The sea, which borders occupied southern Ukraine, is connected to the Black Sea via the Kerch Strait, and, crucially, Russia controls its coastline. AdvertisementUkraine's attacks have forced Russian warships to withdraw from Crimea and relocate to safer waters, where they have also come under attack. But this doesn't mean ships there will be safe from Ukraine's aerial drones and missiles, experts told BI. But he added that "Russia's warships in the Azov Sea are still at the mercy of Ukrainian missiles and aerial drones." AdvertisementMeanwhile, Russian "missiles can reach most of Ukraine from the Sea of Azov and ports along the Russian Black Sea coast," Clark said.

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Persons: —, Dmitry Pletenchuk, Pletenchuk, Matthew Boyse, Basil Germond, Mark Temnycky, Scott Savitz, Bryan Clark, Clark, Steven Horrell, Igor Delanoë, Savitz Organizations: Service, Kyiv Independent, Business, Naval Forces of, Armed Forces of, Hudson Institute's Center, Lancaster University, Council's Eurasia Center, RAND, US Navy, Hudson Institute, Transatlantic Defense, Security, Center for Locations: Russian, Azov, Kyiv, Ukraine, Kerch, Russia, Crimea, Armed Forces of Ukraine, Europe, Eurasia, Ukrainian, Western