Ukraine's attacks on the occupied Crimean peninsula have intensified in recent months. Russia is facing problems with both military supplies and supplies to the civilian population of the annexed peninsula.
The energy crisis in Crimea began in late May, when gasoline coupons were introduced, which ran out in one day. Against this background, a black market for fuel emerged in the region: local residents began selling cans of gasoline at a price significantly higher than the official one. As a result of Ukrainian attacks on energy infrastructure in June, problems with electricity supply also arose. A state of emergency was declared on June 26.
What do Crimean residents say about the electricity situation?
"I don't even have anyone to discuss what's happening - everyone around me has resigned themselves to it and is just putting up with it", says pensioner Nina, who lives in a small town near Feodosia. According to her, despite statements by local authorities about the existence of a power supply schedule, last week her area was without electricity for four days in a row. The telephone connection also works with frequent interruptions. "Not all private houses in our city are gasified - because of the power outages, some people cannot cook. It's good that we have water. True, only cold,", says the pensioner.
Tatyana is originally from Dzhankoy, but for the past 10 years she has lived in her husband's native village, not far from Yalta. After a strike on the local thermal power plant, her home is currently without electricity. The woman believes that in the northern part of the peninsula “it is the worst now”, as “there are no tourists there to complain on the Internet about the electricity supply schedule and mobile connections”. A resident of Northern Crimea Ivan (name changed by the editors) told DV that since July 6, the northern part of the peninsula has been completely without electricity. “There was no electricity for two weeks. In other settlements, the outages were on a rotational basis. If there is no electricity in the villages, it means that they also have no water. In recent days, they have been turning on electricity for two hours. There are no schedules”, says Ivan.
At a time when fuel is not being sold at all, only employees of the security forces and state administration, as well as workers from emergency services and medical assistance, have access to it, says Ivan. He adds that the crisis lasted for several days: cars simply stopped moving. According to him, the fuel situation has already begun to improve - people are crossing the Crimean bridge to refuel in Russia. “Then it turned into a business - they started reselling this fuel. Then restrictions were introduced on how many liters one person could transport with one vehicle through the checkpoint”, Ivan explains.
A group of volunteers is working in the northern part of Crimea, where they distribute drinking water and long-lasting products to people (primarily those of retirement age). Among its coordinators is blogger Elena Gerasimenko. In her blog, she tells how people in Crimea complain about the lack of help from the Russian-appointed “authorities”. On social media, residents of the northern part of the Crimean peninsula also say that due to the lack of communication and power outages, some of them are forced to deliver paper notes to their relatives through bus drivers, who, however, are running irregularly.
Strikes on Crimea stop Russian offensive towards Zaporizhia
The Ukrainian campaign to isolate Crimea is unfolding simultaneously in several directions. Strikes are being carried out in the Sea of Azov and in the Black Sea - against the so-called Shadow Fleet of Russia, consisting of small tankers and tugboats that transport oil to large ships and fuel to Crimea. In parallel, the Ukrainian operation to strike energy facilities on the annexed peninsula continues. The commander of the Ukrainian army's unmanned units, Robert Brody, recently explained that Ukraine is not deliberately attacking the Crimean bridge. In an interview, Brody noted that the bridge is being left as a corridor for people from the annexed Crimea to leave the peninsula.
Ukraine's actions fit into the concept of “isolation of the theater of military operations”, explains military expert Ivan Kirichevsky, who serves in the Ukrainian army. According to him, Kiev is operating in conditions of limited resources, so the available long-range drones are being used to make the logistics of the Russian army as difficult as possible.
The strikes on Crimea have a specific significance for the land front, explains Kirichevsky. “In order to deprive the Russians of the opportunity to approach Zaporozhye, pressure must be exerted on their communications in the temporarily occupied south, specifically in Crimea”, Ivan Kirichevsky explained to DW. According to military expert Pavel Narozhny, Crimea remains a huge military base on which the majority of Russian troops in the Kherson and Zaporozhye regions depend. Previously, a significant part of the logistics of the Russian armed forces passed through this peninsula. Now this artery is cut off by both sides.
"No longer just military problems"
Siddharth Kaushal, a senior research fellow at the British analytical center RUSI, says that this strategy, combined with the growing costs for Russia in the rear, could force Moscow to conduct serious negotiations to end the war. Even if this seems impossible now, if these actions continue, in the coming months the situation may change and "the Russian leadership may be pushed to a more rational position”. In the fall, the problems that Crimea is currently facing will deepen, warns expert Narozhny. "Putin will no longer have to solve only military problems. The problems of the population will also be added to them".
Authors: Liliya Rzheutskaya | Asya Lokina