Putin Has LOST Crimea... Ukraine’s UNSTOPPABLE March Toward Total VICTORY

The Military Show

According to former U.K. military intelligence officer Philip Ingram, Ukraine is on an "unstoppable march" to liberate Crimea. Kyiv’s strategic two-phase campaign is systematically dismantling Russian air defenses and isolating the peninsula by severing critical logistical links. By crippling energy grids, creating severe fuel shortages, and shattering Putin’s narrative of unity, Ukraine is rendering Crimea untenable for Russian occupiers and elites alike. We analyze how this strategy is eroding Putin’s grip ahead of crucial elections.  ⏱️ CHAPTERS: 00:00 - UK Military Expert Philip Ingram Predicts Crimea Liberation 01:25 - Ukraine Destroys Sevastopol Air Defenses in Phase One 02:40 - Ukrainian Attacks Destroy Putin Crimea Reunification Myth 04:00 - 850,000 Russian Settlers Impacted by Crimean Strikes 05:15 - Ukrainian Drones Isolate Russian Forces in Crimea 06:30 - Kerch Strait Ferries Hit as 1.4 Million Lose Power 07:50 - Russian Elites Disillusioned by Mined Crimean Beaches 09:10 - September State Duma Elections Threaten Kremlin Leadership 10:25 - Is Putin About to Lose Control of Crimea?  Support us directly as we bring you independent, up-to-date reporting on military news and global conflicts by clicking here: https://www.youtube.com/@TheMilitaryShow/join  #militarystrategy #militarydevelopments #militaryanalysis #themilitaryshow  SOURCES: https://pastebin.com/tnTwQkxQ

Transcript

00:00Ukraine is on an unstoppable march toward total victory in Crimea. That isn't us saying so. It's

00:07Philip Ingram. Once a high-ranking officer in UK military intelligence, Ingram is a man who has

00:12seen it all and has the MBE to prove it. And he has just delivered an explosive interview where

00:19he revealed one key thing. Something so massive is going down in Crimea that Putin is unable to

00:25stop it. The snowball started rolling downhill months ago. Now it's transforming into an avalanche

00:32that is going to de-russify Crimea and release Putin's grip on the peninsula. None of this has

00:38happened by chance. One of the first things that Ingram says in his interview is that what's

00:43happening in Crimea, from the isolation strategy to the rampant fuel shortages and right through

00:48to the Ukrainian strikes being conducted on the peninsula, was all by design. Ukraine built up

00:54to this, and it did it by ruthlessly targeting air defense systems in Crimea over and over

00:59again to create pathways over the Black Sea and Crimea itself to enable its strikes.

01:05If we look at what happened, whenever Ukraine first got permission to use its longer-range

01:09weapons, what did it do? Ingram asks rhetorically. It started to attack Russian air defense capabilities.

01:15Those attacks have occurred across Crimea and all of Russia as Ukraine has dismantled air

01:20defenses systematically and consistently. This was phase one of the Crimean liberation effort,

01:26and it set the stage for everything that we now see in 2026. We saw these attacks ramp up severely

01:32during the first two months of the year. In January and February, Ukraine carried out between 20 and 25

01:38strikes per month against Crimean air defense assets, Armed Conflict Location and Event Data or ACLED

01:44reports. Systems, radars, and entire depots went down under Ukrainian drone fire, opening up airspace

01:51to enable everything that came after. Ukraine hasn't stopped phase one just because it's entered phase

01:56two, ACLED points out. One bleeds into the other, as Ukraine continues to shatter the air defenses that

02:02remain in Crimea. We saw that on August 1st, when the new voice of Ukraine reported that Ukrainian

02:08strikes had sparked fires at air defenses and electronic warfare or EW positions in the main

02:14Crimean port of Sevastopol. That port, which was home to the Black Sea fleet before Russia's warships had

02:20to sail as far away from Ukraine as they could get, has become easier to hit because of how well

02:25Ukraine

02:25executed phase one of its strategy. As for that phase bleeding into what was to come, it's a simple

