Berdyansk: “To defend and maintain the sovereignty of Ukraine,” says Commander Ivan Ovchar of his ship’s mission. The threat, according to the commander and many of Ukraine’s supporters, is posed by Russia. US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has been expressing rising worry over Moscow’s military activity along the Ukrainian border for weeks. “We don’t know what President Vladimir Putin’s goals are, but we do know what has happened in the past,” Blinken said in Senegal on Saturday, alluding to Russian military incursions into neighbouring nations, whether acknowledged or not into neighbouring countries.
On November 13th, Ukraine’s new Defense Minister, Oleksiy Reznikov, declared that the speed of construction of a new naval port in Berdyansk would be accelerated. It was evident right away that there was still a lot of work to be done before this facility could be considered finished. The Berdyansk port region, where new quays and modern naval vessel facilities will be built soon. The goal was to finish the first phase of development by the end of the year, which included new residential quarters, administrative facilities, and a modest medical centre on the site of a decommissioned tin foundry. However, with fewer than six weeks to go, the main building still lacked a roof.
As we walked down onto the harbour, which was connected to a commercial port, the enormity of the undertaking became clearer. Since September, work on a housing facility at the Berdyansk port has been ongoing. The Ukrainian military claims that building has been increased and that personnel are now working 7 days a week. Ukraine, on the other hand, may not have two years to prepare for a fight. Brigadier General Kyrylo Budanov, the chief of Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence Agency, stated that Russia was boosting force numbers and weapon systems in Crimea in preparation for an offensive that might occur at any time. The Kremlin has stated numerous times that it has no ambitions to invade Ukraine. “The American and Ukrainian media claim that Russia is preparing for an attack on Ukraine, and we are saying that Ukraine is planning hostilities against Donbas, against the self-proclaimed republics of Luhansk and Donetsk,” Dmitry Peskov, spokesman for Putin, said Tuesday.