Contents tagged with crimea

  • Ukrainian Media: Russia planning to blow up Crimean bridge and blame Ukraine for it

    Russia's special services are considering the possibility of committing sabotage "under a false flag" against their own infrastructure facilities, including the Crimean Bridge, in order to blame Kyiv and use it as a pretext for a military invasion of Ukraine, reports Telegram channel InformNapalm, citing its sources in the annexed Crimea.

    According to InformNapalm, Russians are carrying out secret underwater technical work in the restricted area surrounding the bridge over the Kerch Strait.

    " …

  • EU to tighten sanctions against Russia for annexation of Crimea

    The EU plans to tighten sanctions against Russia, introduced in connection with Russia’s annexation of Crimea, reported Spiegel, citing a confidential report of the German diplomatic mission in Brussels.

    According to the newspaper, new restrictions were requested last week in the EU by countries such as Bulgaria, Denmark, Lithuania, Romania. They would like to include five more individuals or organizations in the EU sanctions list. Names and titles are not known yet. As the newspaper notes, …

  • Head of German Navy: Putin deserves our respect

    Ukraine will not be able to take the annexed Crimea back, and Russian President Vladimir Putin "may deserve respect," said the Chief of German Navy, Vice Admiral, Kay-Achim Schönbach, during a discussion at the Indian Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses.

    "The Crimean Peninsula is lost. It cannot be returned. That's a fact. And we need to understand that political issues are matters of facts and emotions," Schönbach said.

    He believes that Russia does not really want to …

  • Russia begins large-scale military exercises in annexed Crimea

    Russia will hold exercises of the airborne forces in Crimea and the Krasnodar Krai, TASS reported, citing Russian Defense Ministry.

    The drills will begin on December 23 at the Opuk training ground in Crimea. The paratroopers, artillery, chemical and nuclear defense units will conduct live firing drills. The military will also practice demining a section of the terrain and providing fire support to the troops using drones and air attack weapons.

    "Military personnel will perform live firing …

  • Kremlin: Zelensky's statements about Crimea are a direct threat to Russia

    The latest statements by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky about Ukraine taking the annexed Crimea back represent a direct threat to Russia, said the press secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov.

    According to him, Zelensky's statement that the regaining control over Crimea should become Ukraine’s main goal and philosophy means that Kyiv "intends to use all available means, including force, in order to encroach on the Russian territory."

    Putin's spokesman added that while Kyiv’s …

  • Russian military in annexed Crimea trains to intercept cruise missiles

    Russia held military exercises using Triumph and Pantsir air defense missile systems, reported  the Russian Defense Ministry.

    "Combat crews of S-400 Triumph and Pantsir anti-aircraft missile systems from the Air Defense Forces of the Southern Military District conducted planned exercises to detect, track and destroy cruise missiles of a conditional enemy. The air targets of the conditional enemy "were modeled electronically with different parameters of flight speed and altitude, which made it …

  • Turkey vows to never recognize Crimea as Russian

    Turkey will continue to adhere to the policy of non-recognition of the annexation of Crimea by Russia, said Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu.

    "Turkey is actively in contact with Russia on many current issues, including the situation in Syria, Libya and Karabakh. There are differences in positions, but the parties adhere to the policy of constructive dialogue with mutual consideration of sensitive issues in the national interest. This, in particular, concerns Ukraine," Cavusoglu said at a …

  • Kremlin demands Google display annexed Crimea and Kuril Islands as part of Russia

    The head of the State Duma Committee on Security and Anti-Corruption Vasily Piskarev demanded at a meeting with the representaives of Google Corporation that the company display annexed Sevastopol, Crimea and the Kuril Islands as part of Russia in the Google Maps service, TASS reports with reference to the press service of the committee.

    According to Piskarev, at a meeting with Google’s representatives in April, he pointed out "inconsistency with national legislation in identification of …

  • EU imposes sanctions on 8 more individuals responsible for annexation of Crimea

    The European Council has imposed sanctions on 8 more people responsible for Russia's annexation of Crimea.

    "The persons added to the EU sanctions list include law enforcement officials - judges, prosecutors and security officers - responsible for enforcing Russian law in the illegally-annexed Crimea and Sevastopol. Those individuals have taken biased decisions in politically-motivated cases, and prosecuted or oppressed opponents of the illegal annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol," reads the …

  • EU preparing to establish a new military training base in Ukraine

    A military training base of the European Union may soon be established in Ukraine, reports the German newspaper Welt, citing internal documents of the European External Action Service (EEAS).

    The base will provide military training for Ukrainian military personnel amid Russia's "ongoing escalation" on Ukrainian borders.

    In August, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Russia had amassed a combat-ready military group of about 100,000 troops near Ukraine.

    Welt noted that the …