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☆ Russian tourists need to cross active war zones in Ukraine to get to their summer vacations in occupied Crimea
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Russian tourists need to cross through occupied Ukraine to get to their summer holidays in Crimea. An expert told Insider that Russian tourism in Crimea is a priority for Putin and the Kremlin. "There's been a huge push on the part of Russian authorities to really sustain and even increase tourism in occupied Crimea for economic reasons, and for an integration of occupied Crimea into the larger Russian system," Hird said. Crimea is a legitimate military target for Kyiv and among the most important territories Ukraine hopes to reclaim in this war. Since the Kerch Bridge's shut down, Russian media released an instruction guide for Russian tourists traveling through occupied Ukrainian territories, Anton Gerashchenko, the advisor to the minister of internal affairs of Ukraine, tweeted.

Persons: Putin, Ukraine didn't, Karolina Hird, Evans Hanson, Vladimir Putin, There's, " Hird, We've, Hird, Anton Gerashchenko Organizations: Service, Ukrainian Security, CNN, Institute for, Russian Locations: Ukraine, Crimea, Kerch, Wall, Silicon, Russia, It's, Moscow, Kherson, Melitopol, Donetsk Oblast, Russian

☆ Russian tourists flee Crimea after attack on landmark bridge
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( Andrew Osborn | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/4] A train moves along the Crimean Bridge, a section of which was damaged by an alleged overnight attack, as seen from the city of Kerch, Crimea, July 17, 2023. State-run news agency RIA said a tailback of more than 5 km (3 miles) had formed as Russian tourists made for home - using the Chonhar bridge, which was briefly put out of action by a missile attack last month. Moscow blamed the attack on the Crimean bridge, the second since Russia sent its armed forces into Ukraine, on Kyiv. HOLIDAY CANCELLATIONS MOUNT UPKyiv says Russian tourists - more than 9 million of whom visited in 2021 - have no business holidaying on seized territory, especially while Ukraine is being bombed. The 19-km (12-mile) Crimean Bridge, a prestige project for President Vladimir Putin, is the route most Russian tourists choose to reach the peninsula, as well as a supply route for the Russian army in Ukraine.

Persons: Alexey Pavlishak, RIA, Vladimir Saldo, Elena Bazhenova, Crimea's, Ilya Umansky, Vladimir Putin, Andrew Osborn, Kevin Liffey Organizations: REUTERS, Kyiv, Russian Union of Travel Industry, Thomson Locations: Kerch, Crimea, Ukraine, Russia, MOSCOW, State, Moscow, Kyiv, Ukrainian, Russian, Ukraine's Kherson, Simferopol

☆ Russia says Ukrainian attack on Crimea Bridge kills two, orphaned daughter injured
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Blasts were reported before dawn on the 19-km (12-mile) road and rail bridge linking Russia to Crimea, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014. Russia blamed Ukraine for an attack on the bridge last October, saying it was organised by Ukrainian military intelligence and its director, Kyrylo Budanov. After the October attack, Russia launched strikes against Ukrainian cities including power supplies in retaliation. Crimea was transferred from Soviet Russia to Soviet Ukraine in 1954 by then Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev and recognised by Russia in 1994 after the collapse of the USSR. Footage taken from a train crossing the bridge showed passengers gasping as they saw the damage to the road.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, Vyacheslav Gladkov, Kyrylo, Sergei Mironov, Arkady Rotenberg, Nikita Khrushchev, Vladimir Saldo, Lidia Kelly, Guy Faulconbridge, Kim Coghill, Michael Perry, Lincoln, Nick Macfie Organizations: UN, Ukraine's Security Service, Mercedes, Russia, Thomson Locations: Russia, Ukrainian, Ukraine, KERCH, Crimea, Belgorod, Kyrylo Budanov, Russia's, Moscow, Soviet Russia, Soviet Ukraine, Soviet, USSR, Russian, Kherson, Melbourne

☆ Why the Crimean Bridge is so important to Vladimir Putin
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( Lauren Kent | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Also known as the Kerch Bridge, it holds personal value for Russian President Vladimir Putin. Here’s what you need to know:Why is the bridge so important to Russia? The Kerch Bridge is strategically important because it links Russia’s Krasnodar region with Crimea, which was illegally annexed by Russia from Ukraine in 2014. Rail traffic across the Crimea bridge is continuing to operate on Monday, albeit with delays, according to video on social media, a Russian official and Russian state media. A widely circulating video, which appears to have been captured this morning from a train passing on the parallel rail bridge, shows significant damage to one of the bridge’s road spans.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, Staff, ” Vladimir Konstantinov, Boris Rozhin, “, ” Putin, Dmitry Peskov, Marat Khusnullin, Ukraine Andrii Yusov, ”, ” Yusov Organizations: CNN, CNN Kyiv, Kyiv, Ukrainian military’s, State Council of, Novosti, TASS, Russian, Ukraine’s Security, Defense Intelligence Locations: Russia, Ukrainian, Ukraine, Moscow, Kerch, Crimea, Russian, Kyiv, Krasnodar, Europe, Kherson, Republic of Crimea

