Vladimir Putin’s commanders have ordered the evacuation of ships from the Sea of Azov, as Ukraine intensifies its attacks on Russia‘s navy.
The Sea of Azov is connected to the Black Sea by the narrow Strait of Kerch and lies between Russia and Crimea.
Ukraine‘s navy spokesman, Dmytro Pletenchuk, said the Kremlin had pulled out all of its warships from the Sea of Azov.
The decision follows a devastating attack earlier in the week on the nearby port of Kavkaz, which seriously damaged Russia‘s “last” transport ferry the Slavyanin.
The vessel was reportedly used by Russia to transport railway carriages, trucks and containers containing military supplies for Putin’s army in Crimea.
In a brief statement on Facebook, Pletenchuk wrote: “There is no longer a single Russian warship in the Sea of Azov.
“It seems that they [Russians] began to suspect something.”
He added later: “They decided to leave the waters of the Sea of Azov. This was caused primarily by the damage to the railway ferry.
“They took a map and a compass and decided that it was probably not very safe to stay there. This is the only language our enemy understands – the language of force.”
The Sea of Azov has come under previous attack by Ukraine‘s army, as it tries to prepare the ground to retake Crimea.
British-made cruise missiles fired by Ukraine‘s military hit a warehouse in Berdyansk on the northern coast of the sea at the beginning of June.
The Kremlin has been using the port to ship Ukrainian grain and metal to destinations in both Russia and around the world.
Ukraine has remorselessly targeted Russia Black Sea Fleet in the surrounding waters of Crimea, as well as air defence systems on the peninsula.
Russia fears the attacks presage an attack by an “armada” of F-16s to destroy Putin’s army in Crimea.
Ukraine is due to receive its first batch of the NATO fighters in the near future. The F-16s have caused panic among pro-Kremlin bloggers.
One wrote: “First comes the stage of overcoming our defences with ATACMS, then NATO aviation based on the F16 comes into play, under the wings of which there is a wide range of ammunition.
“Observing the latest events, one can indeed come to the conclusion the US under the Ukrainian flag is clearing the skies for the use of the aviation armada prepared in advance in Romania and Poland.”