Bogdan Maftei
Medium
Sept 20, 2023
Imagine a historic parallel, one that harks back to the iconic events of World War II – think of the French Resistance aiding the Allied forces by providing vital intelligence and sabotaging Nazi operations. This brings us to today’s unfolding drama in Sevastopol. Ukrainian partisans, those unsung heroes of the Ukrainian War, have been quietly aiding their military by gathering invaluable intel on Russian military installations and systems, proving that resistance is far from futile.
Let’s zoom in on the story that broke out like wildfire – Ukrainian forces striking a significant blow to Russia’s modern S-400 “Triumf” air-defense system near Yevpatoriya in occupied Crimea. The operation was not just a standard military maneuver, but a complex orchestration involving civilians in Sevastopol, the Russian Black Sea Fleet personnel, and even maritime repair facility employees. This multi-layered collaboration echoes the Special Operations Executive’s role in WWII, making clandestine efforts to weaken the enemy’s stronghold.
In a strange sense of déjà vu, another report points out that this was not Ukraine’s first such victory. There was another strike on a similar S-400 system near Olenivka, only a few weeks earlier. What does this pattern signify? If history serves us well, it conjures images of the Battle of Midway, where the repeated American attacks revealed the Japanese Navy’s systemic vulnerabilities, leading to a decisive shift in the Pacific War.
The Russian Ministry of Defense’s inability to mention the Ukrainian missile strikes and only acknowledging intercepting drones shows a significant lapse. This silence might be more telling than any official statement. It whispers of systemic failures, evoking comparisons with the Soviet blunders during the opening days of Operation Barbarossa, when silence reigned supreme over admissions of vulnerability.