☆ Putin: Russian Defence Ministry preparing response to bridge attack
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

July 17 (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Monday his defence ministry was preparing proposals for a response to an overnight attack that damaged the road bridge linking Crimea to southern Russia, for which he blamed Ukraine. At the end of a televised video meeting with national and regional officials to assess the consequences of the attack, Putin called it a cruel and senseless act, as he said the bridge "has not been used for military transportation for a long time". Russian authorities had said a couple driving over the bridge to go on holiday in Crimea had been killed, and their 14-year-old daughter had been injured. Kyiv did not officially claim responsibility, but Ukrainian media said Ukrainian security services had deployed maritime drones against the bridge. Kyiv says Russians have no business holidaying on seized territory, especially while Moscow is bombing Ukraine.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, Marat Khusnullin, Kevin Liffey, Sandra Maler Organizations: Thomson Locations: Crimea, Russia, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Moscow, Kyiv

☆ This 12-mile-bridge in Crimea is a lifeline for Russia's occupation, but attacks and damages are making it a headache for Moscow
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

The Kerch Bridge connecting Russia and Crimea was damaged by explosions on Monday morning. An attack on the Kerch Bridge is far from "an extraordinary event," as Sergey Aksyonov, the Russian-installed governor of Crimea, said, according to The Kyiv Post. The damage was so severe, Kerch Bridge was closed for normal vehicle traffic until February 2023 and railway traffic until May 2023. "There's been a huge push on the part of Russian authorities to really sustain and even increase tourism in occupied Crimea for economic reasons, and for an integration of occupied Crimea into the larger Russian system." But defending the Kerch Bridge is a logistical nightmare for Russia, prompting a hoard of questions.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, Karolina Hird, Evans Hanson, Sergey Aksyonov, Putin's, Samuel Bendett, ISW's Hird, There's, " Hird, who's, it's, Bendett, we've, Hird, that's Organizations: Service, Institute for, AP, Ukrainian Security, CNN, Center for Naval, International Affairs Group, Russia, Black, Fleet, Putin Locations: Kerch, Russia, Crimea, Wall, Silicon, Russian, Ukraine, Kyiv

☆ Crimea Bridge: why is it important and what happened to it
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A cargo ship sails next to the Crimea bridge in the Kerch Strait, Crimea, March 14, 2023. The RBC-Ukraine news agency reported that explosions were heard on the bridge, with Russian military bloggers reporting two strikes. The bridge is a crucial supply route for Russian forces in Ukraine. In October, the bridge was damaged in a powerful blast, with Russian officials saying the explosion was caused by a truck that blew up while crossing the bridge, killing three people. CRIMEA AND RUSSIA LINKThe 19-km (12-mile) Crimea Bridge over the Kerch Strait is the only direct link between the transport network of Russia and the Crimean peninsula, which Moscow annexed from Ukraine in2014.

Persons: Alexey Pavlishak, Sergei Aksyonov, Vladimir Putin, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Putin, Arkady Rotenberg, Lidia Kelly, Michael Perry Organizations: REUTERS, RBC, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Crimea, Kerch, Russia, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Kyiv, CRIMEA, RUSSIA, Moscow, Sevastopol, Ukraine's Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Melbourne

Blood seeps from the door into a puddle on the road as an occupants of another car implores the girl to keep still. The video was verified by Reuters as having been filmed on the Crimean Bridge. The damaged car’s colour, alloy wheels and open fuel cap matched video from the scene shot in daylight, which showed the same car on the damaged bridge. "Two civilians were killed – a man and a woman driving a car on the bridge. "At about 3 o'clock in the morning, the family heard the first bang, after which the lights went out on the bridge," the relative said.

