Crimea has been blockaded since 2014 when Russia illegally annexed the territory.
Russia is planning the integration of cities across the occupied Crimean peninsula – as well as other disputed areas around Ukraine’s southern border – into Russia’s sovereignty, according to multiple reports.
The Moscow Times reported that officials in Russian-controlled Crimea said Thursday that they will begin restoring traffic via formerly Ukraine-held territory, ending an eight-year blockade of Crimea.
“The transportation blockade of Crimea imposed by Ukrainian nationalists eight years ago is a thing of the past… the process of restoring freight and passenger service has begun,” Crimean official Oleg Kryuchkov told Russia’s state-run RIA Novosti news agency.
Crimea has been blockaded since 2014 when Russia illegally annexed the territory after protests led to the removal of Pro-Russian President of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych from office.
The lifting of the blockade is not the only measure intended to stabilize Crimea under Russian control. Ukraine’s GUR (Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine) reported that an advisor of Crimea information policy head Oleg Kryuchkov announced a comprehensive integration plan on May 1st – with a deadline of at least 2030 to further integrate the region.
Russia has appointed local governments to carry out and implement initiatives. For instance, the Russian military has organized press tours in captured cities and state media has published footage of Russian National Guard troops patrolling their streets, according to The Moscow Times.
In the southern port city of Henichesk, Kherson Oblast, the newly appointed City Councilmember organized a solemn raising of the Russian flag, while businesses in the Rostov region received orders to produce seals and stamps for the Russian administrations of Mariupol, according to the GUR.
As reported by The Jerusalem Post