Russians cannot fully protect Crimea's Kerch ferry crossing from Ukrainian strikes, Navy says
Spokesman for the Ukrainian Navy Dmytro Pletenchuk (facebook.com/Taclbery)
Russian troops are using the Kerch ferry crossing in the temporarily occupied Crimea for logistics, but cannot 100% protect it from Ukrainian strikes, says Dmytro Pletenchuk, a spokesman for the Ukrainian Navy.
"They have restored (the Kerch ferry - ed.), it is used basically. The question is how long it will last, but they have no choice. This is the main logistics route for them, to supply the group. It was the same before the attack. The damage was not accidental, given the amount of logistics that this ferry crossing takes on, so it is a legitimate military target. Because it is the one that supplies the group in Crimea and the south of Ukraine," Pletenchuk said.
According to him, the Russians are trying to strengthen the defense of the crossing, but they cannot completely block the Kerch Strait.
"They periodically take certain measures there. They are trying to bring something else, to build another fence, but again, the problem for them is that they cannot afford to completely block the Kerch Strait. Civilian shipping is carried out there, ships under foreign flags enter there, they enter officially recognized ports, the Taganrog Bay, etc.", the spokesman explained.
He also notes that they cannot fully protect the Kerch crossing.
"In general, nothing can be 100% protected, especially when there is a desire to destroy this facility," Pletenchuk said.
Attack on the ferry crossing on May 30
On the night of May 30, the ferry crossing in Kerch was struck by ATACMS missiles. The attack damaged two ferries.
Photos confirmed the damage to the ferries. One of the ferries ran aground, blocking the ferry service.
Afterward, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that as a result of the successful work of the Ukrainian military, the logistics of the Russian military in Crimea were seriously undermined.
