A drone hit the headquarters of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet in Crimea on Saturday, reaching the heart of a heavily fortified naval base that has long allowed Moscow to project power in the region.
The incident follows a series of explosions and possible acts of sabotage that have exposed the peninsula’s vulnerability, piling pressure on Russia to shore up its defenses there. Until recently Moscow could count on Crimea as a reliably safe rear base to oversee Russia’s occupation of the territory along Ukraine’s southern coast.
The drone’s ability to penetrate Russian-controlled airspace, arriving at the nerve center of Moscow’s naval operations, delivers a symbolic blow to the Black Sea Fleet, which was recently placed under a new commander.
Videos posted on social media showed a column of smoke rising over the Crimean city of Sevastopol, where the fleet is based.
Mikhail Razvozhaev,
the Russian-installed governor of the strategic port city, said on the Telegram messaging app that the drone “flew onto the roof” of the building. He later issued what he called a clarification, saying the drone fell on the roof and caught fire after being shot down by Russian air defenses.
The incident strengthened Nikita’s resolve to sell his barber shop and leave Crimea as soon as possible. The 34-year-old, who lives in Sevastopol, said Russian tourists had packed up following an explosion at an air base on the peninsula less than two weeks ago, and many of his own friends have also left since then.
Some were concerned they could be mobilized to fight against Ukraine, he said. Others were worried about getting trapped if the bridge connecting Crimea with the Russian mainland is disabled. Officials in Kyiv have recently said the Kerch bridge is a legitimate target.
Mr. Razvozhaev blamed the incident on Ukraine’s government in Kyiv, saying there was no serious damage to the headquarters and no one was harmed. He said all approaches and entrances to the site had been blocked by police and urged citizens to “remain calm and stay at home.”
Ukrainian officials did not immediately comment on the incident, but they have hinted at involvement in a string of blasts that have tested Moscow’s grip on Crimea in recent weeks. Russian authorities have downplayed the recent incursions in the peninsula, which became a Russian stronghold after Russia annexed it in 2014.
Officials in western Crimea said Russian air defense worked to repel small drones that flew over the city of Yevpatoria on Saturday morning.
Russian air defenses had “successfully hit all targets over Crimea,” said the peninsula’s Russian-backed governor,
Sergei Aksyonov,
adding there were no casualties or damage.
A spate of explosions at Russian ammunition depots, airfields and bridges have appeared to intensify the strategy Ukrainian forces have adopted in recent weeks—hitting Moscow’s supply lines in hopes of starving Russian troops west of the Dnipro River in the occupied Kherson region of resources and ultimately forcing them to retreat.
Ukraine’s immediate goal isn’t to retake Crimea, but to degrade Russia’s ability to wage war in the south and east, where Kyiv is seeking to regain territory captured by Moscow’s armies elsewhere.
A blast at an air base in Crimea earlier this month put more than half of the Black Sea Fleet’s naval aviation combat jets out of use, according to a Western official. It is not clear what caused the explosion.
Moscow blamed sabotage for an explosion earlier this week at an ammunition depot on the peninsula. An official in Kyiv said it was the work of Ukraine’s supporters.
“The issue on the agenda is the step-by-step demilitarization of the peninsula with its subsequent de-occupation,”
Oleksiy Danilov,
secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, said on Friday. Residents of Crimea who previously collaborated with Russia will receive a lighter sentence if they share information about Russian troops and equipment in the area, Mr. Danilov said.
Acts of sabotage and strikes deep in Russian-held territory have increased as the frontlines between Russian and Ukrainian troops become static following almost six months of combat that have worn both sides down.
Over the past week there have been minimal changes in territorial control, the U.K.’s Ministry of Defense said. In the east, Russian forces have advanced on Bakhmut but have yet to break into built-up areas of the city, the ministry said in its daily intelligence briefing. Increasingly frequent explosions behind Russian lines are, the ministry said, “probably stressing Russian logistics and air basing in the south.”
Ukrainian air defenses intercepted four Russian missiles over the central city of Dnipro on Saturday, according to
Valentyn Reznichenko,
head of the region’s military administration.
Also on Saturday, seven people—including several children—were wounded when Russian missiles struck a multistory residential building in the southern Ukrainian city of Voznesenk, said
Vitaliy Kim,
the head of the Mykolaiv regional military administration.
United Nations Secretary-General
António Guterres
said Saturday that a U.N.-brokered grain-export agreement was bringing hope to countries stricken by a global food crisis amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Mr. Guterres was speaking in Istanbul at the end of a three-day visit to the region, which included a trip to Odessa where on Friday he witnessed the loading of wheat onto a ship preparing to leave Ukraine under the agreement.
“I was so moved watching the wheat fill up the hold of the ship,” he said. “It was the loading of hope for so many around the world.”
He also said he hoped that the “extraordinary spirit and commitment” demonstrated by the participants in the agreement could eventually be harnessed to lead to peace.
While in Istanbul, Mr. Guterres also joined an inspection team on board one of the grain ships, the Invincible II.
Officials from Ukraine, Russia, Turkey, and the U.N. signed an agreement in July to resume Ukraine’s exports of grain and other foodstuffs through three of its Black Sea ports. The deal was the result of months of negotiations brokered by the U.N. and Turkey.
The grain agreement is a key achievement for the U.N. during the Ukraine war. The U.N.’s top decision-making body, the Security Council, has been powerless to push back on the Russian invasion or de-escalate the conflict, largely due to Russia’s veto power on the council.
Russia’s assault on Ukraine in February trapped millions of tons of grain in the country, paralyzing exports. Ukraine supplied about 10% of the world’s wheat exports prior to the war.
Dozens of ships have left Ukraine’s ports since the signing of the agreement, exporting more than 650,000 tons of corn, wheat and other products since shipments resumed on Aug. 1, according to the U.N.
—Jared Malsin in Istanbul contributed to this article.
Write to Ann M. Simmons at ann.simmons@wsj.com and Isabel Coles at isabel.coles@wsj.com
Copyright ©2022 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8