Persons: Vladimir Putin's, Angelina, Alexei, Nataliya, Vyacheslav Gladkov, –, Guy Faulconbridge, Lidia Kelly, Kevin Liffey, William Maclean Organizations: Reuters, Russia's, Thomson Locations: MOSCOW, Moscow, Ukrainian, Belgorod, Russian, Ukraine, Russia, Crimea, Europe, Melbourne

☆ Kramatorsk restaurant strike shows death can come any time
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-28 | by ( Ivana Kottasová | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —It was dinner time and the restaurant – a popular pizza joint in the center of Kramatorsk – was crammed with people. Just after 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, a Russian missile ripped through, killing at least 10 people. People comfort each other at the site of a Russian missile strike in Kramatorsk on June 27. Oleksandr Ratushniak/ReutersRescuers search for survivors after the Russian missile attack hit the Ria restaurant in Kramatorsk. In April last year, Russian forces carried out a missile strike on Kramatorsk’s railway station which was being used to shelter civilians fleeing the fighting.

Persons: Yulia, Anna Aksenchenko, –, Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Prigozhin, Vladimir Putin, Ria Lounge, Ria ., ”, Alex, Volodymyr Zelensky, Oleksandr Ratushniak, Wojciech Grzedzinski, Josep Borrell, ” Borrell Organizations: CNN, Authorities, Emergency Services, Institute for, Kramatorsk’s, Reuters, Anadolu Agency, Getty, “, Twitter, Ukrainian Security Service, Russian Armed Forces, Russia, Human Rights Watch, SITU Locations: Russian, Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, Kramatorsk, Ukrainian, Ria, Kramatorsk’s

☆ Exclusive: Ukraine has cultivated sabotage agents inside Russia and is giving them drones to stage attacks, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Natasha Bertrand Zachary Cohen Kylie Atwood | Natasha Bertrand | Zachary Cohen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

US officials believe these pro-Ukrainian agents inside Russia carried out a drone attack that targeted the Kremlin in early May by launching drones from within Russia rather than flying them from Ukraine into Moscow. But US officials believe that Ukraine has developed sabotage cells inside Russia made up of a mix of pro-Ukrainian sympathizers and operatives well-trained in this kind of warfare. Asked for comment, a spokesperson for the head of the Ukrainian Security Service suggested to CNN that the mysterious explosions and drone strikes inside Russia would continue. ‘A culmination of months of effort’There has been a steady drumbeat of mysterious fires and explosions inside Russia over the last year, targeting oil and fuel depots, railways, military enlistment offices, warehouses and pipelines. A savvy military strategyPublicly, senior US officials have condemned the strikes inside Russia, warning of the potential for an escalation of the war.

Persons: Russia –, ‘ Cash, they’ve, “, Volodymyr Zelensky, ”, Vasyl Malyuk, Kirill Kudryavtsev, Kyrylo Budanov, Budanov, Zelensky, ” Budanov, Nicolas Vaujour, ” Vaujour, Vladimir Putin Organizations: Washington CNN —, CNN, Kremlin, Ukrainian, Reuters, Ostorozhno Novosti, Ukrainian Security Service, Security Service, Getty, Pentagon, CIA, Washington Post, Yahoo, Joint Staff, UK Ministry of Defense Locations: Washington CNN — Ukraine, Russia, Ukrainian, Ukraine, Moscow, Russian, Ostorozhno, AFP, Russia’s Rostov, Rostov Oblast, Moscow’s, ”, Belgorod, Russia’s

☆ Ukraine has a network of sabotage agents in Russia and is sending them drone for attacks, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

US officials believe Ukraine is fostering a network of anti-Putin rebels in Russia, CNN reported. They also believe that such groups were behind the drone explosion over the Kremlin in May. Ukraine has not claimed any connection to such groups, but is reaping the military benefits. Several unnamed US officials believe the May 3 drone incident above the Kremlin was among several attacks carried out by such agents, the outlet reported. But, CNN reported, some US officials believe that pro-Ukraine partisans could have launched the drone from within Russia, bypassing such defenses.

Persons: —, Vasyl Malyuk, Cotton, Malyuk, Russia's, Kyrylo, Vladimir Putin Organizations: Putin, CNN, Kremlin, Service, Liberty of Russia Legion, UK's Ministry of Defense, coy, for Locations: Ukraine, Russia, May, Belgorod, Putin Russian, Russia's, Ukrainian, Zelenskyy, Moscow

☆ Surprise resort trips and empty hotel rooms reveal how Russia's plan for an easy victory in Ukraine fell apart
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-30 | by ( Stavros Atlamazoglou | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

While Russian intelligence services ramped up operations, the US intelligence community started declassifying intelligence about Russian plans. In an unprecedented move, the US revealed Russia's intentions and informed Kyiv about the Russian intelligence operations inside Ukraine. Once Russia's military secured the city, its special-operations forces would begin what the report calls "repressive operations." The Kremlin even compiled a target deck full of unwanted people to be "liquidated" once the Russian forces were in control of the country. Preparing the battlefieldA member of the Ukrainian military in front of a destroyed Antonov An-225 at the airport in Hostomel in July 2022.

