Andriy Chernyak, a representative of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, stated that Russia views occupied Crimea as a key military outpost. He made this remark in an interview while commenting on the training of drone operators on the peninsula.
This is reported by Finway
Three Components of the Occupation Strategy for Crimea
According to Chernyak, the Russian Federation is implementing several areas of influence in Crimea:
- Ideological pressure – aimed at fostering loyalty among all residents of the peninsula and instilling pro-Russian sentiments from an early age.
- Militarization – Russia is reverting Crimea to Soviet standards, saturating the region with military equipment and weapons. In Chernyak’s opinion, almost every settlement is being designated for military purposes, turning the peninsula into a “complete military unit.”
- Economic changes – the development of the military-industrial complex, particularly the production of drones, is seen as an attempt to create new jobs and reduce the region’s dependence on subsidies.
“They want every resident of Crimea to be pro-Russian. That is, children are taught from kindergarten that Russia is primarily its army. Secondly, undoubtedly, Russia views Crimea as a military outpost that should be maximally saturated with weapons – just like it was during Soviet times when every settlement had a military unit responsible for a particular area,” says Chernyak.
Militarization and Its Impact on Crimea’s Economy
Chernyak emphasized that despite significant financial investments from Russia, the economic situation on the peninsula remains challenging. He highlighted that residents of Crimea are facing a shortage of jobs, and many people lack employment opportunities.
At the same time, Crimea is actively training operators of unmanned aerial vehicles and developing drone production for the Russian army. Representatives of the Ukrainian Air Force regularly document the use of the occupied peninsula as a base for launching strike UAVs against the territory of mainland Ukraine.