"Chaos in Russia's military": Zelenskyj adviser names target and predicts further attacks on Putin's logistics

Created: 08/17/2022, 04:52

By: Bedrettin Bölükbasi, Felix Durach

There was another explosion in an ammunition depot in Crimea on Tuesday morning.

Moscow speaks of an "act of sabotage".

The news ticker on the military situation in the Ukraine war.

• Shoigu

  denies the effectiveness of the West

  's "super weapon"

  : The Russian defense minister claims that US multiple rocket launchers have had no "significant effect" on the course of the war.

• According to a report by the British Ministry of Defense on Thursday, the

  Russian Black Sea Fleet is taking a “

  defensive stance

  ” after losses .

• Another

  explosion

  in

  Crimea

  : Two people were apparently injured in detonations and a fire on the Black Sea peninsula.

• This news ticker on military events in the Ukraine war is updated regularly.

Update from August 16, 8:30 p.m .:

With further attacks on the supply lines of the Russian army in occupied areas, Ukraine says it wants to spread “chaos within Russian troops”.

An aide to the President of Ukraine, Mykhailo Podolyak, told the British newspaper

.

In the next two to three months, there could therefore be more attacks similar to the recent strikes against Russian troops in Crimea: "I think we'll see more of that."

"Our strategy is to destroy logistics, supply lines, ammunition depots and other objects of military infrastructure," Podolyak explained, adding: "This will lead to chaos in their own ranks." With regard to the counter-offensive in southern Ukraine he emphasized that unlike Russia, Ukraine is not using strategies from the "60s and 70s".

At the same time, the Ukrainian diplomat called for “50, 60, 80 more” US-made Himars multiple rocket launchers in order to demote Russian military strength.

He also reiterated that the Crimean Bridge, which connects mainland Russia with the peninsula, is a legitimate target for the Ukrainian military: “It is illegal construction and is the main route for supplies to the Russian army in Crimea .

Such objects should be destroyed.”

Ukraine war: Crimea explosions likely Ukrainian operation “behind enemy lines”

Update from August 16, 4:11 p.m .:

The explosion that occurred on the Crimean peninsula on Tuesday is said to have been the result of a military operation behind enemy lines.

This is reported by the US newspaper

with reference to an anonymous Ukrainian official.

Special units of the Ukrainian army are said to be responsible for the incidents.

This information cannot currently be independently verified.

The head of the Ukrainian Presidential Office, Andriy Yermak, described the explosions in the online service Telegram as early as noon as an "operation 'demilitarization'" and praised them as a "masterpiece of the Ukrainian armed forces".

These would continue their work until all Ukrainian territories were "completely liberated".

Smoke billows over an ammunition dump on the Crimean peninsula after an explosion on Tuesday.

© Sergei Malgavko/imago-images

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Reports of another explosion in Crimea – Moscow speaks of an “act of sabotage”

Update from August 16, 1:45 p.m .:

After the explosion on the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea, the Russian Ministry of Defense is now talking about an “act of sabotage”.

A number of civilian objects were damaged, including power lines, a power plant and railway tracks, as well as some residential buildings, it said.

There are no serious injuries.

Everything will be done to eliminate the consequences.

It was initially unclear who was responsible for the explosion.

Meanwhile, the Ukrainian portal

reports with reference to Russian media reports

of further explosions in Crimea.

The explosions are said to have occurred at a military base in the village of Hvardiiske near the regional capital Simferopol.

The base is therefore almost 93 kilometers away from the ammunition depot where the explosions occurred on Tuesday morning.

However, the information cannot currently be independently verified.

Explosion at Russian base in Crimea: Ukraine with a meaningful hint

Update from August 16, 12:41 p.m .:

The head of the Presidential Office in Ukraine, Adrij Yermak, has indicated that the Ukrainian military is responsible for the explosion in Crimea on Tuesday morning.

"Ukrainian armed forces continue delicate 'demilitarization' operation to completely rid our country of Russian invaders," Zelenskyy's confidante tweeted on Tuesday.

