If Russia destroys the dam at the Kakhovka hydropower plant, then it is simply a terrorist act by a terrorist state, chemical weapons expert Hamish de Breton-Gordon writes for the Telegraph and warns of the possibility of nuclear escalation. With his army collapsing and his air force stuck in its hangars, Vladimir Putin seems willing to do almost anything to hold on to the already occupied regions of Ukraine.
Breton-Gordon says it is another war crime to add to the growing list, which also includes the illegal deportation of children – which led to the International Criminal Court issuing a warrant for his arrest.

The Russian military motivation behind the explosion is clear and expected. The vast area west of the dam is a "tank highway" to Crimea, and Putin knows his demoralized forces are likely to collapse before the Western Challenger and Leopard tanks. Flooding is likely to block this route for many weeks. The environmental and agricultural damage alone will be great, and without power from the Kakhovka hydro plant or the Zaporizhia nuclear plant, Ukraine will be without power for some time to come. This type of attack is not new and is predictable.

Breton-Gordon writes that he was one of the Peshmerga's advisers on chemical weapons in the fight against another Islamic State. In 2017, as the Islamic State was falling in Iraq, they blew up the Al Mishraq sulfur mine south of Mosul. From a tactical perspective this had the same effect as the destruction of the Kharkiv Dam. More than 400.000 tons of highly toxic sulfur dioxide flooded the direct approach of the advancing Iraqi army. At one point, a poisonous cloud headed toward Kurdistan's capital, Erbil, putting more than a million people at risk. Fortunately, the poison dissipated in the upper atmosphere.

But Ukrainians are cunning, the author adds. There is no doubt that the Ukrainian high command expects such a possibility and will have numerous methods to prevent it. In the early stages, it also appeared that the Russian plan may have backfired, as Russian troops defending the sector were reportedly overwhelmed.

However, Russia's long-term goal may be to arm the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant.

- I have been claiming for months that Putin would not even think of causing an incident at the nuclear power plant. But if the West shrugs its shoulders now, we will take a big step towards making such an incident a terrible reality - writes Breton-Gordon.

Without power or water at Europe's largest nuclear power plant, the likelihood of reactor meltdowns and spent nuclear fuel is starting to become likely. Putin has been threatening the West with nuclear weapons since the beginning of this war, but even if it is an empty threat, Zaporozhye can still be used as a makeshift nuclear weapon. It is uncertain what contamination would follow or where it would go, but it would be a global humanitarian and environmental disaster.

- The "special military operation" is now on its deathbed, and the self-confident, well-trained and equipped Ukrainian army is on the march. It is becoming clear that the Russian army will face a swift conventional strike, and with an army leader and commanders without morals or scruples, we must prepare for further unconventional violence. The attacks on schools and hospitals were a harbinger of the evil of the Putin regime, and the construction of the dam is another such move - writes Breton-Gordon.