Russian dam attacks ineffective in stopping Ukrainian counteroffensive, says British MoD
The destroyed bridge over the Siverskyi Donets river near the city of Balaklia, liberated from the Russian occupiers, in the Kharkiv region (Photo:REUTERS/Sofiia Gatilova)
Russian missile attacks on the Karachunivska and Pechenihy dams are unlikely to have caused significant difficulties for the Ukrainian military, the UK’s Ministry of Defense stated in a report published on Sept. 24.
The Pechenihy dam is located on the Siverskyi Donets River in eastern Ukraine, while the Karachunivska dam is on the Inhulets River near the city of Kryvyi Rih. Russian troops struck both dams with missiles on Sept. 21 and 22. The UK says that despite these strikes, the Ukrainian army continues to advance south of the strike sites along both rivers.
"As Russian commanders become increasingly concerned about their operational set-backs, they are probably attempting to strike the sluice gates of dams, in order to flood Ukrainian military crossing points," they concluded.
The attacks are unlikely to cause significant disruption to Ukrainian operations due to the long distance between the damaged dams and combat zones, the MoD believes.
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