As Ukraine promises to reclaim all lost territories, Moscow is bolstering its defenses, especially in Crimeaa peninsula it annexed in 2014 that is now one of the best fortified areas in the war zone.
After several weeks of earthwork, the area around the small town of Medvedovka, near the exit to mainland Ukraine, was fortified with a complex network of trenches several kilometers long. The trenches are shaped to give Russian soldiers a greater range of fire, and there are other fortifications nearby, designed to capture heavy equipment and tanks.
Dozens of Russian trenches are visible on Maxar Technologies satellite imagery published by the Washington Post.
“The Russian military clearly understands that in the near future they will have to defend Crimea,” said Russian military analyst Yan Matveev.
Russia began to prepare the Crimea for the Ukrainian offensive
Kilometers of trenches have been dug on Crimean beaches to protect them from #Ukrainian landing troops. In just a few weeks, dozens of miles of trenches were dug on the beaches of the peninsula, writes The Washington Post … pic.twitter.com/vht8YnEKRj
— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) April 3, 2023
The Russian defenses advanced rapidly, building miles of fortifications near Vitino, a city on the western coast of Crimea, over several weeks.
BTM-3, a Soviet-era military trench excavator, digs at about 800 meters per hour even in frozen ground. In fact, an internal U.S. military report from 1980 glorified the car, stating that there was nothing like it in the U.S., Europe, or Japan.
According to a related Washington Post article, Russia viewed online ads human resourcesspecifically builders for arranging trenches in the Crimea giving $90 fee daily.
The Crimean case is complex, and its future is uncertain. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has pledged to return the region to Ukrainian control, but his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin insists he will never cede it.
OUR geography area are represented by large Problems for both Ukraine and Russia. Crimea is connected to mainland Ukraine by a narrow swampy passage that could delay a potential Ukrainian attack. On the other hand, its proximity to the front poses risks for Russian forces, which risk becoming relatively easy targets for Ukrainian weapons systems.
Source: Washington Post.
Source: Kathimerini
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