"It is particularly telling that one of Russia’s first actions in the conflict, which officially began on February 24, 2022, was to destroy a dam on the North Crimean Canal – restoring the flow of water to Crimea.

(back in 2014) Kyiv had retaliated by constructing a dam on its side of the canal, cutting off Crimea’s liquid lifeline. In a matter of weeks, the North Crimean Canal was laid bare, reduced to a brown mass of mud and weeds.

The impact on agriculture was immediate and devastating. After a particularly harsh drought in 2021 which aggravated an already delicate situation, Moscow accused Ukraine of genocide and ecocide for its decision to block the canal."

https://h2oglobalnews.com/russias-hidden-water-war-in-ukraine/