Russia Puts On Display Of Military Might To Show It Is Fully In Charge Of Disputed Crimea

This is the moment an elite guards division of the Russian Airborne Forces conducts an extravagant military display in the Crimea, highlighting Russia's powerful grip over the disputed peninsula.

Footage shows numerous tanks lined up, aircraft pummelling live ammunition into empty fields, soldiers blasting artillery and a hail of ammunition lighting up the sky well into the night.

The intimidating display was put on by the 7th Guards Mountain Air Assault Division in the Opuk training ground located around 40 kilometres (25 mi) from the city of Kerch in Crimea.

The Crimean Peninsula was annexed from Ukraine by Russia during a military intervention by pro-Russian separatists and the Russian Armed Forces in early 2014.

A referendum held prior to annexation put support for reunification with Russia at over 90 percent. However, sceptics point out that many Ukrainian loyalists boycotted the vote.

The United Nations and most countries still recognise the Crimea as de jure Ukrainian territory.

The division's 247th Guards Air Assault Regiment allegedly took part in the War in Donbas in Ukraine in the same year.

The video of the military training exercise was posted by the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation to its Facebook page yesterday (Tuesday, 5th October).

mod.mil.rus/Newsflash/William McGee