On Tuesday, in Crimea, annexed by Russia, there were explosions at an ammunition warehouse and train traffic was stopped. This is the latest such incident in the region, which Moscow is using as a supply line for its war in Ukraine.
Moscow’s top representative in the region, Siarhei Aksyonov, confirmed that two people were injured, rail traffic was halted and about 2,000 people were evacuated from a village near the military depot, but he avoided talk of the cause.
Ukraine has hinted at the participation, which, if true, could show it has new capacity to strike deeper into Russian territory, potentially changing the dynamics of the six-month war.
The Crimean peninsula on the Black Sea, which Russia seized from Ukraine in 2014 in a move not recognized by most countries, is home to Russia’s Black Sea Fleet and a popular summer resort.
Last week, explosions at an air base on the western coast of Crimea caused significant damage and destroyed several Russian military aircraft. Moscow called it an accident, although the simultaneous explosions left craters visible from space.
An electrical substation near the town of Dzhankoy also caught fire during Tuesday’s incident, according to video footage from Russian state television. It showed loud explosions on the horizon, which authorities said were caused by detonating ammunition.
The Russian news agency RIA reported that seven passenger trains were detained and that rail traffic on part of the line in northern Crimea was suspended. This could disrupt his ability to support troops in Ukraine with military equipment.
Ukraine has not officially confirmed or denied responsibility for the bombings in Crimea, although its officials have openly welcomed the incidents in the territory, which until last week seemed safe under Moscow’s rule outside the zone of action.
On Tuesday, an adviser to the President of Ukraine, Mykhailo Podoliak, cryptically wrote on Twitter: “Reminder: Crimea (as a) normal country is the Black Sea, mountains, recreation and tourism, but Crimea, occupied by the Russians, is warehouse explosions and a high risk of death for invaders and thieves . Demilitarization in Action’.
Kyiv seeks to disrupt Russian supply lines before a planned Ukrainian counterattack.
Like the airbase, the ammunition depot is outside the range of major missiles that Western countries recognize as being transferred to Ukraine, raising the prospect that it has acquired a new capability.
NUCLEAR GUILT GAME
In connection with the war, which has been ongoing since February 24, in recent days, attention has also been focused on shelling in the area of ​​the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine. Both sides blame each other for the risks to Europe’s largest nuclear facility, which Russia has seized, although it is operated by Ukrainian experts.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Russia of using the site as a shield for attacks and the risk of a nuclear disaster. He wants new sanctions against Moscow’s nuclear sector.
Russian officials say the shelling is being carried out by their enemies.
Reuters could not immediately verify reports from the scene of the battle.
The conflict has forced millions to flee, killed thousands and deepened the geopolitical rift between Moscow and the West.
Russia calls its invasion a “special military operation” to demilitarize its neighbor, protect Russian-speaking communities and counter the expansion of the NATO military alliance.
Ukraine and Western supporters accuse Russian President Vladimir Putin of waging an imperial-style war of aggression.
Putin accused the US of trying to “protract” the conflict in Ukraine by supporting Zelenskyi’s government. Washington also wanted to expand a “NATO-like system” to the Asia-Pacific region after a “carefully planned provocation” with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to China-claimed Taiwan this month, Putin told the conference.
Despite ​​the biggest attack on a European state since 1945, progress was made in a grain deal to ease the global food crisis caused by the conflict.
The ship Brave Commander left the Ukrainian port of Pudniv, carrying the first shipment of humanitarian food aid to Africa from Ukraine since the Russian invasion.
Ukraine’s grain exports fell due to the closure of Black Sea ports, raising global food prices and raising fears of shortages in Africa and the Middle East. read on
On the battlefield, the parties did not report significant changes in positions.
Ukraine reported on the continuation of Russian shelling and rocket fire in the eastern region of Donbass, as well as on the success in repelling an attempted Russian offensive in the area of ​​the Lysichan oil refinery in the Luhansk region of Donbass.
