Putin to visit Crimea to open Kerch Bridge to railway traffic
Russian President Vladimir Putin intends to visit Crimea on Monday, December 23, to participate in the opening of the Kerch Bridge to railway traffic.
Interfax reports that during his trip, the Russian president will meet with bridge builders, and “sector leaders will report to him on plans to develop transport infrastructure”.
The Crimean Bridge is 19 km long. It was opened to light buses and cars on May 16, 2018, and to trucks on October 1. Passenger trains will start using the railway portion of the bridge by the end of December 2019. Cargo trains will begin to use it in June 2020. Russia planned to open the bridge to railway traffic in August-September 2019. Trains will reportedly be restricted to a top speed of 20 km/h on the bridge.
On November 8, Russia started selling railway tickets to the annexed Crimea. The first train from St. Petersburg to Sevastopol is scheduled to depart on December 23. The train ride will last 43.5 hours. On December 24, the first train will leave from Moscow for occupied Simferopol, taking an estimated 33 hours.
This will be Putin’s 13th trip at least to Crimea since its annexation. As of 2014, he has visited the peninsula two or three times per year. The Russian president’s last reported visit was in March 2019, on the fifth anniversary of the annexation of Crimea.
In February 2014, armed people in uniforms without insignias appeared in Crimea and captured the Supreme Council of Crimea, the Simferopol Airport, the Kerch ferry crossing and other strategic objects, and prevented the Ukrainian army from taking action. Initially, the Russian government refused to acknowledge that these armed people were Russian soldiers, but President Vladimir Putin later admitted it.
On 16 March 2014, a referendum on the status of Crimea was held in Crimea and Sevastopol, in which the inhabitants supposedly voted for the peninsula to become part of Russia. The outcome of the so-called referendum is not recognized by Ukraine, the EU or the US. On 18 March, Putin announced the “annexation” of Crimea to Russia.
International organizations have declared the annexation illegal and condemned Russia’s actions. Western countries have imposed economic sanctions on Russia in connection with the annexation. Russia claims to have “restored historical justice”. Ukraine’s parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, declared 20 February 2014 the start of Russia’s temporary occupation of Crimea and Sevastopol.