Occupiers building defensive structures en masse in Crimea — satellite imagery
On October 8, an explosion occurred on the Kerch bridge in occupied Crimea (Photo:REUTERS/Murad Sezer)
Russia’s military seems convinced that Ukraine’s long-expected counter-offensive will take place in Crimea, based onnew defensive structures seen in satellite images analyzed by journalists from the Schemes and Crimea.Realities projects.
They published photos taken on March 10, 13, 14, and 16.
The images show two lines of trenches built just behind the administrative border, near the Russian checkpoint in Armyansk and the Perekop Isthmus. A branching system of fortifications has been built along the E-105 road, near Lake Syvash.
Further inside the Crimean Peninsula, beyond the Perekop Isthmus, new lines of defense are being created. A network of trenches spreads across both sides of the E-97 road, near the village of Filativka.
A strip of forest behind the village of Ishun, along the road toward Vorontsovka, has been turned into trenches. At least seven kilometers of trenches can be seen near the Yevtaporia beaches.
These defensive structures effectively cut off the Kerch Peninsula. Near the E-97 road, behind the village of Batalne, new trenches and caponiers for equipment can be seen.
“This may indicate that Russia has already begun preparing for a possible attack by the Armed Forces of Ukraine,” the journalists said.
Russian occupiers are digging trenches and fortifications practically along the entire coast of the Crimean Peninsula or on the Kerch Peninsula, the permanent representative of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, Tamila Tasheva, told Radio NV in an interview.
In the fall of 2022, against the backdrop of statements by the Ukrainian government about the liberation of Crimea, Ukrainian military’s General Staff said the invaders were improving the fortifications of the defensive lines on the left bank of the Dnipro River and the north of the occupied Crimea.
Schemes is a Ukrainian investigative journalism project, which focuses on uncovering corruption and abuses of power in Ukraine.
Crimea.Realities is a project of Radio Free Europe/Radio Svoboda, which provides news and analytics about Crimea and its annexation by Russia. Both projects have extensively covered the situation in Crimea since the annexation in 2014.
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