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Ukrainian attacks on Crimea have reportedly prompted Russia to move the bulk of its Black Sea fleet from the peninsula.
Now Russia has signed an agreement to build a new naval base further away from the war – in Georgia.
“In the near future, there will be a permanent base for the Russian fleet in the Ochamchira district,” said the self-proclaimed president of the Abkhazia region.
More and more Ukrainian attacks have been directed at the Crimean peninsula.
In mid-September, Ukraine carried out a successful attack on the Sevmorzavod shipyard in Sevastopol. A submarine and a ship were destroyed, which, according to the British Ministry of Defence, caused “catastrophic damage” to the Russian Black Sea Fleet.
This week, a night raid was carried out by the intelligence service GUR against the Crimean Peninsula. Now comes the news that Russia intends to build a new naval base in the Black Sea.
Will build naval base in Georgia
Russia has reportedly signed an agreement to build a new naval base in the Georgian breakaway region of Abkhazia, reports Reuters.
“We have signed an agreement, and in the near future there will be a permanent base for the Russian navy in the Ochamchira district,” the self-proclaimed president of the region, Aslan Bzhania told Russian media.
Georgia describes the decision as a “gross violation” of their independence.
Abkhazia is a region of Georgia on the Black Sea. Since 2008, Russia has recognized Abkhazia and the region of South Ossetia as independent. Since 2009, Russia also controls their borders with Georgia, according to the Foreign Policy Institute.
Almost the whole world sees the region as part of Georgia. Only Russia, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Nauru and Syria have recognized Abkhazia as an independent state.
Special unit with jet skis
Under the cover of night and using jet skis and boats, the Ukrainian secret service GUR carried out an attack on the western coast of the Crimean peninsula this week. The special driver must have ended up in a fight with Russian soldiers.
“The special forces engaged in fierce fighting with the Russian invaders in the occupied territories, which led to significant losses for the enemy.”, writes GUR on Telegram.
On the way back from the mission, the Ukrainian special forces also ended up in battle at sea, according to GUR.
“This is not the first and not the last operation of the security and defense forces of Ukraine on the Crimean Peninsula,” writes GUR.
Severely damaged the Black Sea Fleet
The attack is not the first successful one against the peninsula occupied by Russia since 2014.
In mid-September, Ukraine managed to strike against the Sevmorzavod shipyard in Sevastopol. A landing craft and a submarine were damaged in the attack.
“Trying to restore the submarine will likely take many years and cost hundreds of millions of dollars,” wrote the British Ministry of Defence.
The ministry said the attack caused “catastrophic damage” and that the navy faced a major challenge in maintaining its ships.
The submarine “Minsk” is said to have been almost completely destroyed and was one of four Russian submarines with the capacity to carry cruise missiles. According to the British, it played an important role in Russia’s power over the Black Sea and the eastern Mediterranean.
Moves his fleet from Crimea
During Wednesday the Wall Street Journal reported that Russia has begun to withdraw the main part of its fleet as a result of the Ukrainian attacks. The ships and submarines are said to have been moved to other ports that offer better protection.
The next day came the news about the new naval base in Georgia.