Ukrainiansoldiers could cross into Crimea “soon” according to one of the country’s top defence officials.
Crimea has been occupied by Russia since 2014 and is a key target of Ukraine’s counteroffensive which was launched in June.
The campaign has been slow going altough it seems to have picked up momentum in recent weeks with repeated attacks reported in Crimea including an explosion damaging the Kerch Bridge linking the peninsula with Russia.
Speaking to journalists about the possible entry of Ukrainian forces into Crimea, the head of the Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine’s defence ministry said this would happen “soon”.
Kyrylo Budanov, who was speaking to TSN, did not specify a particular date but said this would happen in the near future.
He was speaking as President Volodymyr Zelensky visited Ukrainian troops near the eastern Bakhmut front line on Saturday.
Photos published by Zelenskiy on Twitter showed him meeting troops and looking at maps in a dimly lit, windowless concrete-walled room. He praised Ukraine‘s Special Operations Forces.
Bakhmut direction, advanced positions of the Special Operations Forces. Today, I am here to congratulate our warriors on their professional day, to honor their strength. I heard a commander's report, talked with the warriors. Very powerful, very effective. Thank you!
— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) July 29, 2023
Although I… pic.twitter.com/9NwutI4Krc
“The performance of tasks for the sake of Ukraine by you, guys, is truly heroic,” Zelensky wrote.
Other Ukrainian troops have been seen using North Korean rockets they said were seized by a “friendly” country before being delivered to Ukraine, the Financial Times reported on Saturday.
The country’s defence ministry suggested the arms were captured from the Russians, the newspaper said.
The United States has accused North Korea of providing arms to Russia, including alleged shipments by sea, but has not offered proof and North Korean weapons have not been widely observed on the battlefields in Ukraine.
North Korea and Russia deny conducting arms transactions.
The North Korean weapons were shown by Ukrainian troops operating Soviet-era Grad multiple-launch rocket systems near the destroyed eastern city of Bakhmut.
Russia’s Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu made a rare visit to Pyongyang this week to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the end of the Korean War, the first visit by Moscow’s top defence official since the 1991 break-up of the Soviet Union.
During the visit, Shoigu was photographed viewing banned North Korean ballistic missiles with leader Kim Jong Un at a military expo in Pyongyang, signalling deeper ties between the two countries as they each face off with the United States.
