WATER AND ARMED CONFLICTS – CLASSIFICATION FEATURES: IN THE WORLD AND IN UKRAINE

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to study the concept of water conflicts, which can be unarmed and military (with the use of weapons), their classification features, to illustrate in practice the manifestations of water conflicts in the world and in Ukraine. The database of the Pacific Institute (USA), which monitors water conflicts, shows that water-related violence began several thousand years ago. Only for the period 2000-2022 this database contains about 900 cases of various water conflicts, of which about 15 are in Ukraine. Water conflicts are divided into types based on the use of water, the impact on water, or the role of water during the conflict. Water is a trigger or root cause of conflict when there is a dispute over control of a water body, resulting in violence. Water is a weapon in conflict when a water body (water resources) is used as a tool or weapon in a violent conflict. Water is a victim when it becomes the object of deliberate or accidental violence. During hostilities, water (water infrastructure) often becomes a victim. On the territory of Ukraine, one of the first water conflicts was recorded in 1941 – undermining the dam of the Dnieper hydroelectric power station by the Red Army, which retreated under the onslaught of German troops during the World War ІІ. The next wave of water conflicts on the territory of Ukraine is associated with the Russian-Ukrainian war, which began in 2014 – the Russian armed invasion of Crimea and its annexation in february-march 2014; war in eastern Ukraine (Donbass) since april 2014; full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine from february 24, 2022. According to the water conflicts recorded in the international database in Ukraine (mainly in the Donbas) during 2014-2022, the classification by type is as follows: 80% – water as a victim, 13 % – water as a weapon, 7% – water as a trigger. A number of water conflicts that have been taking place during the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine since February 24, 2022, have yet to be recorded in the international database (Mariupol, Mykolaiv, Vasylivka, etc.). A full assessment of the number and consequences of water conflicts on the territory of Ukraine, associated with the Russian-Ukrainian war, can be carried out after its completion.