RUSSIAN CRUISE MISSILES DESTROYED IN CRIMEA BLAST, UKRAINE’S ROLE SUSPECTED

Tue 21 March 2023:

Multiple Kalibr cruise missiles were reportedly destroyed in the explosion, according to a statement from the Ukrainian military posted on its website. The statement claimed that the attack serves to further “demilitarise Russia and prepare the Crimean peninsula for de-occupation,” though it did not specifically mention whether Ukraine was behind the attack. Therefore, it is assumed that the Kyiv government may be responsible.

The missiles, according to the report, were being transported by rail and would have been fired from submarines.

The adviser to the interior ministry of Ukraine, Anton Gerashchenko, posted a video to Twitter that appeared to show a train station in the city being struck by a loud, single explosion.

Russian cruise missiles "Kalibr NK" were destroyed in Dzhankoi, Crimea, during their transportation by rail – @DI_Ukraine

It is reported that this video is from Dzhankoi. The voice says it's the train station area. pic.twitter.com/9UXMe2aKNR

— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) March 20, 2023

Sergei Askyonov, the Crimea’s newly appointed Russian governor, confirmed that a strike had taken place in the northern Dzhankoi town and added that the area’s air defense system had been activated. According to him, two buildings were damaged, and one person was hurt.

There is a Russian military base in Dzhankoi. The city and its surroundings have allegedly been transformed into Russia’s biggest military base in Crimea, according to numerous claims made by Ukrainian officials.

“An explosion in Dzhankoi city in the north of temporarily occupied Crimea destroyed Russian Kalibr-KN cruise missiles as they were being transported by rail,” Ukraine defence ministry’s main intelligence directorate said on Monday.

It claimed that the missiles were intended to be used for Russia’s Black Sea fleet, and had an operational range of more than 2,500km (1,550 miles) on land and 375km at sea.

The city of Sevastopol in Crimea serves as a significant naval base for Russia’s Black Sea fleet. There have reportedly been some of Russia’s most significant warships berthed, including surface ships with cruise missiles, according to CNN.