Satellite images released on Thursday show the damage caused by Ukrainian strikes on a Russian air base in Crimea, hit days earlier in an attack that suggests kyiv may have obtained new long-range weapons that could change the course of the war.
The photos, published by independent company Planet Labs, show three craters that testify to the precision of the strikes, who destroyed the buildings of the Russian airbase in Sakiwith the wreckage of at least eight aircraft clearly visible.
The Russia denied any device destruction and said the explosions seen at the base on Tuesday were accidental.
L‘Ukraine did not publicly claim responsibility for the attack or say exactly how it was carried out.
“Officially, we neither confirm nor deny anything; there are many scenarios explaining what could have happened (…) bearing in mind that there were several epicenters of explosions at exactly the same time”Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak told Reuters in a message.
The circumstances of the attack remain mysterious. Some Ukrainian officials have suggested it could be an act of sabotage by infiltrators. The near-identical impact craters and simultaneous explosions, however, seem to indicate that the base has been hit by new long-range weapons capable of evading Russian defences.
The base is well beyond the range of advanced rockets that Western countries admit to having fired at Ukraine so far. Ukraine also has its own anti-ship missiles, which theoretically could be used to hit land targets.
A new phase
The war is expected to enter a new phase in the coming weeks. The front lines have hardly moved since June, but kyiv says it is preparing a major offensive to retake the southern regions of Kherson and Zaporizhia.
Russia refused Switzerland’s offer to represent Moscow’s diplomatic interests in Kyiv and said that Switzerland, having subscribed to most EU sanctions, could no longer be considered neutral.
Russian-backed separatists claimed to have captured Pisky, a small town on the outskirts of Donetsk, already in separatist hands, which has been the scene of fighting in recent days.
#Ukraine️ 08/11 With the strike against the Saky base in Crimea, the UKR forces dealt a terrible blow to Russia.
Infrared before/after image to see extent of damage. pic.twitter.com/31atKNge6G— cedric mas (@CedricMas) August 11, 2022
“It’s hot in Pisky. The city is ours but there are still scattered pockets of resistance in its north and west”separatist official Danil Bezsonov said on Telegram.
Ukrainian officials have denied that the city fell. Reuters was unable to verify accounts from the battlefield.
Oleksiy Arestovych, a Ukrainian presidential adviser, said in an interview posted on YouTube that the “Russian move towards Pisky” had been “without success”.
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