A major energy crisis is continuing in annexed Crimea. It began in late May with the introduction of fuel ration coupons and sharply worsened in early July, when widespread power cuts started across the peninsula. According to Meduza, both the fuel shortage and the blackouts are linked to a Ukrainian military campaign aimed at isolating Crimea through strikes on trucks along the land corridor, vessels in the Azov and Black seas, and Crimean power substations.
The outages began in June and became widespread in July. On July 6, electricity went out across all of Crimea. In the following days, water supplies and communications also repeatedly disappeared along with power. The hardest-hit areas were in the north, where residents said they had been left without electricity and water for 7 to 10 days, and in some places longer. Refrigerators stopped working, food spoiled, shops could not process payments, and ATMs stopped dispensing cash.
The report says pensioners and rural residents have been especially affected. In Dzhankoi, mobile towers were switched to generator power, and internet and mobile service began operating on a schedule of about 8 to 10 hours a day. Because of communication failures, people in northern Crimea have reportedly been sending handwritten notes to relatives through intercity bus drivers.
The crisis has also hit the economy. According to unofficial reports, operations were suspended at the Krymsky Titan plant, the soda plant in Krasnoperekopsk, and a facility owned by the Druzhba Narodov agricultural holding, described as Crimea’s largest meat producer. Small shops and offices are closing, farmers lack fuel for the harvest, and hotel owners are cutting prices. In June, bookings in Crimea were down 58% from a year earlier, according to the report.
Social media users are collecting water, food, power banks and fuel for residents of the northern districts. Medical organizations said they are ready to store medicines that people can no longer keep at home without refrigeration. Residents complain that officials and lawmakers are providing little help. Vladimir Putin had earlier said that a supply system would be created for Crimea that would be very difficult for the “enemy” to reach. Yet, the article notes, food shops are closing and the official price of gasoline has risen above 200 rubles per liter.
Against this backdrop, members of the Ukrainian military are openly urging Crimea residents to leave. Robert Brovdi (Madyar), commander of Ukraine’s unmanned forces, said the Crimean Bridge was not being struck because it was being left as an exit route from the peninsula, and crudely told settlers to leave for Russia, “far beyond the Urals.” The meaning of his statement was that the loss of property and settled life in Crimea was payback for moving to the peninsula after its annexation.