A soldier of the special unit of the Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine "Artan" with the call sign “Lutyi” told the details of the missions on the occupied peninsula, which took place on October 3 and August 24, 2023.
He told about it to Japanese journalists.
On a small boat, Lutyi and his comrades covered the assault landing group, being at a distance of 500-1,000 meters from the western Crimean coast. They were armed with portable Stinger anti-aircraft missile systems — the military was expecting possible Russian helicopter attacks.
During the August operation, the state flag was raised in Crimea. About 30 people took part in the October operation, it lasted several hours, there were clashes with the Russians — there were victims on both sides.
The "Artan" unit has about a thousand soldiers, they specialize in sabotage in various places. Lutyi also took part in the operations at the Boyka towers.
According to the participants of the combat raids, the series of unexpected attacks by special forces of the GUR of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine in Crimea is aimed at further psychologically putting pressure on the Russian occupiers, as well as increasing the level of training of the soldiers for the future liberation of the peninsula.
- On August 24, 2023, Ukrainian fighters landed in Crimea in the area of Olenivka and Mayak settlements. There they engaged in a battle with the units of the occupier — the Russians had losses both in personnel and in equipment. Also, the Ukrainian flag flew again in Crimea at that time — for the first time since April 2014.
- On October 4, intelligence reported that Ukrainian special forces again landed on the territory of Crimea and struck the occupiers. The video of the raid ends with footage of fighters holding a Ukrainian flag and saying: "Crimea will be Ukrainian or deserted." Fighters landed on the west coast of the peninsula, as well as on the Tendriv and Kinburn spits. The special forces started a battle with the Russian invaders in these territories and inflicted significant losses on the occupiers. During the retreat after completing the combat mission in Crimea, the "Artan" soldiers also engaged in battle at sea — the Russians tried to chase them on surface high-speed patrol boats with aviation support.