Recent explosions in the Crimean town of Dzhankoi have restricted Russia's ability to transport military equipment and ammunition, particularly Kalibr missiles, said Ukraine's Southern Command spokesperson Natalia Humeniuk.
Late on March 20, an explosion in Dzhankoi destroyed Russian Kalibr cruise missiles during their railway transportation, according to the Ukrainian Defense Ministry's Main Intelligence Directorate. Russian occupying authorities in Crimea claimed it was a drone attack.
"They continue trying (to restore the railway connection), work is still ongoing, but a full-fledged railway connection, which would allow them to transfer heavy equipment, has not yet been restored," Humeniuk said on national television, cited by Ukrainska Pravda news outlet.
The military official added that Russian troops had tried to deliver missiles to the occupied Crimea by transport aircraft, but it is unclear whether they managed to reach the bays.
The Russian missile carriers stationed in the Black Sea have a limited supply of missiles for attacks against Ukraine so far, according to Humeniuk's March 31 statement, cited by Ukrainska Pravda.
Kalibr missiles, reportedly destroyed in the March 20 explosion, are designed to be launched from surface ships of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, according to Ukraine's military intelligence.
Russian troops regularly use this kind of missile to carry out attacks against Ukraine. Kalibr missiles can hit a land target more than 2,500 thousand kilometers away and reach a sea target from a distance of over 375 kilometers, the intelligence wrote.
The Crimean peninsula has been under Russian occupation since 2014 following a fake referendum staged by Russia to annex the territory.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has vowed since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion to return all of Ukraine's territory, including Crimea.
The Kyiv Independent news desk
(Updated: )
