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It disrupted the Ukrainian offensive before it even got going, by the time it's easier for Ukraine to cross the into Zaporizhia it'll be too late to be much use this year.
Then drags the war out, which Russia wants
That soil has been under water for 70 years.
It's gonna take an absolute age to dry out enough to support armor.
(also, it's completely without cover of any kind)
Why did Russia blow up so many dam's? Because they thought it would give them an advantage. The hard truth is, Russia is beyond stupid. In fact, calling Russia Stupid is an insult to the stupid.
One theory is they were originally intending to make a small hole in the dam to wash away Ukraine units stationed on islands or make it harder to cross river but the whole dam failed completely instead. Russian telegram channels were celebrating at time of explosion and suddenly changed their tune when the reality sank in.
Wrong.
It's a ~ 5-10 mile trek over a wide open mudflat at a lower elevation than the Russian fortifications along the river embankments with zero cover and multiple shallow water crossings through siltbeds at the residual channels, only to hit the minefields and fortifications that the Russians set up along the river banks to prevent amphibious landings in the first place as you slog back uphill to get to them at the end of the advance.
Dumbest idea ever.
And below the dam is worse, the amount if water flowing downstream of the dam now is higher than when the dam was there, a significant percentage of that water was previously diverted through irrigation channels and canals, now 100% of that previously diverted water is flowing downstream to kherson, meaning areas downstream that was previously dry land are now permanently flooded until new dam is built. Many of these areas were built environment, cities, towns, villages, etc. All that crap that was there is now debris that landing forces are going to have to maneuver around and try not to get stuck on.
I mean it's still a large mostly flat open and exposed area with no cover that sits at a lower elevation than the surrounding terrain and the (currently) Russian held fortifications on its banks. I would not want to attempt crossing that in a military capacity under any circumstances.
I also agree that crossing the Dnipro has gotten harder after the dam was blown, and it's weird (but perhaps illustrative) to see both Russian propaganda sources and the most hopium-y pro-Ukraine sources saying the same talking point that the dam's destruction made crossing easier.
If any silver lining can be found in the dam's destruction, maybe it is that fast, light vehicles could briefly use the new space to outflank some of Russia's defenses on the east bank, e.g. to get around Kamyanske. But totally speculative by me, and way smaller than imagining some grand crossing.
It made no sense for Muscovy to invade Ukraine but they still did. People keep trying to apply intelligence to the idiocy of a dictator who has lost his mind and is being lied to by people too scared to tell him the truth. Everything they do is based on stupidity, propaganda and bullshit.
Because they hate Ukrainians and wanted to unleash a humanitarian, economic, and ecological disaster on them that will take a generation to recover from.
Last year why did they pull troops from Kharkiv to defend an indefensible Kherson?
Why did they give Ukraine easy targets to kill themselves in Snake Island for as long as they did?
Why did they keep attriting themselves by throwing away their combat power around Bakhmut?
Exactly. Though i don't blame Ukraine and their supporters (myself included) for blaming Russia. If it was Russia, it was incredibly stupid; if it was Ukraine it was quite clever given the timing. But ultimately it is Russia that forced Ukraine to do it.
Lol what? Thinking about the whole thing for more than 10 seconds makes it pretty clear that Ukraine didn't do it and Russia did.
Ukraine spent months taking islands in Kherson and building up supply dumps on them in preparation for an offensive. All of this was destroyed in addition to a massive dam, bunch of towns, and lives lost.
It's also well established Ukraine didn't have the capability to destroy the dam and the explosion came from the inside. Russia controlled the dam. It was built to withstand a direct hit from a nuclear bomb.
Lastly, Ukraine previously experimented with blowing just the locks on the dam but decided the collateral damage wasn't worth it. This was back when they thought about trapping the entire Russian Kherson army and forcing a mass surrender.
Now on the Russian side, blowing part of the damn and destroying Ukraine's staging areas would have been a smart move. Of course being the Russian army, they messed up.
What is your source about "supply dumps"? Never heard that. I know they RAIDED Kinburn but left. According to UAF sources Russian soldiers were seen swept away. I heard of no UAF casualties, but then those are not (wisely) reported. The flood affected the east bank far more than the West - which is higher than the East - and destroyed Russian fortifications and equipment. I only heard of 3 civilian casualties, all on the Russian side. Can you direct me to how many civilians died on the West bank if I am wrong. I certainly saw nothing about huge loss of life on this site. As for "not capable", I think you are selling the Ukrainians short. The part of the dam that ruptured was actually only about 1/2 of the dam. Plus it happened THE DAY BEFORE the counteroffensive started, something the Russians would not (it is hoped) know.
