Russia blames US for Crimea deaths and vows response

Russia has accused the United States of being responsible for a missile strike in Sevastopol, Crimea, which resulted in the deaths of four people, including two children. The attack occurred on Sunday, and Russia claims that the missiles used were supplied by the US and programmed by American specialists. The Russian government has labeled the strike as 'barbaric' and has accused the US of 'killing Russian children. ' They have also promised that there will be consequences for the US.

The Russian defense ministry reported that the missiles were intercepted by their air defenses, but debris from the missiles fell on a nearby beach, injuring approximately 150 people. Footage broadcasted on Russian state television showed scenes of chaos as people fled from the falling debris, and some injured individuals were carried away on sun loungers.

The US has been providing these missiles to Ukraine for over a year. These missiles, known as ATACMS, have a range of up to 300 kilometers and allow Ukrainian forces to strike distant targets. Russia has stated that Crimea, which it annexed in 2014, is not recognized as Russian territory by most countries, and therefore, it does not fall under the US's restriction that Ukraine should not use American-supplied weapons to attack Russian territory.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters that the US's involvement in the attack would not go unpunished. The Russian foreign ministry summoned the US Ambassador to Russia, Lynne Tracy, to discuss the incident and issued a statement accusing the US of being involved in an 'atrocity.

Russia has repeatedly threatened to target countries that supply weapons to Ukraine, claiming that they are legitimate military targets. President Vladimir Putin recently reiterated this threat, stating that if other countries supply weapons to Ukraine, Russia might supply similar weapons to other regions where they could be used against Western countries.

Ukrainian officials have defended the strike, arguing that Crimea is a legitimate target because it serves as a large military base. Mykhailo Podolyak, a top aide to President Volodymyr Zelensky, stated that Crimea contains 'hundreds of direct military targets' that Russia is trying to hide among civilians.

The United Nations' human rights monitoring mission in Ukraine has reported that at least 10,000 civilians have been killed since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. However, officials believe that the actual number of civilian casualties is likely much higher.