☆ A Ukrainian mother whose son was executed in Bakhmut said there's no choice but to continue fighting even as Russia regains momentum
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-07 | by ( Erin Snodgrass | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The mother of a Ukrainian soldier who was executed said Ukraine must continue to defend Bakhmut. Paraska Demchuk told NBC News that the thousands of casualties in Bakhmut can't have been "in vain." But he had these words," Demchuk told NBC from her home outside Kyiv. "We have no other option but to continue fighting," Demchuk told NBC News. The Ukrainian military said in a Friday update that battles in and around Bakhmut continue even as Russia tries to take "full control."

☆ Russia spent vast sums paying a network of collaborators before the Ukraine war. Most simply took the money and ran, report says.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Russia sent masses of cash to pay off officials in Ukraine ahead of the war, the FT reported. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has long said that Medvedchuk was Putin's pick to become his puppet leader in Ukraine. With that supposed wellspring of pro-Russian support in Ukraine, the Kremlin envisioned installing Medvedchuk as leader the moment Kyiv had fallen. But none of it was enough to produce the groundswell that Medvedchuk so confidently depicted to Putin, the FT reported. Medvedchuk was arrested by Ukrainian security services in April last year and handed to Russia in a prisoner swap.

☆ Ukrainian security service accuses Orthodox cleric of supporting Russia
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

KYIV, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Ukraine's SBU security service accused a senior Orthodox Christian cleric on Friday of engaging in anti-Ukrainian activity by supporting Russian policies in social media posts. The announcement followed a series of raids of property used by a Ukrainian branch of the Orthodox Church that is historically tied to Russia and has come under increasing pressure since Russia's invasion. The Orthodox Church in Russia has backed Moscow's invasion, and Kyiv says some clerics in Ukraine could be taking orders from Moscow. Orthodox Church officials in Ukraine did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Since the collapse of Soviet rule, tensions have been high between the Moscow-subordinated church and an independent Ukrainian church.

CNN —Russian President Vladimir Putin has made a visit to the Kerch Bridge, a key link between the annexed Crimean peninsula and mainland Russia which was partially destroyed by an explosion in October, according to Russian state media. In another video Putin is seen walking along a section of the bridge. The Kerch Bridge pictured after the explosion on October 8. The 11-mile Kerch Bridge is the longest in Europe and carries both road and rail traffic. In 2018, Putin symbolically drove a truck across the Kerch Bridge to mark its opening, which was greeted with great fanfare on Russian state TV.

☆ Intense fighting flares in Ukraine's Donetsk region
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-17 | by ( Pavel Polityuk | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

REUTERS/Alexander ErmochenkoKYIV, Oct 17 (Reuters) - Intense fighting between Russian and Ukrainian forces was taking place around two towns in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine, Bakhmut and Soledar, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Sunday. Fighting has been particularly intense this weekend in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, which make up the larger industrial Donbas, and the strategically important Kherson province in the south. Russian forces shelled Ukrainian positions on several fronts on Sunday, the General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces said, with the targets including towns in Kharkiv, Donetsk and Kherson regions. Shelling by Ukrainian forces damaged the administration building in the city Donetsk, capital of the Donetsk region, the head of its Russian-backed administration said on Sunday. There was no immediate reaction from Ukraine to the attack on Donetsk city, which was annexed by Russian-backed separatists in 2014 along with swathes of the Donbas.

☆ Ukraine calls emergency meeting of security, defence chiefs
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

KYIV, Sept 29 (Reuters) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy will hold an emergency meeting with top security, political and defence officials on Friday, following the Kremlin's announcement of plans by Russia to annex four Ukrainian regions. "President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has called an urgent meeting of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine for tomorrow. The National Security and Defense Council includes, among others, the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, the defence, foreign and prime ministers, and the head of the Ukrainian Security Service. It is tasked with working with the president on developing and coordinating national security policy. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Max Hunder, Editing by Timothy HeritageOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Ukrainian collaborators who sided with Russian occupation were given top jobs and fancy titles. Now they're being hunted down.
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-23 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Around half the city has fled since Russia occupied the city in February, according to its elected mayor, Ivan Fedorov. On August 5, both Ukrainian and Russian sources reported that Vladimir Saldo has been put into a medically induced coma, citing a suspected poisoning. Saldo had the head of the government in the occupied city of Kherson. The business was owned by Balitsky and formerly had many Russian and Belarusian contracts, according to the BBC's Russian service. More than 1,300 people are under investigation for aiding the Russians in Ukraine, according to Ihor Klymenko, Ukraine's Head of National Police.

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