Russia annexed Crimea in 2014. Now, more than four years into the current war, Ukraine is targeting the peninsula with increased drone attacks.
In response, authorities in the Russian-controlled region have declared a state of emergency, admitting they are facing challenging times.
This week, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the start of what he called a 40-day “influence operation” to push Russia to end the war.
But can Kyiv’s broader strategy successfully end the conflict? And why is Crimea at the centre of this shift?
Presenter: James Bays
Guests:
Leonid Ragozin – Independent journalist who focuses on Russia, Ukraine and Eastern Europe
Yulia Kazdobina – Senior Fellow in the Security Studies Programme at the Ukrainian Prism Foreign Policy Council
Stefan Wolff – Professor of International Security at the University of Birmingham
Published On 27 Jun 2026