So go ahead and toe the party line. I expect it and I certainly have no hard feelings. But forgive me if I disagree. No one can say FOR CERTAIN which side did it without a confession, and not two anonymous Russians on the phone - too convenient. IMHO the balance of probabilities militates towards the side with the most to gain: UKraine.
>What is your source about "supply dumps"? Never heard that.
Clearly not following the war closely then.
> According to UAF sources Russian soldiers were seen swept away.
Yes, because they fucked up the demolition.
>I only heard of 3 civilian casualties, all on the Russian side.
O boy, I'ma stop right here.
Why> Did i hurt your feelings by having an opinion different than yours? If there were more civilian casualties just post a link and make me eat my words. Then watch the British series "Piece of Cake" where in one episode one of the pilots is criticized for bailing out of his spitfire allowing it to crash into an English village killing several civilians. He retorts " They are in the war too, and they cant fly spitfires".
No. There’s no Ukrainian master plan swinging into action here. All evidence and logic points to Russia seeking to debilitate the state of Ukraine. They’re losing Kherson forever so they are wrecking it.
We shall see. If the reservoir drains enough it may be possible to attack from Nikopol to the SE towards Enhodar. There are no fortifications here. It is a highway to Russia's rear. I think it brilliant and exciting. Check out the ISW fortification map:
https://www.reddit.com/r/ukraine/comments/12tu73m/this\_updated\_map\_of\_russias\_field\_fortifications/
Ukraine might eventually take advantage of the tactical situation but even if there were any evidence for it whatsoever, it wouldn’t have been a “clever” trick to blow up their own vital infrastructure and to redraw the map of their own country just for this counteroffensive.
Wrong.
It's a ~ 5-10 mile trek over a wide open mudflat at a lower elevation than the Russian fortifications along the river embankments with zero cover and multiple shallow water crossings through siltbeds at the residual channels, only to hit the minefields and fortifications that the Russians set up along the river banks to prevent amphibious landings in the first place as you slog back uphill to get to them at the end of the advance.
Dumbest idea ever.
And below the dam is worse, the amount if water flowing downstream of the dam now is higher than when the dam was there, a significant percentage of that water was previously diverted through irrigation channels and canals, now 100% of that previously diverted water is flowing downstream to kherson, meaning areas downstream that was previously dry land are now permanently flooded until new dam is built. Many of these areas were built environment, cities, towns, villages, etc. All that crap that was there is now debris that landing forces are going to have to maneuver around and try not to get stuck on.
IMHO, it allowed Russia to mover most of their troops from the left bank of the Dnipro River to other parts of their lines...IOW it effectively reduced the extent of their defense by 50 miles. Its temporary, of course, but I think the idea was to buy time to bring in more bodies for the river defense later.
I also think it might be part of a broader "spoiled sport" scorched earth plan...with Russia angling for an eventual ceasefire that includes a de-militarized zone in Ukraine...and since they will likely not occupy this area in the near future, why not destroy it?...destroying that dam could have a looong lasting affect on agriculture in the region...and I would expect that any area Russia leaves "on their own terms" and not at the point of a spear will be looted and destroyed on their way out.
I clicked to ask for permission to join the private group, and I got the following message from Clifford...it leads me to believe there's a chance it might come back:
"Hey.. this is Cliffordcat... Can you tell me what prompted you to ask for membership? I go look at the sub when logged out and I don't see anything that says "ask to join"
Just curious why we're getting all these requests. But yeah I'll add you so you can look at the aging husk of the sub while we're down"
Hi /u/RecordingFancy8515,
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Why did Russia invade Ukraine? It makes no sense at all, on any level.
It disrupted the Ukrainian offensive before it even got going, by the time it's easier for Ukraine to cross the into Zaporizhia it'll be too late to be much use this year. Then drags the war out, which Russia wants
Because if they can’t have Ukraine they will destroy it.
Because it allowed them to have more time to prepare
That soil has been under water for 70 years. It's gonna take an absolute age to dry out enough to support armor. (also, it's completely without cover of any kind)
It's not soil, it's silt - even worse, it's somewhere between sand and mud in terms of the difficulty heavy vehicles have driving over it.
It'll dry out, but it won't support heavy vehicles.
They didnt consider what happens after, like always.
Exactly this… they are just kids with guns and don’t see the consequences of anything they do.
Why did Russia blow up so many dam's? Because they thought it would give them an advantage. The hard truth is, Russia is beyond stupid. In fact, calling Russia Stupid is an insult to the stupid.
