New Delhi: Russia has accused Britain of “participation” in the drone strike in Crimea. According to Russia’s defense ministry, “experts” from the United Kingdom helped “train” and “supervise” the failed attack on Ukraine. “The Kyiv regime launched a terroristic attack against Black Sea Fleet ships and civilian ships that were on the outer and inner streets of the Sevastopol base. The attack involved nine unmanned aerial vehicles and seven autonomous maritime drones,” according to one of Russia’s Statement issued by the Ministry of Defense. “The preparation for this terroristic act and military personnel of the 73rd Marine Special Operations Center were trained under the supervision of British experts,” the statement said. Britain has yet to respond to the allegations.
Russia also claimed that representatives of the British Navy were involved in the planning and execution of the September 26 attack in the Baltic Sea to blow up the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines. The fleet’s headquarters and a logistics center for operations in Ukraine are located in Crimea linked to Moscow, which has been targeted several times in recent months.
The Russian military claimed to have “destroyed” nine aerial drones and seven maritime drones in an attack on the port early Saturday. The Russian military said the ships aimed at their Crimean base were part of a UN-brokered agreement to allow Ukrainian grain exports. According to an article by NDTV. Russia recently criticized the deal, claiming that Western sanctions have hurt its own grain exports. According to AFP, Moscow-appointed Sevastopol governor Mikhail Razvozayev said Saturday’s drone strike was the “biggest” attack ever in the peninsula.
Attacks on Crimea, which Moscow occupied in 2014, have escalated in recent weeks as Kyiv launched a counter-offensive in the south to retake the area Moscow had occupied for months. Moscow-founded authorities in Kherson, just north of Crimea, have vowed to fortify the city in preparation for an impending attack. In early October, an explosion over Ukraine damaged Moscow’s bridge connecting Crimea to the Russian mainland, which Putin personally inaugurated in 2018. A drone attacked a Russian fleet stationed in the port in August.
(with inputs from agencies)