Threats to Crimea justify de-militarisation of Ukraine — senator

17 Jul, 2022 11:35

If this isn’t done, Russian territory will always remain under threat, Andrey Klishas warns

Threats to Crimea justify de-militarisation of Ukraine — senator

Russia’s offensive should continue until Ukraine’s military capabilities are completely eradicated, Senator Andrey Klishas has insisted, in view of Kiev’s plan to strike Crimea.

“Threats from the Ukrainian junta to attack Crimea or the Crimean bridge only confirm that ‘denazification’ and demilitarization must be carried out throughout the whole of Ukraine, otherwise there will always be a threat to our territory, our citizens and infrastructure,” Klishas, who heads the Committee of Constitutional Legislation at Russia’s Federation Council, wrote in a Telegram post on Sunday.

“Denazification” and demilitarization have been cited by Moscow among the goals of the ongoing Russian military effort in Ukraine, which is currently focused on the south-eastern Donbass area.

On Saturday, the spokesman for Ukrainian Defense Ministry’s Directorate of Intelligence, Vadim Skibitskiy, told the broadcaster 1+1 that Kiev considered Crimea, which overwhelmingly voted to become part of Russia in a referendum in 2014, to be a legitimate target for its forces.

Ukraine threatens to strike Crimea with American missiles

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Ukraine threatens to strike Crimea with American missiles

When asked if the US-supplied М142 HIMARS and M270 MLRS multiple launch rocket systems could be used to target the peninsula, Skibitskiy responded by saying that Crimea has become a transport hub for Russian weapons and equipment during the conflict between Kiev and Moscow. Russian “Kalibr systems, frigates, small missile ships, submarines” in the area also “must be hit” as they endanger Ukraine’s security, he added.

Several Ukrainian officials and military commanders have issued warnings over the past four months that Crimea, as well as the 19-km-long Crimean Bridge connecting the peninsula to Russia’s Krasnodar Region, could be attacked.

Earlier this month, Alexey Arestovich, a top aide to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, said Kiev would target the Crimean Bridge as soon as it obtains the capability to do so.

Ukraine reiterates threat against Crimean Bridge

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Ukraine reiterates threat against Crimean Bridge

Officials in Washington have said that they were given assurances by the Ukrainian leadership that American weapons wouldn’t be used hit Russian territory as it could escalate the conflict even further. However, Kiev says it doesn’t view Crimea as part of Russia, considering the peninsula to be its own territory, occupied by Moscow.

Russia sent troops into Ukraine on February 24, citing Kiev’s failure to implement the Minsk agreements, designed to give the regions of Donetsk and Lugansk special status within the Ukrainian state. The protocols, brokered by Germany and France, were first signed in 2014. Former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has since admitted that Kiev’s main goal was to use the ceasefire to buy time and “create powerful armed forces.”

In February 2022, the Kremlin recognized the Donbass republics as independent states and demanded that Ukraine officially declare itself a neutral country that will never join any Western military bloc. Kiev insists the Russian offensive was completely unprovoked.

Ukraine threatened with ‘crushing blow’

Kiev is going to pay a heavy price if it decides to strike Crimea, a Russian MP warns

Ukraine threatened with ‘crushing blow’

Russia’s response to a mooted Ukrainian attack on Crimean targets will be so harsh that the Kiev authorities will never be able to recover from it, Mikhail Sheremet, who represents Crimea in the Russian parliament, has said.

Commenting on continued suggestions by Ukrainian officials that Kiev forces may hit targets on the Crimean Peninsula or the Crimean Bridge, Sheremet stressed that such a move would be followed by “a crushing blow to decision-making centers in Kiev, military infrastructure and arms-supply logistics channels.”

“The Kiev regime will receive such a rebuff that it will no longer be able to recover,” the MP told RIA-Novosti on Sunday.

The warning follows Saturday’s statement by Ukrainian military intelligence spokesman Vadim Skibitskiy, who claimed that Crimea could be targeted by US-supplied М142 HIMARS and M270 MLRS multiple launch rocket systems.

The peninsula is a legitimate target for Ukrainian forces due to becoming a Russian military transport hub amid the conflict between Moscow and Kiev, the spokesman said. Russia’s “Kalibr systems, frigates, small missile ships, submarines” in Crimea also “must be hit” as they endanger Ukraine’s security, according to Skibitskiy.

Ukraine threatens to strike Crimea with American missiles

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Ukraine threatens to strike Crimea with American missiles

Sheremet insisted also that “the US, which supplies lethal weapons to Ukraine, will also bear responsibility for the provocation towards Crimea.”

“Russia won’t play nice with its enemies if the US decides to join their ranks. We have the opportunity to put in place the American authorities, who have crossed all red lines,” he added.

Since Moscow launched its military operation in Ukraine more than four months ago, several high-ranking officials and military commanders in Kiev have claimed that Crimea, which overwhelmingly voted to reunite with Russia in a 2014 referendum after a coup in Ukraine’s capital, could be attacked by the Kiev’s forces.

Earlier this month, Alexey Arestovich, a top aide to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, said the Ukrainian military would target the Crimean Bridge as soon as it obtains the capability to carry out such a strike.

American officials had earlier claimed that their Ukrainian counterparts had promised them that US-made arms wouldn’t be used to hit Russian territory as it could escalate the conflict even further.

Threats to Crimea justify de-militarisation of Ukraine — senator

Read more

Threats to Crimea justify de-militarisation of Ukraine — senator

However, Kiev says it doesn’t view Crimea as part of Russia, considering the peninsula to be Ukrainian territory occupied by Moscow.

Russia sent troops into Ukraine on February 24, citing Kiev’s failure to implement the Minsk agreements, designed to give the regions of Donetsk and Lugansk special status within the Ukrainian state. The protocols, brokered by Germany and France, were first signed in 2014. Former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has since admitted that Kiev’s main goal was to use the ceasefire to buy time and “create powerful armed forces.”

In February 2022, the Kremlin recognized the Donbass republics as independent states and demanded that Ukraine officially declare itself a neutral country that will never join any Western military bloc. Kiev insists the Russian offensive was completely unprovoked.

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