Russians take 'operational pause' after Ukrainian army strikes Kerch shipyard
The Russian military had to take an "operational pause" after the Ukrainian army successfully destroyed a Russian vessel at a shipyard in temporarily occupied Kerch, Dmytro Pletenchuk, a Ukrainian Navy spokesperson, said during a national telethon on Nov. 5.
Ukrainian forces should be able to see the extent of the damage to the Russian ship Askold later, he added."The sun has to rise a little bit for us to see the results," Pletenchuk said.
Read also: Russian military’s smokescreens stir conflicting reports in Crimea, Ukrainian intel says
“As usual, someone will be unable to resist (the temptation) and will surely take a video – then we will have a complete picture. For now, we can only officially confirm that it was hit, regardless of the method and participants of this wonderful event.”
There is a video online with the reaction of residents in temporarily occupied Crimea, who "are simply delighted with the spectacular fireworks at the plant," the spokesperson said.
The situation in the Black Sea is currently stable, he noted, adding that Russia does not understand what to do after the Ukrainian attack, which is why it is taking an "operational pause" to change its tactics.
Read also: Ukrainian drones once again breach occupied Crimea's ‘impenetrable’ air defenses
"The first change they made was to disperse the personnel," Pletenchuk said.
“Perhaps now they will decide how to use other bases generally, given that Sevastopol will never be a safe base for the Russians. Hence the lull now.”
Ukrainian pilots hit the infrastructure of the Zaliv shipyard in occupied Kerch with cruise missiles, said Mykola Oleshchuk, commander of the Ukrainian Air Force, hinting that Storm Shadow missiles were used.
He wrote that "one of the most modern ships of the Russian Black Sea Fleet", a carrier of the Russian Kalibr cruise missiles was at the plant at the time of the attack and later confirmed these reports.
Ukrainian defenders successfully attacked the maritime and port infrastructure of the Zaliv shipyard in the Crimean city of Kerch on Nov. 4, Ukraine’s Commander-in-Chief’s Strategic Communications Department confirmed on Nov. 4.
Locals claimed that a Russian 22800 Karakurt-class corvette could have been damaged on the plant’s grounds. The Crimean Wind Telegram channel reported that the small missile ship Askold, a Kalibr cruise missile carrier that was launched in 2021, could have been ship that was damaged.
We’re bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron!
Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
