There has been a lot of speculation in recent days about the plans of the Russians in the Kherson region in southern Ukraine and one of them was the damage to the dam in Nova Kakhovka on the Dnipro river. This evening, the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, reinforced the assessment.
In his remarks before the Council of the European Union, Zelensky said: "Russia is consciously creating the ground for a widespread disaster in southern Ukraine. We have information according to which the Russian terrorists have hardened the dam and the facilities at the nearby electric reactor. The dam is holding back 18 million cubic meters of water. If the Russian terrorists blow it up , more than 80 settlements will be found in the rapid flooding area, including Harson. Hundreds of thousands of people will be affected."
Zelensky warned that the Zaporizhzhya nuclear reactor could also be damaged.
The reason: the water to cool it comes from the Kakhovka reservoir, which is based on the dam.
"Even the water supply through the canal to the Crimean Peninsula, which the Russians are so 'careful' about, will be affected."
The Dnipro River in the Kherson region.
"The city and another 80 settlements will be flooded", photo: AFP
Zelensky's adviser, Mykhailo Podoliak, also wrote in this vein.
On his Twitter account, Podoliak tweeted the three stages of the Russian plan: "1. The tapping of the dam and the transformers; 2. The forced evacuation of Ukrainians, the resettlement of a population that is not loyal to Russia; 3. The flooding of the territories to stop the counterattack and prevent their withdrawal. Russia is preparing A technogenic disaster."
Zelensky warns the Council of the European Union // Council of the Union
If Russia is indeed planning such a move, and it is not psychological warfare on the part of Kyiv, it is not impossible that the goal is an attempt to create a huge disaster, which in turn will cause the West to put pressure on Kyiv to enter into negotiations with Moscow.
Russia has been looking for a ceasefire with Ukraine for many weeks, and in Kyiv they made it clear that they will not conduct any negotiations with Russia, as long as Putin is its president.
In Kiev, they are also convinced that the ceasefire is needed for Russia to mobilize and train forces, and to attack the country again.
In Russia they strongly rejected these things.
The governor of the region on behalf of the Russian occupation, Vladimir Leontiev, said: "Russia has no point in destroying the dam, it will only benefit Ukraine. What point does Russia have in doing this? Even formally it is absurd. Only Ukraine will benefit from this when it damages logistics, sows destruction and panic, and prevents the supply of water to the Crimea".
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