The Economist: Ukraine has turned Crimea into a source of depletion of Russian resources
Kyiv • UNN
On the eve of the appearance of the first F-16 fighters, Ukraine is conducting an active campaign to eliminate the Russian air defense network in the occupied Crimea. Analysts say that the Ukrainians systematically make Crimea " unsuitable for the presence of Russian troops there.
After Ukraine received ballistic missiles ATACMS with a range of 300 km, the Defense Forces can hit any target in the Russian-occupied Crimea. this is stated in the material The Economist, reports UNN.
Details
The publication emphasizes that an effective campaign in Crimea clearly demonstrates what Ukraine could have achieved if not for restrictions on the use of weapons.
NATO senior logistics adviser Ben Hodges stressed that the Ukrainians systematically make Crimea "unsuitable for Russian troops to stay there.
The Ukrainian armed forces have already demonstrated the ability of Storm Shadow and Scalp cruise missiles supplied from Great Britain and France, as well as their own naval drones, to hit Russian warships.
However, now Ukraine is using a deadly combination of missile strikes and increasingly sophisticated drones to systematically weaken Russian air defense in Crimea and destroy air bases.
British analyst Lawrence Friedman believes that the campaign against the Russian network may also be part of preparations for the arrival of the first batches of F-16 fighters.
Thanks to satellite and aerial reconnaissance provided by NATO allies, their own deep knowledge of the territory and agents, nothing can move in Crimea without Ukrainians knowing about it
He is confident that "the Ukrainians will demolish the Kerch bridge when they are ready." However, the Defense Forces have another equally difficult task - the elimination of a new railway line running from Rostov through occupied Mariupol and Berdyansk to Crimea.
The Economist notes that the first test of the strategic success of the Ukrainian campaign in Crimea may be this summer. if vacationers do not dare to go to the peninsula, it will be a bad sign for Putin.
This is due to the fact that Crimea is largely dependent on the tourism industry, and last year the number of bookings decreased by almost half.
Crimea has gone from being a prestigious project to a source of depletion of Russian resources
Addition
The publication noted that the advertised Russian S-400 air defense system was incapacitated during the latest Ukrainian attacks.
General Hodges notes that the S-400 is threatened not only by missiles, but also by sabotage by Ukrainian special forces operating in Crimea. According to him, each battery costs about 2 200 million and is not easy to replace.
recall
In the occupied Crimea, SBU drones hit the Russian Nebo-IED long-range radar detection system worth about 1 100 million. DOL.
