the destruction of the dam was an attempt by Moscow to "raise the stakes" in its full-scale invasion of Ukraine and stoke fears of a nuclear disaster.
"Today, the world must ... understand that this is an attempt by terrorists to raise the stakes and scare everyone with a possible nuclear disaster," Yermak, wrote on Telegram, as quoted by the Reuters news agency.
Built in 1956, the Kakhovka dam on the Dnieper River is 30 metres tall and 3.2 kilometres long, and forms part of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant, according to Reuters.
The dam helps provide water to Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula, which was annexed by Russia in 2014, and to the Moscow-controlled Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in eastern Ukraine, news outlets reported.
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Source: IAR, PAP, Reuters