Powerful explosions thundered in the temporarily occupied Crimea on March 20. As a result of the “pop”, the occupiers may miss a certain number of Kalibr missiles.

Andrey Kramarov, a military expert, told Channel 24 about this. According to him, explosions were heard on the railway in the temporarily occupied Dzhankoy.

The GUR reported that as a result of the “pop” a cargo of Caliber NK missiles was destroyed.

According to Kramarov, the attack was carried out by kamikaze drones. Probably, these could be Chinese Mugin drones, which have a good range and are capable of carrying a warhead of up to 25 kilograms.

“It is especially significant that all this happened against the backdrop of the visit of Chinese leader Xi Jinping to Moscow,” the military expert said.

Cause of powerful explosions in Dzhankoy

According to Kramarov, the explosions in Dzhankoy were very powerful.

“Probably, both warheads and starting engines began to detonate at the Kalibr missiles,” the military expert suggested.

He added that some other artillery ammunition could be transported along with the Kalibr. This is indicated by the scale of the detonation.

The value of strikes on the railway in the Crimea

Kramarov noted that there is no exact data on the state of the railway track after the hits. If it is significantly damaged, then it will pretty much spoil the nerves of the enemy.

One of the most important railway routes passes through Dzhankoy, which supplies shells and military equipment, as well as manpower to the South of Ukraine, – the military expert explained.

He added that so far the Ministry of Defense and the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine have not confirmed Ukraine's involvement in “cotton”. However, according to Kramarov, based on the statement of the Main Intelligence Directorate, one can say that this was a military operation by Ukrainian forces.

“Cotton” in Dzhankoy thwarted a new missile attack

The Russian occupiers were transporting a load of Caliber NK missiles through Dzhankoy, which then, probably, could be sent to the ports. It is not yet known exactly how many missiles were destroyed in the explosion.

“Russia can produce up to 20-24 such missiles per month. Perhaps these were the 24 units that the Russians tried to quickly put on combat duty on the ships of the Black Sea Fleet,” Kramarov said.

According to him, the occupiers could transport rockets in preparation for the next rocket attack on Ukraine. Training flights of fighters, which Russia actively conducted in mid-March, also speak of preparations for a new attack.

The Russians are aiming their hyper- and supersonic cruise missiles in preparation for the attack. By destroying these Calibers, we thwarted the next massive rocket attack on Ukraine,” the military expert emphasized.

He added that the Russian occupiers, even after that, would not give up their plans to attack Ukraine. However, as a result of strikes against Dzhankoy, it was at least possible to delay the next missile attack.

Impact on the resources of the Russians

As Kramarov said, in total, the Russians have more than 100 Kalibr missiles. This is already beyond the minimum critical quantity that should be in service with the Russian army.

Western sanctions are tightening. Therefore, there are fewer and fewer dual-use goods that the Russians are trying to use for the production of their missiles. – said the military expert.

He added that the technology for the production of missiles for Russia is becoming more and more complicated. Consequently, the loss of “Caliber” in Dzhankoy for the Russians will be a very significant blow.

“Cotton” in Dzhankoy: briefly

• According to Radio Liberty, objects in the temporarily occupied Dzhankoy were attacked by an UAV, which is one of the modifications of the Chinese commercial drone SkyEye. Military observer Alexander Kovalenko suggested that it could be a drone that can be bought from a Chinese online store.
• RosSMI wrote that four objects of the railway station were damaged as a result of the “pop”. In addition, after the attack on the station, there were power outages in the locomotive depot.
• After a series of explosions in Dzhankoy, the city's self-proclaimed authorities declared a state of emergency.