Threat of missile strikes remains despite Russia keeping no carriers off Crimea coast - army spox

That’s according to Natalia Humeniuk, head of the Southern Defense Forces joint press center, who spoke at the national telethon, Ukrinform reports.

"The threat of strikes hasn’t gone anywhere even despite the fact that all the missile carriers are currently at their bases. Before that, for several days, they kept on combat duty three to five warships at sea, then it was two carriers. One way or another, they flexed their muscles in an attempt to demonstrate their presence and might," Humeniuk said.

She noted that deploying and withdrawing missile carriers is an element of hybrid warfare as the enemy tries to keep the tension high.

According to the official, it only takes a few hours for the missile carriers to return to combat duty, so the situation might change dynamically.

"Hypothetically, missile launches are possible from base points, too, and the enemy can take such desperate steps, although it is rather risky," Humeniuk added.

As reported earlier, the spokesperson stated that Russia had changed its tactics of launching strikes on the territory of Ukraine – now they fire missiles from the north,at the same time keeping missile carriers in the south and deploying warplanes, too.