02:30concept. Phase two is isolation. That is ongoing, but Ukraine's key victory here is that the isolation

02:38stops Russia from sending more air defenses into Crimea to replace those that it loses. That makes

02:44Crimea's defenses finite, vulnerable. Every radar, every system, and every EW device that Ukraine takes

02:51out now moves Ukraine closer to its ultimate goal of de-Russifying the entire peninsula. Remove Russia's

02:58ability to protect itself, as Ingram says, and opportunities open up. And boy, has Ukraine taken

03:03the opportunities it created for itself. Isolation has followed air defense destruction. Ukraine has

03:10combined vehicle interdiction in the occupied territories, where it's smashing fuel and supply

03:14trucks carrying goods to Crimea via the occupied territories, with over 70 attacks against shadow

03:20fleet ships in the Black Sea and Sea of Azov in July alone. All of this adds to strikes against

03:25depots and military facilities in Crimea itself. The logistical network that supports Russia's control over

03:31Crimea is being sliced to pieces, rendering it all but useless. There are two elements to this

03:37strategy. The military angle is obviously important and will be explaining how important Putin's slipping

03:43grip on Crimea has become soon. But above that, Ingram points out, is the psychological aspect of

03:48what's happening in Crimea. That's more damaging to Putin than even the gradual loss of what was

03:53supposed to be strategically significant territory. And the reason why comes down to a simple

03:58explanation, Crimea was supposed to be a symbol of Russian power and an example of the mythology

04:04that Putin has created about Russians and Ukrainians being one people. All of that has fallen apart.

04:10Ingram points to the initial campaign of aggression in 2014 when Russia illegally annexed Crimea,

04:16as the starting point for the myth that Putin was trying to build. Russia took over Crimea almost

04:21bloodlessly, Ingram points out. And that was vital to the Russian psychology that Putin wanted to create

04:27about the peninsula. Therefore, it is the center of the Russian psychology for their actions against

04:31Ukraine, Ingram says of that annexation. That's where it all started. It's also got a psychological

04:37importance to Vladimir Putin and his inner circle. Vladimir Putin has his last honeymoon there. He owns

04:44some very valuable seafront property, as do many of the oligarchs in his inner circle. For Putin,

04:50this idea of casting Crimea as always being part of Russia is vital. Soon after the annexation of the

04:55peninsula, Putin flew in and conducted a showy pilgrimage of sites he believed were vital to

05:00expanding on his myths. Wreaths were laid at a Soviet-era World War II memorial. Putin visited

05:06a cathedral associated with Russian Christianity, and he made sure to head to Sevastopol to conduct

05:11an inspection of the Black Sea fleet that Russia had just usurped from Ukraine. It was all in service

05:16of building the image of Russia as a great power that was welcoming Ukraine back into its fold,

05:21and Ukrainians wanted it. The annexation was practically bloodless. That was Putin's big

05:27victory, and it's something that he has used to create the myth that Russians and Ukrainians are

05:31the one people. For Putin, Crimea could be used as a symbol of unity. That's according to Ingram,

05:37who says it was also shared between the Ukrainians and the Russians because we had the headquarters of

05:41the Black Sea fleet in Sevastopol. Therefore, there had been this symbol of unity between Ukraine and

05:46Russia for many years. Putin reinforced this claim of unity in July 2021, just a few months before he

05:52launched the full-scale invasion, with an essay entitled On the Historical Unity of Russians and

05:58Ukrainians. In his rambling treatise, Putin claimed that Russians and Ukrainians were always one,

06:04and that external forces were to blame for the wall that had emerged between the two.

06:09Divide and rule, as Putin puts it, which is a strategy he is all too familiar with.

06:14Russians, Ukrainians, and Belorussians are all descendants of ancient Rus', Putin declared.

06:19That, apparently, is enough of a reason for Russia to take control of Crimea and ultimately Ukraine,

06:24or in Putin's view, to unite them. All of this context matters to what is happening in Crimea

06:29right now because Ukraine's isolation strategy is a direct rejection of this myth that Putin created.

