The Russian army's main advantage lies in its naval strength, but Ukraine has discovered a way to block it.Ĭrimea has historically relied on the North Crimean Canal, flowing in from the Ukrainian mainland, for up to 85% of the water it needs for crop irrigation, industry and drinking water. The Crimean Bridge is the only link directly to Russia. The Crimean Peninsula is connected to Russian-occupied southern Ukraine through just three vulnerable main roads that pass through swampy areas. Kyiv could be seeking to cut off Russian forces in Crimea and make Moscow’s occupation untenable. (After the last major attack on the Crimean Bridge, he drove across it in a Mercedes to prove it safe.) Former president and security council deputy chair Dmitry Medvedev has said that Russia could use nuclear weapons to defend the peninsula if Ukraine or NATO threatened to wrest it out of Russian hands.Ĭrimea houses the main base for Russia’s Black Sea Fleet at Sevastopol and supply lines for Russian forces occupying southern areas in mainland Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin has made several visits to the peninsula throughout the war to underscore his claim that Crimea is Russian soil. Moscow has made clear that Crimea must be held at all costs. While he's been reticent about Ukraine's goals for their ongoing counteroffensive, president Volodymyr Zelenskiy has said that Ukraine's forces will not rest until Crimea is brought back under Ukrainian control.

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