Former acting president Oleksandr Turchynov said that in 2014, an order for armed resistance to the occupation of Crimea was issued, but it was not carried out due to the critical state of the army, mass betrayal of personnel, and lack of support from international partners. The politician said this in response to comments by Navy Commander Oleksiy Neizhpapa.
"I signed the order to use weapons on March 18. But even after the repeated order, not a single serviceman opened fire," Turchynov said.
According to the politician, by the time of the Russian invasion, the Ukrainian army was virtually destroyed: out of 36 anti-aircraft systems, only 10 were combat-ready, and out of 111 airfields, 28 remained. Yanukovych, Turchynov claims, systematically liquidated combat units in strategically important regions, in particular, in Crimea and Donbas.
Turchynov noted that the majority of personnel in Crimea refused to carry out orders and went over to the enemy's side. In particular, out of 14 thousand military personnel, the majority were local contract and conscript soldiers. Of the SBU employees in Crimea, 90% betrayed, 96% from the State Security Department, and 99% from the police.
At the beginning of the aggression, Turchynov says, Russian troops were blocking Crimea by sea and air. Landing ships, attack aircraft, and flotillas were deployed from all directions. At the same time, up to 200,000 Russian troops were deployed in the north and east of Ukraine.
"We had only a few consolidated battalion-tactical groups — up to 5,000 soldiers, poorly armed and unprepared," Turchynov said.
The politician stressed that he advocated the introduction of martial law, but did not receive support from the National Security and Defense Council. The leaders of the parliamentary majority refused due to fears of disrupting the elections.
"Ukraine needed a legitimate government recognized by the world. This was a key argument against the introduction of martial law," he explained.
Turchynov also noted that Ukraine was left without support from partners. Even within the framework of the Budapest Memorandum, no country provided Ukraine with any weapons or equipment. Moreover, supplies of bulletproof vests and even helmets were blocked.
"We were not given a single bullet. The embargo lasted until the end of 2017," he emphasized.
