UNITED NATIONS, June 7. /TASS/. Ukraine’s sabotage act on the dam at the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant (HPP) could be aimed against the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant (ZNPP), Russian Permanent Representative to the UN Vasily Nebenzya told the UN Security Council on Tuesday.
"We also do not rule out an underlying attempt to commit a provocation against the Zaporozhye NPP," he said.
Another reason behind the attack could be a desire to take revenge on residents of Crimea by cutting water supply to the peninsula.
"The explosion at the dam has already led to an environmental disaster, with dozens of downstream populated areas being inundated, while the Kakhovka water reservoir and the North Crimea Canal delivering water to the Crimean Peninsula are shallowing. In other words, Kiev is once again trying to take revenge on the residents of Crimea, cutting water supplies to them for their choice of being with Russia," Nebenzya added.
The attack also pursued certain military goals, "creating favorable conditions for the regrouping of the Ukrainian armed forces and for continuing the widely publicized ‘counter-offensive,’ which has obviously stalled and fails to reach the objectives set by Kiev."
Ukrainian forces shelled the Kakhovka HPP in the early morning hours on Tuesday, presumably using missiles fired from an Olkha multiple launch rocket system (MLRS). The gate valves of the plant’s dam collapsed as a result of the shelling, causing water to pour out uncontrollably.
As of now, the water level in Novaya Kakhovka has risen to above 12 meters. Fourteen settlements have been flooded and up to 80 are at risk of being inundated. People are being evacuated from neighboring settlements. However, according to local authorities, large-scale evacuations are not necessary. Farmlands along the Dnieper have been washed away. There is a risk of the drying out of the North Crimean Canal, which feeds water to Crimea.
Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov described the attack on the Kakhovka HPP as a deliberate act of sabotage by Ukraine. He added that the Kiev regime should bear all the responsibility for the consequences.