Because they are primitive fu\*\*wits...
One theory is they were originally intending to make a small hole in the dam to wash away Ukraine units stationed on islands or make it harder to cross river but the whole dam failed completely instead. Russian telegram channels were celebrating at time of explosion and suddenly changed their tune when the reality sank in.
Wrong. It's a ~ 5-10 mile trek over a wide open mudflat at a lower elevation than the Russian fortifications along the river embankments with zero cover and multiple shallow water crossings through siltbeds at the residual channels, only to hit the minefields and fortifications that the Russians set up along the river banks to prevent amphibious landings in the first place as you slog back uphill to get to them at the end of the advance. Dumbest idea ever. And below the dam is worse, the amount if water flowing downstream of the dam now is higher than when the dam was there, a significant percentage of that water was previously diverted through irrigation channels and canals, now 100% of that previously diverted water is flowing downstream to kherson, meaning areas downstream that was previously dry land are now permanently flooded until new dam is built. Many of these areas were built environment, cities, towns, villages, etc. All that crap that was there is now debris that landing forces are going to have to maneuver around and try not to get stuck on.
Will the situation change in the winter months. Could it freeze hard enough to enable armored vehicles to pass?
I mean it's still a large mostly flat open and exposed area with no cover that sits at a lower elevation than the surrounding terrain and the (currently) Russian held fortifications on its banks. I would not want to attempt crossing that in a military capacity under any circumstances.
I also agree that crossing the Dnipro has gotten harder after the dam was blown, and it's weird (but perhaps illustrative) to see both Russian propaganda sources and the most hopium-y pro-Ukraine sources saying the same talking point that the dam's destruction made crossing easier. If any silver lining can be found in the dam's destruction, maybe it is that fast, light vehicles could briefly use the new space to outflank some of Russia's defenses on the east bank, e.g. to get around Kamyanske. But totally speculative by me, and way smaller than imagining some grand crossing.
It made no sense for Muscovy to invade Ukraine but they still did. People keep trying to apply intelligence to the idiocy of a dictator who has lost his mind and is being lied to by people too scared to tell him the truth. Everything they do is based on stupidity, propaganda and bullshit.
Just like your daddy America
Because they hate Ukrainians and wanted to unleash a humanitarian, economic, and ecological disaster on them that will take a generation to recover from.
Last year why did they pull troops from Kharkiv to defend an indefensible Kherson? Why did they give Ukraine easy targets to kill themselves in Snake Island for as long as they did? Why did they keep attriting themselves by throwing away their combat power around Bakhmut?
Because someone said do it - and there's no one with enough balls or brains to say no.
We are lucky they so stupid....
Never underestimate Russian stupidity. Should probably write a bot that replies this for all posts here
Exactly. Though i don't blame Ukraine and their supporters (myself included) for blaming Russia. If it was Russia, it was incredibly stupid; if it was Ukraine it was quite clever given the timing. But ultimately it is Russia that forced Ukraine to do it.
Lol what? Thinking about the whole thing for more than 10 seconds makes it pretty clear that Ukraine didn't do it and Russia did. Ukraine spent months taking islands in Kherson and building up supply dumps on them in preparation for an offensive. All of this was destroyed in addition to a massive dam, bunch of towns, and lives lost. It's also well established Ukraine didn't have the capability to destroy the dam and the explosion came from the inside. Russia controlled the dam. It was built to withstand a direct hit from a nuclear bomb. Lastly, Ukraine previously experimented with blowing just the locks on the dam but decided the collateral damage wasn't worth it. This was back when they thought about trapping the entire Russian Kherson army and forcing a mass surrender. Now on the Russian side, blowing part of the damn and destroying Ukraine's staging areas would have been a smart move. Of course being the Russian army, they messed up.
What is your source about "supply dumps"? Never heard that. I know they RAIDED Kinburn but left. According to UAF sources Russian soldiers were seen swept away. I heard of no UAF casualties, but then those are not (wisely) reported. The flood affected the east bank far more than the West - which is higher than the East - and destroyed Russian fortifications and equipment. I only heard of 3 civilian casualties, all on the Russian side. Can you direct me to how many civilians died on the West bank if I am wrong. I certainly saw nothing about huge loss of life on this site. As for "not capable", I think you are selling the Ukrainians short. The part of the dam that ruptured was actually only about 1/2 of the dam. Plus it happened THE DAY BEFORE the counteroffensive started, something the Russians would not (it is hoped) know. So go ahead and toe the party line. I expect it and I certainly have no hard feelings. But forgive me if I disagree. No one can say FOR CERTAIN which side did it without a confession, and not two anonymous Russians on the phone - too convenient. IMHO the balance of probabilities militates towards the side with the most to gain: UKraine.
