Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 472

By William On Jun 10, 2023

As the war enters its 472nd day, these are the most important developments.

This is the state of affairs on Saturday, June 10, 2023

Nova Kakhovka dam collapses

European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said “everything indicates” that Russia was responsible for the Kakhovka dam explosion. “The dam was not bombed. It was destroyed by explosives installed in the areas where the turbines are located. This area is under Russian control,” Borrell told Spain’s public television.
US spy satellites detected an explosion at the Kakhovka dam before it collapsed, The New York Times reported, citing an unnamed US official. The official said satellites with infrared sensors detected a heat signature consistent with a significant explosion.
Ukraine’s security service said it had intercepted a phone call between Russian military personnel discussing the Kakhovka dam explosion and how a sabotage team from Russia destroyed the site. The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) posted a short audio clip on its Telegram channel of the alleged conversation.

Ukraine continued to evacuate people in areas affected by flooding following the dam collapse, reporting that at least five people were killed. Ukrainian Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said on Telegram that four people had died and 13 people were missing in the Kherson region and one person had died in the Mykolaiv region as a result of the floods.
Water levels in some parts of southern Ukraine began to drop, officials said.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that Japan would provide emergency humanitarian aid worth about $5 million following the destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam, a Japanese government spokesman said.
United Nations Deputy Chief Martin Griffiths said it would take time to establish the full extent of the environmental damage caused by the destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam. “But we all know… this is an absolute disaster,” he said, describing the reservoir as a “breadbasket” that was important to the livelihoods of people living in southern Ukraine.

Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg accused Russia of causing the dam collapse in Ukraine, calling it an act of “ecocide” by Moscow.
Russia accused Ukrainian troops of shelling that killed civilians affected by flooding from the dam in Russian-controlled areas of Ukraine. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov called the attacks “beyond barbaric”. A day earlier, Ukraine accused Russian forces of firing on civilians and Ukrainian rescue workers in the flooded area it controls.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Ukraine has launched its expected counter-offensive against Russian troops, but without success. “Ukrainian troops failed to achieve their goals in any sector – thanks to the courage of Russian soldiers and good organization of troops,” he said.
Ukrainian Zelensky applauded the heroism of his forces amid reports of intensified fighting in the east and south in what is seen as the likely start of Kiev’s long-awaited counter-offensive. “We see your heroism and we are grateful to you for every minute of your life,” Zelenskyy said in his daily speech.

The Russian Defense Ministry reported that it repelled Ukrainian attacks in the southeastern region of Zaporizhia and thwarted repeated attempts by the Ukrainian army this week to break through the front line. A spokesman for the Russian Vostok Forces said 13 Ukrainian tanks were destroyed in battles in the Zaporizhia region and eight in the Donetsk region.
Ukrainian deputy defense minister Hanna Maliar said the situation on the frontline is tense and heavy fighting is concentrated in the Donetsk region to the east. “The situation is tense in all parts of the front. The enemy continues to focus its main efforts on the Lyman, Bakhmut, Avdiiv and Marin directions. Heavy fighting continues,” Maliar said on Telegram.
Russia unleashed airstrikes on Ukraine overnight, killing at least one person in a combined attack by cruise missiles and attack drones, according to Ukrainian authorities. Ukraine said it shot down four of the six missiles launched in the attack and ten of the 16 drones.

Three people were injured by shards of glass caused by a drone attack on a residential building in the southern Russian city of Voronezh, regional governor Aleksandr Gusev said. Gusev said the three people received medical attention at the scene and refused hospital treatment.
Russia will deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus after facilities there are ready on July 7 and 8, Putin told his Belarusian counterpart, Alexander Lukashenko, at a rally in Sochi.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin said an ammonia pipeline explosion will be considered during talks on the Black Sea grain export deal with Ukraine. Russia accused Ukraine of blowing up part of the pipeline in the Kharkiv region of northeastern Ukraine. Kharkiv’s governor said Russian troops fired on their own pipeline.

Russia has received materials from Iran to build a drone factory, White House national security spokesman John Kirby said. The White House has released a satellite image of the site of the future plant in the Alabuga Special Economic Zone, about 900 km east of Moscow.
The US Department of Defense announced a $2.1 billion additional military package for Ukraine, including Raytheon HAWK air defense systems and missiles, AeroVironment Puma unmanned aerial systems, laser-guided missiles and other munitions.

Belgium will supply Ukraine with 105mm artillery shells worth 32.4 million euros ($35 million), a spokesman for the Belgian defense ministry said.
The Russian Foreign Ministry summoned the Japanese ambassador over Tokyo’s announced decision to deliver military equipment to Ukraine.

Iceland will suspend embassy activities in Moscow from August 1 and has asked Russia to scale back its diplomatic activities in Reykjavik, the State Department said in a statement. The suspension is due to an “unprecedentedly low” level of commercial, cultural and political relations between the two countries, the ministry said. Diplomatic relations between the two nations have not broken.
The Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra is touring eight cities in Europe and the UK for the second summer in a row. The tour in support of the war effort in Ukraine runs from August 20 to September 3.

Hungary said it received a group of Ukrainian prisoners of war from Russia, a release Ukraine welcomed but expressed concern about not being informed. The prisoners of war came from the western part of Ukraine bordering Hungary, according to both the Russian Orthodox Church, which said it helped with the release, and Hungarian Deputy Prime Minister Zsolt Semjen.