Putin labels dam attack ‘barbaric.’ The world says he orchestrated it.

In his first comments since the destruction of a strategic Russian-controlled dam in southern Ukraine, Russia President Vladimir Putin blamed Ukraine for the extensive damage and called the actions of those responsible “barbaric.”

Putin told Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in a phone call on Wednesday the blast that destroyed the dam was a “barbaric action” that “led to a large-scale environmental and humanitarian catastrophe,” according to a Kremlin statement.

Just one problem: The West says Putin was the one responsible.

Both Russia and Ukraine have blamed one another for the alleged explosion that destroyed the dam and forced the evacuation of thousands of people, a rescue effort largely facilitated by Ukraine.

Damage to Ukraine’s Nova Kakhovka dam, which has unleashed massive flooding in the Kherson region, could be a potential war crime, EU and Ukrainian leaders said Tuesday.

Putin, according to the Kremlin’s readout, was undeterred in his call with the Turkish leader, saying that “the Kyiv authorities, at the suggestion of their Western curators, are still making a dangerous bet on the escalation of hostilities, commit war crimes, openly use terrorist methods, and organize sabotage on Russian territory.”

Earlier Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also spoke with Erdoğan, saying later he condemned the “Russian act of terrorism” on the dam.