"Crimea is part of Ukraine," Yermak wrote.

The Russian Defense Ministry said the explosion was triggered by a fire at an ammunition depot.

According to current information, two people were injured in the incident.

The explosion is also said to have an impact on train services in Crimea.

The trains from Moscow should only go as far as Vladislavowka.

From there we continued by bus to the Crimean capital Simferopol.

2000 people are said to have been evacuated from the surrounding area.

Shoigu denies the effectiveness of the West's "super weapon" - Himar rocket launchers without effect?

Update from August 16, 11:50 a.m .:

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu downgraded the effects of US arms sales to Ukraine to participants at a security conference in Moscow.

The supplied Himars multiple rocket launchers would not have a "significant impact" on the war in Ukraine.

These weapon systems were staged by the West as "super weapons" for the fight against Russia, Shoigu explains further.

However, this is not the case.

Various experts had reported in recent weeks that weapon systems like Himar could change the course of the war.

Precisely because of their long range, the rocket launchers allow the Ukrainian armed forces to take aim at strategic Russian targets from a safe distance.

The truthfulness of Schoigu's statements cannot currently be checked against this background either.

Russian Black Sea Fleet appears to be taking “defensive stance” after losses

Update from August 16, 11:05 a.m .:

The British Ministry of Defense sees the Russian Black Sea Fleet as severely weakened in the ongoing Ukraine war.

While Russian ships continue to fire long-range missiles, the fleet is having trouble maintaining naval supremacy.

It was weakened primarily by the loss of its flagship Moskva, a significant number of its aircraft and control of Snake Island.

This was announced by the Ministry of Defense in its daily report.

As a consequence, according to British military experts, the risk of Russian troops landing in the strategically important port city of Odessa has largely been averted.

"This means Ukraine can move resources to put pressure on Russian ground forces elsewhere," the British concluded.

In general, the fleet would adopt a “defensive stance” in the current phase.

According to London, the Russian ships are only partially able to effectively support Moscow's invasion efforts in Ukraine.

Ukraine-News: Another explosion on the Crimean Peninsula - the causes are currently unclear

First report from August 16:

Moscow - According to the Russian army, there was another explosion on Tuesday morning on the annexed Black Sea peninsula of Crimea.

The fire is said to have broken out at around 5:15 a.m. at a makeshift ammunition storage facility at a base in the Dzhankoy district in the north of the peninsula.

A nearby substation is also said to be affected.

Crimea chief of administration Sergey Aksyonov said on site that there were two injured.

The Russian Ministry of Defense must comment on the reasons for the detonation, he said.

Another explosion in Crimea - the causes of the incident are still unclear

"An evacuation is underway, and a five-kilometer security zone is being formed for the safety of residents," the governor said.

Defense Department, National Guard and Civil Defense forces are deployed.

Last week there was a serious explosion at a military base in Crimea.

According to official figures, 14 people were injured in the incident.

Another person died.

Experts believe Ukraine struck the base, destroying several fighter jets.

Kyiv has not officially confirmed the attack.

Russia, on the other hand, claims the explosion occurred because of fire safety violations.

Presidential adviser Podolyak: "Increased risk of death for invaders" in Crimea

The government in Kyiv also did not officially comment on the explosion on Tuesday.

However, Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak wrote on Twitter on Tuesday morning that there was an “increased risk of death for invaders and thieves” in Russian-occupied Crimea.

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Last week, the

.

Depending on the type, these AGM-88 HARM missiles have a range of 150 kilometers.

Selenskyj calls on Moscow again to withdraw from Zaporizhia

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has not yet commented on the incident.

However, the 44-year-old was again concerned on Monday evening with regard to the situation around the Ukrainian nuclear power plant Zaporizhia.

The largest nuclear power plant in Europe is still occupied by Russian troops.

In his daily video speech, Zelenskyy again called on Moscow to withdraw from the reactor site.

"Any radioactive incident at the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant could also become a blow to the countries of the European Union and Turkey and Georgia and the countries of more distant regions," the head of state said.