06:36For the one people claimed to be true, Ukrainians must want to join Russia and become one.

06:41They don't. The bloodless annexation of Crimea fueled Putin's myth, but the very real destruction

06:47and pain all over the peninsula right now destroys the narrative. Don't underestimate the psychological

06:53importance of what Ukraine is doing. Ukraine estimates that at least 850,000 Russians have

06:59relocated to Crimea since the 2014 annexation, and many more besides treat the peninsula as a holiday

07:05destination. All were drawn in by Putin's claim of unity, only to find that every drone or missile

07:11that Ukraine sends punches holes not only in military equipment but in the tail that Putin weaved.

07:17Ukrainians aren't one people with Russians. That message is being hammered home in phase two

07:22of Ukraine's operation. The collapsing of this myth is key to relinquishing Putin's grip on the peninsula,

07:28because it exposes the lies that Putin is told to keep hold of Crimea in the first place. But beyond

07:34the supposed unity, there is one more psychological aspect of Putin's control over Crimea to consider,

07:39the power. Unity means nothing in comparison to showcases of strength for Putin, and for over a decade,

07:47Crimea has been the best demonstration of Russia's supposed ability to dominate Ukraine.

07:52The bloodless coup wasn't just about unity. It was about showing the world, and the people of Ukraine,

07:58that Russia was to be feared. Ukraine didn't fight back because it was scared to do so. It knew Russia

08:04would roll through the rest of the country if it did. That may have been the case in 2014 when

08:08Ukraine

08:09was ill-prepared to fend off a full invasion. But in 2022 and beyond, Ukraine has ruined this Russian

08:15claim of invincibility. Every missile that flies or drone that strikes in Crimea now offers a visible

08:20contradiction between Putin's claims of strength and the reality on the peninsula.

08:26Russian folklore is being destroyed bit by bit through Ukraine's isolation campaign,

08:31along with everything that it has done to Crimea. Ingram points to what happened to the Black Sea

08:35fleet, as around 30% of that fleet has been destroyed and the rest has gone into hiding.

08:40He highlights Ukraine's attacks on the Kerch Bridge, which is another monument to Russia's supposed

08:45power, as it connects Crimea to the Russian mainland. None of this was ever supposed to be

08:50possible. Russia was too strong. Ukraine was too weak. Russia wanted to frame the annexation of

08:56Crimea as the starting point for reunification with Ukraine, a return to Russia's glory days.

09:02What Ukraine has done, especially in 2026, is deliver a twist in the tail. Putin's grip on Crimea

09:08is eroding precisely because Ukraine has experienced so much success in destroying the peninsula's air

09:14defenses and isolating it from Russia and the occupied territories. But it all goes deeper than that,

09:19beyond Putin's fairy tales, Crimea was also a military asset. That, along with the myth,

09:25is being dismantled in Ukraine's unstoppable march to victory. However, before we dig deeper,

09:29this is a reminder that you're watching the military show. If you're getting insight from

09:33the channel, then remember to subscribe and enable notifications so you catch all of our daily videos.

09:39In 2026, there is a huge difference between what Crimea is and what it was supposed to be for Russia,

09:45strategically speaking. Crimea is a very large area, Ingram points out. It proved to be relatively

09:50secure while Ukraine didn't have medium-range capability. A relatively secure base to have

09:55logistics stores, to have air force bases there, and all the rest of it. To be able to fly up

10:00and

10:00support what was going on in the east of Ukraine and support the Russian troops out there. Ingram says

10:04that Crimea essentially provided Russia with almost aircraft carrier-like capability because Putin

10:10thought Ukraine couldn't hit the peninsula. The UK expert repeats the word secure. That's what

10:15Putin thought Crimea was, a secure base from which to conduct attacks and handle logistics into eastern

10:20Ukraine. All of that has changed, and it's thanks to Ukraine's brilliant isolation strategy.

