The General Directorate of Intelligence says that Russian military facilities in occupied Crimea are among the targets to be struck by Ukrainian troops. Source: Vadym Skibitskyi, spokesman for the General Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, to the national joint news bulletin 24/7 Details: A journalist asked the representative of the General Directorate of Intelligence whether Ukraine could use the HIMARS and M270 systems on the territory of Crimea. Quote from Skibitskyi: “Today, the Crimean peninsula has become just a hub for the transfer of all equipment and weapons originating from the Russian Federation to the southern regions of our country… Secondly, you see how actively the Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Federation is used to launch missiles into our territory. These are Caliber systems, frigates, small missile ships, submarines, which are constantly on combat duty, waiting for orders and then launching, regardless of the time of day… Because of this, it is also one of the targets that must be hit to guarantee the safety of our citizens, our facilities and Ukraine in general.” Earlier: On July 15, Oleksii Reznikov, Ukraine’s defense minister, confirmed that Ukraine has decided not to use HIMARS on targets on the territory of the Russian Federation. When asked if the Ukrainian side’s commitment extends to Crimea, Reznikov replied: “I said [to US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin – ed.] that we have several strategic installations in the Ukrainian territories occupied by the Russians. He replied “we understand you”.
