The spokeswoman for the Foreign Ministry in Moscow, Maria Zakharova, expressed the suspicion on Friday that the government in Kiev was planning an attack before or on May 9th. On this day, Russia celebrates the Soviet Union’s victory over Germany in World War II. There is currently no statement from the government in Kiev.
The Crimean Bridge connects southern Russia with the peninsula and has been the target of Ukrainian attacks twice. Ukraine recently received longer-range ATACMS missile systems from the United States.
In February 2014, following the fall of Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, who was loyal to Moscow, Russia began sending soldiers without national insignia, so-called green men, to the peninsula. Only later did Russian President Vladimir Putin admit that they were Russian soldiers. On March 18, 2014, Putin sealed the annexation.
