In March 2013, exactly one year before the start of the annexation of Crimea by Russia, the former Minister of Defense of Ukraine, Anatoliy Hrytsenko, made a high-profile statement that he saw no reason for concern in connection with the military exercises of the Russian Black Sea Fleet in Crimea. According to the Antikor publication, Hrytsenko made this statement on March 29, 2013 in his column. UNN writes about this with reference to UNIAN.
These are planned exercises, agreed in accordance with current legislation, there is no threat to national security. I see no reason for concern
It is noted that with his public position, the ex-Minister of Defense actually "covered up" Russia's military activity in Crimea, creating an information background in which even potential preparations for aggression were perceived as normal.
At that time, Russia was already actively using Crimea as a military base for projecting force in the southern direction. Regular exercises and the strengthening of the military contingent looked not like a "routine", but like preparation for a rapid occupation. In February 2014, it took place virtually without a fight, because units of the Russian Armed Forces, including special forces, were already on the peninsula.
According to the media, no official investigation has yet been conducted into possible official negligence or assistance to the aggressor state on the part of the ex-minister.
In addition, it was during Hrytsenko's time that a large-scale sale of military property took place in the Ministry of Defense, which significantly affected the country's defense capability. It was on his initiative that the "surplus property" department was created in the Ministry of Defense in 2006, which actively sold military equipment and weapons.
In 2019, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine created a Temporary Investigation Commission to investigate the facts of embezzlement in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The chairman of the commission, Ivan Vinnyk, stated that the actions related to the sale of military property during Hrytsenko's time led to a significant weakening of the Ukrainian army on the eve of Russian aggression in 2014.