Russia's purported attack on the Kakhovka dam near a hydroelectric power plant indicates that Moscow is preparing to lose control of Crimea, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
The Kakhovka dam, which lies on the Dnieper River in the Russian-controlled Kherson region of southern Ukraine, was blown apart following multiple explosions on Tuesday. The Kremlin has denied responsibility, blaming Kyiv for allegedly launching an attack on the dam instead.
Since the dam supplies fresh water to the Crimean peninsula, its destruction has caused some to speculate that Russian President Vladimir Putin has effectively given up on the disputed territory, which was annexed by Russia in 2014.
Zelensky described the destruction of the Kakhovka dam as a war crime and an example of "ecocide" in a televised address to his nation Tuesday night. He promised that "Russia will pay for its crimes," while suggesting that Putin's forces would soon "flee" Crimea.
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A partially flooded area is shown Tuesday on the outskirts of Kherson, Ukraine, following damage sustained at the Kakhovka hydroelectric dam. Kyiv and Moscow accused each other of blowing up the Russian-held levee, while locals were forced to flee rising waters.OLEG TUCKYNSKY/AFP/GETTY
"The fact that Russia deliberately destroyed the Kakhovka reservoir, which is critically important, in particular, for providing water to Crimea, indicates that the Russian occupiers have already realized that they will have to flee Crimea as well," Zelensky said.
"Well, Ukraine will get back everything that belongs to it," he continued. "And it will make Russia pay for what it has done."
Zelensky also predicted that Ukrainian forces would "restore normal life" in Crimea after driving out Russian occupiers and regaining control of the peninsula.
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Newsweek has reached out via email to the Russian Ministry of Defense for comment.
Some experts have suggested that Russia destroyed the dam as a strategic move to slow a Ukrainian counteroffensive, while expressing skepticism about the idea that Putin would willingly forsake control of Crimea.
"There is no way that this signals Putin is giving up on Ukraine. Crimea was a huge prize, and Russia will hang on to it at all costs," Retired U.S. Marine Corps Colonel Mark Cancian said in previous remarks to Newsweek.
"My assumption is that the Russians blew up the dam in order to expand the water barrier in the face of a possible Ukrainian attack across the Dnieper," he added. "This would be a classic defensive move that countries have frequently done in the past."