After nine days of explosions rocking Russian military outposts on the peninsula, RIA news agency on Wednesday claimed sources as claiming that Russia's Black Sea navy, which is based in seized Crimea, now had a new commander.
If true, the dismissal of the former commander, Igor Osipov, would be the most notable military dismissal in the nearly six months since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which resulted in significant manpower and material losses for that country.
The new commander, Viktor Sokolov, was introduced to members of the fleet's military council in the port of Sevastopol, according to sources cited by the state-owned RIA.
One source said it was “normal” that the appointment was not publicly announced at a time when Russia was conducting what it calls its special military operation in Ukraine.
The Black Sea Fleet, which has a revered history in Russia, has suffered several highly public humiliations in the course of the war that President Vladimir Putin launched on Feb. 24.
In April, Ukraine struck its lead warship, the Moskva, with Neptune missiles, causing it to catch fire and sink. read more
Last week its Saki air base in southwest Crimea, near the fleet’s headquarters at Sevastopol, was devastated by a series of explosions that destroyed eight warplanes, according to satellite imagery.
Then on Tuesday, blasts rocked an ammunition depot at a military base in the north of the peninsula. Russia called that an act of sabotage, and Ukraine hinted it was responsible. read more
On Wednesday Russia’s FSB security service said it had detained six members of what it called an Islamist terrorist cell in Crimea, though it did not say if they were suspected of involvement in the explosions.
PROUD HISTORY
The Black Sea Fleet is much larger than Ukraine’s navy and is a source of national pride dating back to its foundation under Empress Catherine the Great in 1783.Crimea, which Russia seized from Ukraine in 2014 and has extensively fortified since then, provides the main supply route for Russian invasion forces occupying southern Ukraine, where Kyiv is planning a counter-offensive in coming weeks.
The fleet has blockaded Ukraine’s ports since the start of the war in February, trapping vital grain exports, which are only now starting to move again under an agreement brokered by Turkey and the United Nations.
The fact that Ukraine has apparently been able to mount destructive attacks on what Moscow saw as a secure rear stronghold has served as a morale-boosting coup for Kyiv.
The previous commander, Osipov, 49, had been in charge since May 2019, according to his official biography on the defence ministry website.
His replacement, Sokolov, 60, had extensive experience of commanding minesweeping vessels and units in the 1980s and 1990s, then rose through a series of posts in the Pacific and Northern Fleets, serving as deputy commander in the latter. Since 2020 he has headed a prestigious military academy.