Ukraine is preparing to destroy the Russian Black Sea Fleet as soon as it receives enough weapons from Western allies. Russia must leave the seized Crimea if it wants to continue to exist as a country.

This was stated by Deputy Defense Minister Volodymyr Gavrilov in an interview with The Times. 

He noted that the Ukrainian military is now building up its own anti-ship missiles and waiting to receive longer-range weapons from other countries before launching an assault. 

"They have to pay back for their aggression," Gavrilov said during a visit to Britain, where he is observing exercises by the Ukrainian military.

The deputy defense chief pointed out that Russian ships in the Black Sea regularly launch cruise missiles at Ukrainian infrastructure in the south, warships' positions mean Ukraine cannot export grain from ports for fear that merchant ships will be attacked.

"We get anti-ship weapons, and sooner or later we will target the navy. It is inevitable because we have to guarantee the safety of our people. We are ready to attack them all over the Black Sea if we have the opportunity," Gavrilov concluded.

As a reminder, on April 13, it became known that the Ukrainian military launched a missile strike on the cruiser Moskva. This is the very ship that took part in the storming of Snake Island and was sent by the Ukrainian border guards.

It is believed that this is the most expensive military loss of the Russian Federation in the war against Ukraine because the residual value of the cruiser was estimated at 750 million dollars.

In addition, President Volodymyr Zelensky is increasingly making statements about the return of Crimea by military means, but diplomacy still remains the priority tool in de-occupation.