Ukraine war: Zelensky accuses Russia of plot to blow up dam

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Russia of preparing to stroke up a dam astatine a hydroelectric works successful confederate Ukraine, which would pb to a "large-scale disaster".

In his overnight code helium said the Kakhovka dam connected the Dnieper stream had been mined by Russian forces, according to Ukrainian information.

The dam is nether Russian occupation, but Ukrainian forces are closing in.

Russia has already accused Ukraine of firing missiles astatine the Kakhovka dam.

The dam besides provides Russia with 1 of the fewer remaining routes crossed the Dnieper stream successful the partially occupied Kherson region. Russian-installed authorities successful Kherson accidental 4 radical were killed by Ukrainian Himars rockets that deed different cardinal crossing, the Antonivskiy Bridge, connected Friday.

Russia began evacuating its proxy authorities successful Kherson this week but besides said 50-60,000 civilians would permission too, a measurement condemned arsenic forced deportations by Kyiv authorities.

Russia's caller subject commandant successful Ukraine, Gen Sergei Surovikin, alleged that Ukrainian forces could beryllium readying "banned methods of warfare" successful Kherson metropolis and the hydroelectric dam and argued that justified the "evacuation" of the civilian population.

The Institute for the Study of War, an autarkic US-based deliberation tank, has suggested Russia is "likely continuing to hole for a mendacious emblem attack" connected the Kakhovka hydroelectric plant, by creating "information conditions" for Russian forces to stroke up the dam aft they propulsion retired of occidental Kherson and past impeach Ukraine of flooding the stream and surrounding settlements.

President Zelensky told EU leaders by video connected Thursday that Russia had already destroyed much than a 3rd of Ukraine's vigor infrastructure, with the purpose of creating arsenic galore problems with energy and heating arsenic imaginable implicit the wintertime months. For the archetypal clip since the commencement of the Russian invasion, Ukrainians were asked to usage little electricity, with nationwide limits connected usage betwixt 07:00 and 23:00.

If the Kakhovka dam were destroyed, Mr Zelensky warned it could devastate the h2o proviso to overmuch of the southbound and permission Europe's biggest atomic works astatine Zaporizhzhia without cooling water.

"The dam of this hydroelectric powerfulness works holds a measurement of astir 18m cubic meters of water," helium said. "If Russian terrorists stroke up this dam, much than 80 settlements, including Kherson, volition beryllium successful the portion of accelerated flooding. Hundreds of thousands of radical could beryllium affected."

The Ukrainian person besides said if the dam were destroyed past the North Crimean Canal would "simply disappear".

The canal, built successful 1975, provides Russian-annexed Crimea with a reported 85% of its h2o supply. An aboriginal enactment successful Russia's penetration of Ukraine successful February was blowing up a dam that Ukraine had built successful the canal aft the peninsula was seized successful 2014, accusing Russia of not paying for the water.

Several Russian commentators person pointed retired that areas nether concern would beryllium worst deed if the Kakhovka dam were destroyed, though dozens of communities nether Ukrainian power would beryllium severely affected too.

Pro-Kremlin paper Komsomolskaya Pravda said a dam detonation would punctual a 5m-high question that would lavation distant each villages beside the Dnieper stream astatine a complaint of 25km/h. Within 2 hours it said the h2o would deed Kherson metropolis and flood immense areas implicit 3 days.

However, statesmanlike bureau advisor Mykhaylo Podolyak said that mining the dam was each portion of a "Surovikin plan" that progressive flooding territory to halt Ukraine's counter-offensive.

President Zelensky said that if the Russians were earnestly considering blowing up the Kakhovka dam, it meant they realised they would not simply suffer power of Kherson but the full southbound including Crimea.