Russian military sites in Crimea keep exploding, hinting at growing Ukrainian ambitions and abilities
Smoke rises over the site of an explosion at a Russian ammunition storage facility near the village of Mayskoye in northern Crimea on Tuesday.
Moscow’s admission that the latest blasts weren’t mere accidents could be pivotal for the conflict going forward, since the Kremlin has signaled it considers attacks there to be a red line.
The peninsula holds huge value for both Moscow, which annexed it in 2014 after a referendum that was not recognized by most of the international community, and Kyiv, which has vowed to reclaim Crimea as its land.
It has been a major strategic hub for Russia’s invasion of mainland Ukraine, providing important supply routes for its forces occupying the south and military bases to support its war operations. It’s also home to Russia’s Black Sea fleet.
Kyiv did not confirm or deny responsibility for the latest explosions, but top Ukrainian officials have heavily hinted at their country’s involvement.
“Crimea occupied by Russians is about warehouse explosions and high risk of death for invaders and thieves,” President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s adviser, Mykhailo Podolyak, tweeted Tuesday.
“Our soldiers are the best sponsors of good mood. Crimea is Ukraine,” the head of Zelenskyy’s office, Andriy Yermak, also said after the explosions.
In a thinly veiled message late Tuesday, Zelenskyy urged his compatriots in Crimea and other Russian-occupied territories to stay away from Russian military sites. He added that evidence of people fleeing the area in the wake of the explosions shows that Russians "already understand or at least feel that Crimea is not a place for them."
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