On Saturday, April 29, 2023, a massive fire broke out at an oil depot in Sevastopol, a port city in Crimea. According to a Russian official, the fire was caused by a drone strike from Ukraine. This was the latest attack on the annexed peninsula, which has been under Russian control since 2014.
The Drone Attack and the Fire at Oil Depot
Mikhail Razvozhayev, the Moscow-installed governor of Sevastopol, posted videos and photos of the blaze on his Telegram channel. He said two “enemy drones” attacked the oil depot, and four tanks burned down. A third drone was shot down, and a fourth was disabled by radio-electronic means.
Razvozhayev said that the fire was assigned the most severe difficulty to extinguish, but he claimed that the fire had been contained. He also said that the fire did not cause any casualties or affect fuel supplies in Sevastopol.
The Background of the Conflict
The drone attack came a day after Russia fired more than 20 cruise missiles and two drones at Ukraine, killing at least 23 people. Most of the victims died when two missiles hit an apartment building in Uman, a city in central Ukraine. Five children were among the dead.
Russia and Ukraine have been at war since 2014 when Russia annexed Crimea and supported separatists in eastern Ukraine. The conflict has killed more than 14,000 people and displaced millions.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in an interview this week that his country will seek to reclaim Crimea in the upcoming counteroffensive. He also called for more support from NATO and the West.
The Reaction and the Implications
Andriy Yusov, Ukraine’s military intelligence spokesperson, said that the fire was “God’s punishment” for “the murdered civilians in Uman, including five children.” He also said that more than ten tanks containing oil products for Russia’s Black Sea Fleet were destroyed in Sevastopol.
Russia has not admitted any responsibility for the missile attacks on Ukraine but has accused Kyiv of provoking violence and violating peace agreements. Russia has also deployed tens of thousands of troops near the border with Ukraine, raising fears of a significant escalation.
The international community has condemned Russia’s aggression and called for a peaceful resolution. The United Nations has also expressed concern about human rights violations against ethnic minorities in Crimea, especially Crimean Tatars.
The drone attack and the fire at the oil depot show that the situation in Crimea is volatile and dangerous. The peninsula’s fate remains a critical issue in the war between Russia and Ukraine.