Kremlin plans to oust longtime Russian-installed Crimea chief Aksyonov — ATESH
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The Kremlin plans to dismiss Aksyonov. (Photo: REUTERS/Alexey Pavlishak)
Officials in Moscow have made a final decision to remove
Sergei Aksyonov, the Russian-installed head of occupied Crimea who has held the
post since 2014, and plan to blame him for a looming humanitarian catastrophe
and failures to keep the peninsula supplied, the ATESH partisan movement reported on July 31.
The main goal of the purge is to ease social tensions and
quell local anger at the authorities. By sacrificing Aksyonov, Moscow hopes to
“let off steam” and distract Crimeans from the fact that the peninsula’s
systemic crisis stems from the occupation itself, rather than merely the
incompetence of “local officials,” ATESH said.
Sources within the movement said Aksyonov is expected to be
removed immediately after the September “elections” to avoid affecting their
outcome or fueling political instability during the vote.
Several potential successors have already been named. One of
the leading candidates is Alexei Dmitriev, the so-called Crimean interior
minister. Moscow appears to favor a security official who it believes could
effectively contain public discontent, ATESH wrote.
Another option under consideration is appointing a military
commander.
Strikes on energy facilities in occupied Crimea
On July 28, drones struck a power substation in Feodosia
during an attack on Russian-occupied Crimea.
On July 27, Russian-installed Sevastopol chief Mikhail
Razvozhayev reported that electricity restrictions had been imposed in the
occupied city.
Overnight on July 26, the Crimean Wind Telegram channel reported
that a fire had broken out at the Tavriiska thermal power plant near occupied
Simferopol following a drone attack. The Russian-controlled Krymenergo utility
acknowledged that some communities on the peninsula had lost power because of
an “external impact on power supply facilities.” A “difficult situation” with
electricity supplies was also reported in the northwest, east and south of the
occupied peninsula.
On July 24, Ukrainian Unmanned Systems Forces Commander
Robert “Magyar” Brovdi reported that Ukrainian forces had struck 19 energy
facilities in Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine on July 23 and 24, including 17
in Russian-occupied Crimea.
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