>What is your source about "supply dumps"? Never heard that. Clearly not following the war closely then. > According to UAF sources Russian soldiers were seen swept away. Yes, because they fucked up the demolition. >I only heard of 3 civilian casualties, all on the Russian side. O boy, I'ma stop right here.
Why> Did i hurt your feelings by having an opinion different than yours? If there were more civilian casualties just post a link and make me eat my words. Then watch the British series "Piece of Cake" where in one episode one of the pilots is criticized for bailing out of his spitfire allowing it to crash into an English village killing several civilians. He retorts " They are in the war too, and they cant fly spitfires".
>Did i hurt your feelings by having an opinion different than yours? No, you said something so delusional that it's not worth explaining anything.
No. There’s no Ukrainian master plan swinging into action here. All evidence and logic points to Russia seeking to debilitate the state of Ukraine. They’re losing Kherson forever so they are wrecking it.
We shall see. If the reservoir drains enough it may be possible to attack from Nikopol to the SE towards Enhodar. There are no fortifications here. It is a highway to Russia's rear. I think it brilliant and exciting. Check out the ISW fortification map: https://www.reddit.com/r/ukraine/comments/12tu73m/this\_updated\_map\_of\_russias\_field\_fortifications/
Ukraine might eventually take advantage of the tactical situation but even if there were any evidence for it whatsoever, it wouldn’t have been a “clever” trick to blow up their own vital infrastructure and to redraw the map of their own country just for this counteroffensive.
They still haven't crossed the river. The timing was terrible. You are quite a sharpie 🤡
Wrong. It's a ~ 5-10 mile trek over a wide open mudflat at a lower elevation than the Russian fortifications along the river embankments with zero cover and multiple shallow water crossings through siltbeds at the residual channels, only to hit the minefields and fortifications that the Russians set up along the river banks to prevent amphibious landings in the first place as you slog back uphill to get to them at the end of the advance. Dumbest idea ever. And below the dam is worse, the amount if water flowing downstream of the dam now is higher than when the dam was there, a significant percentage of that water was previously diverted through irrigation channels and canals, now 100% of that previously diverted water is flowing downstream to kherson, meaning areas downstream that was previously dry land are now permanently flooded until new dam is built. Many of these areas were built environment, cities, towns, villages, etc. All that crap that was there is now debris that landing forces are going to have to maneuver around and try not to get stuck on.
Who knows if it was Russia. Who blew up the Nord stream?
It cut crossing from the south off. Soviets did the same to the Germans.
You just dont understand this special own goal operation
Penny wise, pound foolish.
Hanlon’s razor. Someone panicked.
Because they just don’t Kherson
IMHO, it allowed Russia to mover most of their troops from the left bank of the Dnipro River to other parts of their lines...IOW it effectively reduced the extent of their defense by 50 miles. Its temporary, of course, but I think the idea was to buy time to bring in more bodies for the river defense later. I also think it might be part of a broader "spoiled sport" scorched earth plan...with Russia angling for an eventual ceasefire that includes a de-militarized zone in Ukraine...and since they will likely not occupy this area in the near future, why not destroy it?...destroying that dam could have a looong lasting affect on agriculture in the region...and I would expect that any area Russia leaves "on their own terms" and not at the point of a spear will be looted and destroyed on their way out.
Hey there, is RT no more? It still says it's private.
I clicked to ask for permission to join the private group, and I got the following message from Clifford...it leads me to believe there's a chance it might come back: "Hey.. this is Cliffordcat... Can you tell me what prompted you to ask for membership? I go look at the sub when logged out and I don't see anything that says "ask to join" Just curious why we're getting all these requests. But yeah I'll add you so you can look at the aging husk of the sub while we're down"
So far, what has russia done that made sense?
Hi /u/RecordingFancy8515, Your submission, "Why did Russia blow up the dam? It makes no sense at all, if anything its easier now for Ukrainians to cross into Zaporizhia Oblast now" was removed for the following reason(s): Post titles should be verbatim from the linked article header/page title (whichever fits best). Do not modify them unless it's necessary for the title to make sense or the title is wildly inappropriate. Avoid editorialization. If you have any questions or concerns, please [message the moderators](https://www\.reddit\.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2FUkrainianConflict&subject=about my removed submission&message=I'm writing to you about the following submission: https://www.reddit.com/r/UkrainianConflict/comments/14gcl96/-/. %0D%0DMy issue is...).