Russian shakes up Black Sea fleet command after series of blows in Crimea - state agency

FILE PHOTO: A view shows the Russian Black Sea Fleet's headquarters following a reported combat drone attack in Sevastopol, Crimea July 31, 2022. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo

LONDON (Reuters) - Russia's Black Sea fleet based in annexed Crimea has installed a new commander, RIA news agency cited sources as saying on Wednesday, after Russian military bases on the peninsula were rocked by explosions in the past nine days.

If confirmed, the removal of the previous commander Igor Osipov would mark the most prominent sacking of a military official in the nearly six months since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in which it has suffered heavy losses in men and equipment.