live blog
The Russian occupiers declared a state of emergency after the destruction of the Kakhovka dam in the Cherson region. The dam breach has led to rising wheat prices worldwide. All developments in the live blog.
After the destruction of the Kachowka dam, British secret services expect further consequences. “The structure of the dam is expected to continue to deteriorate over the next few days, leading to further flooding,” the UK Ministry of Defense said. From photos and videos it appears that part of the dam is still standing. The authority did not provide any further information, including who might be responsible for the destruction.
The water continued to rise in the flooded towns. British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said on a trip to the US that British intelligence services were still examining evidence of the destruction. It is currently too early to make a final judgment on the causes of the dam collapse. Should Russia be responsible, it would represent “the largest attack on civilian infrastructure in Ukraine since the war began” and a “new low” in Russian aggression, Sunak said.
After the collapse of the Kakhovka Dam on the Dnipro River in southern Ukraine, the Russian occupation authorities have declared a state of emergency in the Russian-controlled part of the Kherson region. This is reported by the Russian news agency Tass, citing rescue services.
The Ukrainian general staff has described the blowing up of the Kakhovka dam as a Russian war crime. The aim was to prevent the advance of Ukrainian troops in the region, the staff said in its morning bulletin. The water from the Kakhovka reservoir continues to flow over the broken dam and floods large parts of the region in southern Ukraine. Around 80 towns are in the zone. The area is largely controlled by Russian troops. Ukraine recaptured the regional capital, Cherson, last year and also wants to liberate the rest of the region from occupation.
Shaded: territories occupied by Russia
After the partial destruction of the Kakhovka Dam, the water level in the flood areas on the banks of the Dnipro downstream of the dam has continued to rise. The situation is most difficult in the Korabel district of the city of Kherson, said the Deputy Chief of Cabinet of the Ukrainian President, Oleksiy Kuleba. The water reached a level of 3.5 meters there, and more than 1,000 houses were flooded. The United States and Britain, meanwhile, said they still had no evidence who was responsible for the dam’s destruction.
According to the authorities, one person was killed by Russian artillery fire in the southern Ukrainian region of Cherson. In the course of the past day, Russian troops have fired on the region several times, including the regional capital of the same name, Cherson, Governor Olexander Prokudin said via the short message service Telegram. One person was killed and another person was injured.
conflicting parties as a source
Information on the course of the war, shelling and casualties provided by official bodies of the Russian and Ukrainian conflict parties cannot be directly checked by an independent body in the current situation.
According to the Russian occupation authorities, at least seven people are missing after the rupture of the Kakhovka dam in southern Ukraine in the nearby flood plains. That’s what the Russian-installed mayor of the city of Nova Kakhovka, which is in the immediate vicinity of the destroyed dam, said, according to the Russian news agency Tass.
According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, an offer for F-16 fighter jets is on the table. “Our partners know how many aircraft we need,” explains Zelenskyj on his website. “I’ve already had an agreement on the number from some of our European partners… It’s a serious, compelling offer.” The government in Kiev is now waiting for a final agreement with its allies, including “a joint agreement with the United States.” It is unclear which countries want to provide the fighter jets to Ukraine.
According to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, British secret services are investigating the reasons for the destruction of the Kakhovka Dam in southern Ukraine. At the moment he “can’t say whether there is intent behind it,” said Sunak late in the evening before he left for a meeting with US President Joe Biden. It was “too early” to make a “final judgment” on the dam collapse, Sunak said.
Sunak called the destruction of the dam the “biggest attack on civilian infrastructure” since Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine began. According to the British prime minister, if Moscow were responsible for this, it would be evidence of “new lows in Russian aggression.”
Russian forces have repeatedly shelled an ammonia pipeline in the Kharkiv region of Ukraine, according to the region’s governor. “There is no danger to people’s lives and health,” Oleh Synyehubov said on the Telegram news app. The pipeline may be crucial in extending the agreement to allow grain and fertilizers to be safely exported from Black Sea ports despite the war.
conflicting parties as a source
Information on the course of the war, shelling and casualties provided by official bodies of the Russian and Ukrainian conflict parties cannot be directly checked by an independent body in the current situation.
After the destruction of the Kakhovka dam in southern Ukraine, world market prices for wheat and corn skyrocketed on Tuesday. On the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, prices rose 2.4 percent in early trading to $6.39 a bushel (around 27 kilograms). Corn was traded more than one percent more expensive, oats increased by 0.73 percent.
The dam breach raised concerns in markets that affordable shipments of wheat, barley, corn and sunflower oil from Ukraine to developing countries, where people are struggling with hunger and high food prices, could be disrupted. In southern Ukraine there are huge agricultural areas that may be affected by the water masses.