10:26By isolating it, Ingram says of the Crimean Peninsula, what Ukraine is doing is stopping Russia's

10:31ability to do that. It stopped Russia's ability to use it as an airfield, or multiple airfields,

10:36as logistics bases, as command and control bases. The Black Sea Fleet has been pushed out,

10:41and all of this has made Putin very concerned about Crimea because he can't use the peninsula

10:46to achieve military dominance that he has promised to Russia's people. Putin has been forced to watch

10:51as Ukraine's strategy for Crimea has turned out to be much broader and far more effective than he

10:56could have ever imagined. When it was just the occasional strike on the Kerch Bridge or attacks

11:00against military assets in the Black Sea, but not Crimea itself, Putin could handle that.

11:05Isolated strikes don't mean a thing, he would argue. But now Ukraine's strategy encompasses

11:10everything. Crimea is a regular target, typically being struck several times per week. The Black Sea

11:17is all but controlled by Ukraine and the logistical arteries that flowed through the occupied territories

11:21into Crimea have crumbled, just like Putin's grip on Crimea is doing. Russia has been exposed

11:27strategically due to once again underestimating Ukraine. The geography that made Crimea so valuable to

11:33Russia at the beginning of the invasion has been transformed into a liability. That middle-range

11:38capacity that Ingram talks about isn't a problem anymore. Ukraine has drones that can reach any

11:43point in Crimea. It has naval drones that can travel the length of the Black Sea and into the Sea

11:48of

11:48Azov. Distance is no longer a factor. The Black Sea Fleet learned that early on and now the rest of

11:54Crimea is getting the message. Crimea isn't safe, and that means it can't be used as a massive military

12:00base that Putin envisioned. Ukraine's strikes against everything from bridges and rail links

12:05to convoys and fuel depots have ruined Crimea as a strategic asset for Putin. Ukraine is using force

12:11to retake Crimea, but it's doing it in a way that nobody, not least Putin, ever expected. For years,

12:18especially before the Ukraine war, the consensus was that retaking Crimea would require a massive

12:23amphibious assault, enabling Ukraine to put boots on the ground in the peninsula. That assault would

12:28be joined by a push through the narrow strip of land that connects Crimea to Ukraine. It simply couldn't

12:33happen. Ukraine would lose tens of thousands of soldiers, if not more, and it would leave itself

12:39vulnerable on the mainland. Force wasn't an option, and most in the West seemed to agree,

12:43the Kiev Independent notes. But force has become an option, just not the force that anybody expected.

12:49As has so often been the case in Ukraine, drones are at the center of everything. And it's due to

12:54drones that Ukraine doesn't even need to send soldiers into Crimea to loosen Putin's grip. The

13:00constant drone strikes and their after effects are doing the de-racification work for Ukraine.

13:05We've now seen the ferries that carry the trains from Russia across the Kerch

13:08straight into Crimea, bringing tourists, but also bringing oil, gas, food, and everything else that

13:13people would expect to live in from there. Get struck repeatedly by Ukraine, Ingram points out.

13:18That goes on top of the truck strikes in the occupied region. Ukraine now controls the flow

13:23of everything into Crimea from fuel to water, and the problems are evident for all to see. Ukraine's

13:28isolation strategy has led to a fuel crisis in Crimea, as gas stations run dry and Russians run out of

13:34means to replenish them. Ukraine arguably exercises fire control over the peninsula,

13:39which has been made possible by that focus on destroying air defense systems that we mentioned.

13:44Beyond fuel, food is also a problem. Reuters reported on August 1st that Russian occupiers

13:49in Crimea are now being forced to queue to get their hands on hot food because Ukraine is conducting

13:54strikes against the Crimean energy grid, which snatches power away from the occupiers. Whole

13:59towns are being left without power and water, the New York Times reports. In some cases, blackouts

14:04last for days before Russia can get the power back online, only for Ukraine to strike once again.

