Ukraine accuses Russia of destroying Kakhovka dam to prevent Kiev from counterattacking

Ukraine's deputy defense minister accused Russia of destroying the Kakhovka dam in Kherson province to prevent Kiev's forces from counterattacking in the south.

"The explosion at the Kakhovka hydroelectric dam was apparently carried out to prevent Ukrainian forces from launching an offensive in Kherson," Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar said on Telegram on June 11.

According to Ms. Maliar, the Kakhovka Dam collapse, which caused water to escape from the reservoir and flood the lower reaches of the Dnieper River, allowed Russia to deploy reserve forces to the Zaporizhzhia and Bakhmut regions. Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces had to use part of their forces and resources to respond to the disaster, preventing Kiev from advancing to the eastern bank of the Dnieper River, which is controlled by Russia.

Russian officials have not commented on the information.

An area in Kherson flooded on June 10 after the Kakhovka dam collapsed. Photo: AFP — An area in Kherson flooded on June 10 after the Kakhovka dam collapsed. Photo: *AFP*

Ukraine has said for months that it plans to launch a major offensive to retake Russian-controlled areas in the south and east. However, Ukraine has not confirmed that it has begun a major operation.

The Kakhovka Dam on the Dnieper River in the Russian-controlled Kherson region collapsed on June 6, causing the reservoir to overflow downstream, submerging many residential areas, villages, and some urban areas along the river. Russia and Ukraine both said it was a deliberate attack and blamed each other.

Kakhovka Lake has a capacity of about 18 billion m3 and provides cooling water for the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant and the Crimean Canal. The Kakhovka Dam was built by the Soviet Union in 1950-1956.

Evacuation scene of Kherson residents — People of Kherson city tell stories of evacuation. Video : *AFP*

Ukrainian officials said the dam collapse flooded about 600 square kilometers in Kherson, warning that the disaster could leave hundreds of thousands of people without drinking water and at least 500,000 hectares of land turned into "desert" due to lack of irrigation water for months to come.

Vladimir Saldo, the Russian-appointed head of Kherson province, said on June 10 that the water level in Nova Kakhovka, a city adjacent to the Kakhovka dam downstream, had dropped 3 meters from its peak on June 6.

“The process of pumping water from the streets and collecting garbage has begun,” Mr. Saldo said. Late on June 10, he said the flow of the Dnieper River was expected to return to normal from June 16.