The Russian occupation forces deliberately blew up the dam of Kakhovska Hydroelectric Power Plant (HPP) in order to suspend the process of de-occupation by the Ukrainian Defense Forces and distract public attention from the events in Russia's Belgorod region, Deputy Defense Minister of Ukraine Hanna Maliar has said.

"The Russian terrorist army has committed another crime that could lead to a serious environmental and humanitarian catastrophe. The Russian occupation forces deliberately blew up the dam in order to suspend the process of de-occupation by the Ukrainian Defense Forces and distract public attention from the events in Russia's Belgorod region," she said on the Telegram channel on Tuesday.

According to the deputy minister, the Russian occupiers had the opposite effect.

"The civilians in the temporarily occupied settlements of Kherson region and Crimea are in a critical situation since the destruction of the dam deprived them of fresh water," Maliar said.

In addition, the Defense Ministry said that the positions of Russian military units were flooded, which could lead to a large-scale washout of Russian minefields and their detonation in a chaotic manner.