🇺🇸Russia has closed the passage of all ships, except Russian vessels, into the Sea of Azov.
A statement to this effect was issued by the General Directorate of Maritime Affairs in Turkey, Deniz Haber reports.
“According to the official notification we received from the Maritime Administration of the Russian Federation, the passage of ships loaded outside the Russian Federation through the Kerch Strait to the Sea of Azov is prohibited, – says the report.
We recall that last year, even before the full Russian invasion, the Ukrainian delegation to the OSCE stated that Russia was using its military presence in temporarily occupied Crimea to restrict the freedom of navigation through the Kerch Strait and gradually turn the Sea of Azov into its “inland sea.”
Military analysts had noted that following the liberation of the right bank of the Dnieper River by Ukrainian forces, areas such as Perekop Bay in Crimea and the entire Tauride Steppe north of the peninsula are now within firing range of Ukraine’s HIMARS missile systems. The Nova Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant and the hydraulic gates of the North Crimean Canal are also within firing range, but their destruction benefits no one.
If the Nova Kakhovka Dam is destroyed, Crimea will lose its water supply, as the dam regulates the level of the Dnieper River and ensures the water level in the North Crimean Canal. In addition, the destruction of the hydroelectric power plant could lead to the flooding of several dozen settlements.
TEXT: https://www.uawire.org/russia-closes-passage-to-ships-through-the-kerch-strait-into-azov-sea