Putin Criticizes Environmental Crisis in Crimea

Russian President Vladimir Putin has described efforts in Crimea to minimise damage caused by a fuel spill in the Kerch Strait as “manifestly inadequate”.

On December 15, the fuel tankers Volgoneft 212 and Volgoneft 239 sank in the Kerch Strait, causing a fuel leak. According to the latest data from the Russian Ministry of Transport, four tanks carrying oil products were damaged during the tanker accident, and about 2,4 thousand tons of fuel spilled into the sea. Oil products also washed ashore.

“From what I saw and the information I received, I concluded that everything that was done to minimize the damage was clearly not enough,” Putin said at a meeting with members of the government on Thursday.

“First they said that all this will be done at the regional level, then they came to the conclusion that this work should be done at the federal level, then they came to the conclusion that it is necessary to declare a federal emergency,” Putin said.

“We need to create a relevant commission, a relevant center, which will work directly on site, not at the local level, but under the leadership of employees from ministries and departments, leaders who will be assigned directly to the scene of the disaster,” Putin said.