Climate activist Greta Thunberg held talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv on Thursday at a meeting of a working group dealing with Russia’s environmental crimes.
The destruction in June of the Nova Kakhovka Dam in Ukraine was mentioned in particular. President Zelensky called it “a Russian terrorist attack” that led to “Europe’s biggest ecocide in a decade.” The term refers to the deliberate destruction of nature.
GretaThunberg reacted critically to the international reaction to the destruction of the dam, which caused flooding in large areas. “I think the international reaction to this ecocide has not been sufficient,” said the Swedish climate activist. “We need to talk about it much more strongly, we need to raise awareness of what has happened.”
A number of other political figures were also present at the meeting alongside Greta Thunberg, including former Swedish deputy prime minister Margot Wallström, former Irish president Mary Robinson and Finnish vice-president of the European Parliament Heidi Hautala.
This working group, in which authorities will also participate, will focus on the damage caused to the environment and develop mechanisms to hold Russia accountable.
