Ukraine has not yet commented on the allegations about the situation in the Kherson region.
Ukrainian troops are said to have crossed the badly flooded Dnieper River at the beginning of the month and dug in positions on the south bank of the river.
The destruction of the Kahovka dam has delayed Ukraine’s plans to cross the river by several weeks. Now the lowering of the flood waters has given the country’s armed forces new hope to carry out the operation.
British newspaper of The Guardian According to several Russian war bloggers, Ukraine has liberated the village of Dachi on the southern bank of the Dnieper. The village is located in the immediate vicinity of the city of Kherson, which was liberated by Ukraine last year, and the Antonovsky bridge, which was destroyed by Russia.
Ukraine is said to be seeking to establish a bridgehead between the Kherson and Datchi in order to move more equipment across the river and continue its advance towards the Crimean peninsula.
According to Russian bloggers, Ukraine has also taken over several buildings in the town of Olešky, which was badly flooded earlier in June.
The collapse of the dam of the Kahovka hydroelectric power plant has, after the floods receded, caused the lower course of the river to turn into a large sand field in places, making it easier to cross the river at certain points.
According to the bloggers, however, Ukraine’s progress in the region will be challenging, as the beleaguered Russian forces have received considerable support from the air force and the artillery department.
Finnish expert: Ukraine is testing the created sand flats
The head teacher of the Department of Military Art at the National Defense University, lieutenant colonel Jarmo Mattila according to that, blowing up the dam and flooding the area is a critical act usually associated with some phase of the operation.
– We don’t know exactly why the dam was blown up, so we can’t say whether it was a mistake. Ukraine has certainly had a lot of activity in the area, and something has caused Russia to resort to flooding the area. However, that withdrawal is connected to something.
– The water masses have carried a lot of sand with them, forming large sand flats in certain places. I believe that Ukraine is currently working to test the bearing capacity of these platforms.
Mattila does not think that the floods would have made crossing the river or progressing in the Kherson region easier for Ukraine than before.
– Although the river has receded and the flow has decreased, the condition of the roads on the other side is unknown. Even if Ukraine succeeds in building a bridge connection across the river, the other side may not have load-bearing terrain and roads.
So far, Ukraine has not publicly commented on the crossing of the Dnieper, or the ongoing actions in the Kherson region. Instead, Deputy Defense Minister of Ukraine Hanna Maliar said that the country’s armed forces liberated the village of Rivnopil in the Zaporizhia region on Monday.
It is believed that Russia has moved some of its troops withdrawn from the floods to the Zaporizhzhia front, where the main efforts of the Ukrainian counter-offensive have so far been directed. However, Mattila believes that the direction of Crimea is also still heavily protected.