Kakhovka dam partially destroyed, Prigozhin mocks Moscow

► Kakhovka hydroelectric dam partially destroyed

The Kakhovka hydroelectric dam, located in the Russian-occupied areas of Kherson region in southern Ukraine, was partially destroyed on Tuesday (June 6th), with Moscow and Kyiv accusing each other of responsibility.

Ukrainian forces carried out ‘multiple strikes’ on the Kakhovka dam overnight Monday-Tuesday, Nova Kakhovka town mayor Vladimir Leontiev said on Telegram, claiming they had destroyed the gate valves of the dam and caused an “uncontrollable discharge of water”. Volodymyr Zelensky will urgently convene his security council, while 16,000 people are in the “critical zone”, and evacuations have begun.

‼️About 80 settlements are at risk of flooding due to the blowing up of the #Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant dam by the Russian military, Prime Minister @Denys_Shmyhal said.

According to him, this also threatens an environmental disaster for southern Ukraine. pic.twitter.com/G6uhSFyjuU

— KyivPost (@KyivPost) June 6, 2023

The danger of a “nuclear disaster” at the Zaporizhia power plant “is rapidly increasing”, an adviser to the Ukrainian presidency warned on Tuesday. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), however, estimated on Tuesday that there was “no immediate nuclear danger” at the plant.

► Ukraine claims “success”

Ukraine claimed to be gaining ground near the ravaged eastern city of Bakhmout, but downplayed the scale of “offensive actions” elsewhere on the front. These operations take place at a time when the Ukrainian authorities say they have been preparing for months a vast counter-offensive intended to force Russian troops to withdraw from the areas they occupy.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked his troops for the territorial gains they claimed, ironically over Moscow’s “hysterical” reaction.

On the night of Monday to Tuesday, a new air attack targeted kyiv, “possibly using cruise missiles”, reported the civil and military administration of the Ukrainian capital.

► The head of Wagner describes as “fantasies” the Russian balance sheets

The Russian Ministry of Defense has meanwhile claimed to have countered since the morning of June 4 attacks on five sectors of the front “in the southern direction of the Donetsk region”, located in the East.

The Russian Defense Ministry said its forces had killed “more than 1,500 Ukrainian servicemen” and destroyed “28 tanks”. A statement derided by the leader of the Russian paramilitary group Wagner, Evguéni Prigojine, accustomed to virulent criticism of the general staff.

“It is only rantings”, commented the latter in a message on Telegram. Killing 1,500 soldiers in one day is “one hell of a massacre”, he quipped, mocking Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov. “In fact, why not add up all the numbers given by Konashenkov. I think we’ve already destroyed the whole planet Earth five times,” he quipped.

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