14:10Nighttime illumination on the peninsula fell by 20% in July. 1.4 million of Crimea's pre-war

14:16population have been affected by power cuts caused by Ukraine. This is the entire point. Beyond the

14:21symbolic and military aspects, Ukraine is turning Crimea into hell on earth for the people that Russia

14:26has transplanted onto the peninsula. Those people know that Putin can't protect them. They see it

14:31every day. But what will really hurt Putin isn't the everyday occupier queuing for food after burning

14:37through the last of their gas to get to a vendor, it's the elites. They can see what Crimea has

14:41become

14:42and it's not what Putin promised to them. Crimea was supposed to be a holiday destination,

14:47a paradise for Putin's oligarchs that Ukraine couldn't touch. Those oligarchs now go to the beach and

14:53they see the beach has got mines on it and got barbed wire on it and got anti-tank devices

14:57on it.

14:57It's not the same. It's all changed, Ingram says. That's the message that is leaking back into Russia's

15:03elite circles, into Putin's inner circle. What we're seeing here is liberation by narrative

15:08destruction. Ukraine doesn't need to send soldiers into Crimea. What it's doing is making the peninsula

15:14unviable for Putin and his elites. Ukraine just has to keep on sending drones to hit what they've been

15:19hitting for the last few months now. Every strike does damage. That damage can't be repaired because

15:25of Ukraine's brilliant isolation strategy. And every time that a drone touches down in Crimea,

15:30Putin absorbs a blow. How many more can Russia's leader take? As all of this is happening,

15:35Russia is preparing for state Duma elections in mid-September. These are the first such elections

15:40held since Putin launched his invasion and Russia's leader is staring down the barrel of bad results.

15:45He is in no risk of being pushed from the seat of power, but many of his allies are. People

15:51that

15:51Putin has installed to tow his line are up for election and the state of Crimea is perhaps one

15:56of the biggest factors at play. Putin is scared now. He worries that what's happening in Crimea,

16:01along with Ukraine's attacks against other symbolic targets, including Moscow and St. Petersburg,

16:06could lead to elections not going his way, even in a police state where he supposedly controls

16:11everything. Elites who thought their association with Putin would lead to power may be on their

16:15way out. And if they are, they'll have what's happening in Crimea to blame. The whispers about

16:20Putin's failure grow louder by the day in darkened corners of the Kremlin and in the homes of oligarchs

16:26and politicians who see that Putin is weaker than ever. That ultimately is the entire point of what

16:31Ukraine is doing. Ingram brought up the September elections for a reason. It was to show that Putin is

16:36vulnerable. That his power isn't as untouchable as he thought. Ukraine is the reason why. The collapse

16:42of Putin's control over Crimea could motivate everyday Russians at the polls and elites behind

16:47the scenes to finally do something about a leader who has gone so far over the edge that he can't

16:52be

16:52pulled back. Putin won't pull out of Crimea. Ukraine won't invade. But neither of these scenarios

16:59needs to happen for Ukraine to be victorious on the peninsula. Former Ukrainian Defense Minister

17:03Mikhailo Fedorov laid it all out back in June. Crimea is becoming an island. You could argue that

17:09it already is one. And what lies in the peninsula's future is more strikes, more pain and more anger

17:14at a Russian president who promised to protect but has failed at every turn. We are witnessing the

17:20beginning of the end of the Russian rule in Crimea. Something massive is already going down on

17:24the peninsula and for Putin it's only going to get worse from here. Ingram has explained much of

17:29what Ukraine is doing in Crimea and the after effects of the brilliant two-phase campaign.

17:33But what if you want to dig deeper? We have you covered. Check out our video where we dig into

17:38how Ukraine transformed its strategy for Crimea and what it all really means to learn even more

17:42about how Putin's grip is slipping. And if you enjoyed this video remember to subscribe to The

17:47Military Show. We have plenty more videos waiting and we publish videos daily so you can keep up with

17:52the latest news from Ukraine and the rest of the military world. And thank you for watching.

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