Russian President Vladimir Putin is reportedly on the verge of giving up Crimea following the destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam in Ukraine.
Although Russia has yet to confirm if they were behind the blasts, many believe that Putin’s men were responsible for the destruction of the dam in southern Ukraine.
Anders Aslund, an economist and adjunct professor at Georgetown University, speculated that the Russian leader may be willing to give up Crimea for the sake of continuing his invasion of Ukraine.
“When you have lost territory, then you destroy it,” said Aslund, who has served as an economic adviser to the governments of Russia and Ukraine. “I think that this is something that you do when you give up. It’s not an offensive action but sour grapes. [Russia is saying], ‘We have lost the apple; we are destroying as much as possible.”
The dam reportedly plays an important role in sustaining Crimea because its reservoir feeds the North Crimean Canal.
“The North Crimean Canal, which delivers 85 percent of the water to Crimea, takes water from Nova Kakhovka. Without that, Crimea is not sustainable in the long run,” the economist added.
Aslund went on to explain that the dam’s demolition could “destroy Crimea’s agriculture,” as most of the water from the canal is used for farming or industry, and around a fifth is used for drinking water.
Elina Beketova, an in-residence fellow with the Democracy Fellowship program at the Center for European Policy Analysis, echoed Aslund’s comments and warned that Crime could face a drought.
“Crimea may be left without water—some Ukrainian authorities say—for years,” Beketova said. “Even though there are water reserves, we might see that Crimea will face problems with drinking water.”
2014 saw Putin attack Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula and annex it. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy started saying this as one of his prerequisites for a ceasefire after the Russian leader attacked Zelenskyy’s country in February 2022.
Putin and Kremlin officials have said that as part of any prospective peace agreement, not only will Crimea remain a part of Russia, but also the four Ukrainian territories that Putin illegitimately annexed in September 2022.
