Military Watch Magazine: Ukraine Views Crimea as "the Strongest Fortress in the World"

The unique S-500 system can coordinate all air defense systems on the peninsula

(Image caption: S-500 Air Defense Missile System)

According to the U.S. Military Watch Magazine, Crimea, which was incorporated into Russia's territory at the beginning of 2014, remains a disputed territory between Ukraine and Russia. Ukrainian officials have repeatedly stated their plans to recapture the region through ground attacks.

Years before the full-scale conflict between Ukraine and Russia, large amounts of advanced air defense equipment had already been deployed on the Crimean Peninsula; since 2023, the local defense forces have been further strengthened.

Dmytro Plytchenko, a representative of the Ukrainian Navy, emphasized that the Russian Aerospace Forces have invested significant resources to strengthen the air defense capabilities of the Crimean Peninsula.

This naval representative stated that despite Russia's continuous strengthening of air defense deployments, the Ukrainian Armed Forces will continue to launch attacks on targets within Crimea.

The Ukrainian Navy believes that its unmanned boats have played a key role — these systems can effectively break through defense systems designed to intercept aerial attacks.

When talking about the current defensive situation in Crimea, Plytchenko said:

"I don't know what new air defense systems Russia can deploy in Crimea — they have already deployed everything they have there. Russia has long concentrated the S-500 'Prometheus' air defense system on the peninsula. From any perspective, Crimea is always a core area for them."

"For Russia, Crimea has important strategic and geopolitical significance. They will do everything to hold onto it. Moreover, the intensity of their reinforcement of the air defense system in Crimea far exceeds their defense investment in domestic oil refineries."

The deployment of an S-500 air defense regiment in Crimea fully reflects Russia's emphasis on the protection of the airspace over the peninsula.

In December 2024, the Russian government confirmed that it had established the first complete S-500 air defense battalion. The system has advanced anti-space and anti-missile capabilities, making it urgently needed for deployment across most of Russia's territory.

The S-500 is the world's first mobile air defense missile system with anti-satellite and anti-missile capabilities. Its core advantage lies in its powerful radar — with a detection range of up to 800 kilometers, a maximum interception distance of 600 kilometers, and the ability to intercept high-speed hypersonic targets.

Russia's timing of deploying the S-500 coincided with Washington's allowance of Ukraine to strike deep into disputed Russian territory. This has raised widespread speculation that Ukraine may use the recently delivered U.S. Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) short-range ballistic missiles to attack the Kerch Strait Bridge in Crimea.

Previous similar attacks by Ukraine were strongly supported by Western ground advisors, and also relied on aerial and space reconnaissance and intelligence collection equipment.

Crimea is a key target for Ukrainian attacks. Although most recorded attacks have been intercepted by the Russians, many have succeeded. The targets of Ukrainian attacks include key infrastructure such as beaches and bridges, as well as military targets such as air defense systems.

It is expected that the deployment of the S-500 will not only strengthen Crimea's defenses with its own advanced anti-missile capabilities, but also share data with other lower-level air defense systems through its high-performance sensor suite — including the long-range S-400, medium-range S-350 "Vityaz", "Buk"-M2, and short-range "Akhmeyt"-S and "Tor"-M2 systems, thereby forming a coordinated defense system.

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Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7555819338725376566/

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