The Crimean peninsula, under Russian control since 2014, was the target of drone strikes this Tuesday, forcing air defenses to intervene, revealed the governor of the administrative region of Sevastopol elected by the Kremlin, Mikhail Razvozhayev. At least two of the drones were destroyed, he told Telegram, explaining that civilian infrastructure had not been affected and calling on the population to “keep calm”. In an interview with Sky News, Ukraine’s Deputy Defense Minister Volodymyr Havrylov was confident on Saturday that Ukraine will regain control of Crimea by the end of the year – and that the war will be over by the end of spring to be.
Razvozhayev, pointing the finger at “Ukrainian Nazis” and saying that the Russian armed forces are “on high alert”, indicated that the target of the drone strikes was the Balaklava thermoelectric power station – near Sevastopol, a port that hosts Russia’s Black Sea Fleet. According to the governor, an attack was also carried out with three drones off the coast of this city. Moscow accused Kiev of attacking Sevastopol in late October using these remote-controlled air and sea vehicles. At the time, Russia temporarily suspended its participation in the agreement that allows the export of Ukrainian grain.
In the past, former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, the current number two on the Russian Security Council, has argued that a Ukrainian attack on Crimea would lead to “The Day of Judgment”. The peninsula, illegally annexed in 2014, has already been the target of spectacular attacks, including on the bridge across the Kerch Strait to Russia. Kiev has consistently denied responsibility.
Following the withdrawal of Moscow troops from Kherson, the only regional capital they had managed to capture in the aftermath of the invasion nearly nine months ago, pro-Russian authorities in Crimea have admitted to fortifying the peninsula. “Fortification works are being carried out on the territory of Crimea under my control with the aim of ensuring the safety of all inhabitants.” Kremlin-appointed governor Sergei Aksyonov said on Friday.
During a visit to the UK by Ukraine’s deputy defense minister, Sky News asked him if success in Kherson made other goals more likely, such as the recapture of Crimea: “It’s only a matter of time and of course we want it to be as soon as possible,” said Havrylov, sounding confident Ukrainian troops could be in Crimea “by the end of December”.
The deputy minister believes that the war could end by the end of spring, making it clear that Ukrainian society is united to end the conflict. “Everyone knows that any delay or frozen conflict is just the continuation of this war against the very existence of Ukraine as a nation,” he said. told the British channel.
searches in monasteries
An 11th-century monastery in Kiev, home to a branch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church that fell under Moscow’s jurisdiction but cut ties with Russia after the invasion, was searched by Ukraine’s security services (SBU) on Tuesday. Kyiv authorities suspect he has ties to Russian agents, with the Kremlin denouncing these searches as the latest chapter in the Ukrainians’ “war” against the Russian church.
In a statement, the SBU indicated that the Kiev-Pechersk Monastery (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) was the target of “counterintelligence measures” aimed at “combating the subversive activities of Russian security services in Ukraine”. The aim is to prevent the site from becoming the “Russian center of the world” or used by “intelligence and sabotage groups” and to store weapons. Other monasteries were also targeted by the same searches and the results of the operations were not disclosed.
The Russian Orthodox Church has criticized these house searches, calling it an “act of intimidation” and saying that “like many other cases of persecution of believers in Ukraine since 2014” it “will almost certainly go unnoticed by what calls itself the international human rights community.” calls”. “.”. The leader of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, was one of the voices in support of Moscow’s military actions in Ukraine. Russia lost several Ukrainian parishes in 2019 during a schism caused by the annexation of Crimea and support for separatists in the Donbass region, but some churches were still under Moscow’s jurisdiction. That changed after the invasion.
Cold as “Weapon of Mass Destruction”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday that Russia is trying to use the cold as a “weapon of mass destruction” by attacking energy infrastructure. “To survive this winter and prevent Russia from turning the cold into an instrument of terror and subjugation, we need many things.” referred to in a message sent to a meeting of French mayors, quoted by AFP. Zelensky called for generators, materials to support demining operations and equipment for the Ukrainian emergency services to be sent. The World Health Organization has called this Ukraine’s “winter of survival” following continued Russian attacks on infrastructure.
Source: DN
