Volodymyr Zelenskiy appears to have confirmed that Ukraine’s counteroffensive is under way, as Justin Trudeau visited Kyiv and accused Russia over flooding from the breached Kakhovka dam. “Counteroffensive and defensive actions are taking place in Ukraine: at which stage I will not talk in detail,” Zelenskiy said at a joint press conference in Kyiv on Saturday with the Canadian prime minister. Zelenskiy’s comments came after Vladimir Putin claimed that Kyiv’s long-expected counteroffensive was already failing. Russia has reported thwarting Ukrainian attacks in the east and south that some observers interpreted as the start of a large-scale counteroffensive. “It’s interesting what Putin said about our counteroffensive. It is important that Russia always feels this: that they do not have long left, in my opinion,” Zelensky said. He said he was in daily touch with military commanders including the head of the armed forces, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, and added: “Everyone is positive now – tell that to Putin!” Trudeau, 51, and Zelenskiy, 45, hugged each other and used each other’s first names as the Canadian leader made his second unannounced visit to Kyiv since Russia’s invasion in February last year. Canada, which hosts a large Ukrainian diaspora, has been one of Kyiv’s closest allies since the war began. Pledging C$10m (£6m) in new funding for flood relief, Trudeau said the destruction of the Russian-controlled Kakhovka dam in southern Ukraine was the “direct consequence” of Russia’s invasion. “There is absolutely no doubt in our minds that the destruction of the dam was a direct consequence of Russia’s decision to invade a peaceful neighbour,” Trudeau said. He added he was certain that Moscow would be held accountable for its actions in Ukraine. Ukraine has accused Russia of blowing up the dam, while Moscow has said Kyiv fired on it. The flooding from the breached dam has forced thousands to flee their homes and prompted fears of humanitarian and environmental disasters. An “extraordinary” 700,000 people were in need of drinking water, according to the UN’s top aid official, Martin Griffiths, who added that the flooding of agricultural land in one of the world’s most important breadbaskets would cause a “cascade of problems”, including lower grain exports, higher food prices around the world, and less to eat for millions in need. Ukraine faces a “hugely worse” humanitarian situation after the collapse of the Kakhova dam, Griffiths said, warning “this is only the beginning of seeing the consequences of this act”. A drone attack by Russian forces killed three people in Ukraine’s Odesa oblast region in the early hours of Saturday morning, according to Ukraine’s southern command. Debris from the attack hit a high-rise residential building, causing a fire that was later extinguished. Emergency services said 27 people, including three children, were wounded. Russian forces used Iranian-made drones to attack the region, all of which were shot down by Ukrainian forces, according to reports. On Saturday afternoon, Emmanuel Macron urged his Iranian counterpart, Ebrahim Raisi, to “immediately end” Tehran’s support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, including supplying Moscow with attack drones, the Élysée said. The French president underlined the serious “security and humanitarian consequences” of Iran’s drone deliveries in a telephone call to Raisi “and urged Tehran to immediately end the support it thus gives to Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine”, said a statement. The call came a day after White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said Russia was receiving materials from Iran to build a drone factory on its territory that “could be fully operational early next year”. The US has said that Russia has received hundreds of Iranian attack drones to attack Kyiv and “terrorise” Ukrainians, a charge denied by Tehran.