N. Korea claims dam collapse in Ukraine occurred with Washington, Kyiv in 'cahoots'

SEOUL, June 9 (Yonhap) -- North Korea claimed Friday the latest collapse of a dam in Ukraine was the result of a scheme cooked up by Washington and Kyiv in "cahoots" to shift responsibility for the humanitarian disaster to Russia amid Moscow's war with Ukraine.

The North said the U.S., Ukraine and other western countries are "basely" passing on all responsibility for the destruction of the Kakhovka dam to Russia at a time when the world is concerned about humanitarian and material damage by the incident, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

In an article carried by the KCNA, O Song-jin, a researcher at the North's Institute of International Studies, described the dam collapse as the second case of "Nord Stream" blasts.

Blasts occurred in September last year that ruptured Nord Stream natural gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea linking Russia and Germany, but who was behind the explosion has yet to be determined.

The collapse of the Kakhovka dam is "nothing but another farce and the second 'Nord Stream' case cooked up by the U.S. and Ukraine in cahoots to shift the responsibility for humanitarian disaster onto Russia and create a political and military environment favorable for the so-called counteroffensive operation of Ukraine," Ri said.

He also said Ukraine is "fully motivated to commit such hideous crimes with the connivance of the U.S.," given that the explosion inflicted huge damage in what it called the Ukraine regions newly integrated into Russia.

The Kakhovka dam in southern Ukraine, which is located on the Dnipro River in an area controlled by Russia, collapsed Tuesday, causing massive flooding and triggering residents' evacuation. Ukraine and Russia have blamed each other for the disaster.

sooyeon@yna.co.kr
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