Ukraine’s defense ministry this week brutally trolled sobbing Russian tourists as they fled Crimea after the destruction of an airbase in the occupied peninsula.
The department has released a fake tourism video advising them to stay away from the area unless they want to experience an ‘uncomfortably hot summer vacation’.
Footage posted on Tuesday showed dozens of beachgoers fleeing for their lives after the nearby Saki airbase was destroyed by a series of tactical explosions.
The aftermath of the attack – believed to be the work of Ukrainian Special Forces – was caught on camera by Russian tourists at a nearby beach resort and posted online, leading to a massive traffic jam as visitors tried to flee the peninsula, which was seized by the Kremlin in 2014.
Although Kiev has not yet claimed official responsibility for the incident, which Moscow claims was merely the result of an “accident” on the scene, Defense was quick to respond to the news by releasing a video mocking the official Russian response and warned holidaymakers to stay away from the area.
The clip, made in the style of a tourist advertisement, suggests a number of alternative holiday destinations before warning Russian visitors to ‘go home’ and stay away from Crimea.
“You had a few options this summer,” the video announces, before cutting to clips from Dubai’s “Palm Jumeirah Beaches,” Turkey’s “Antalya Resorts” and “Cuban Cabanas” as the soundtrack to Bananarama’s 1983 hit “Cruel Summer” .
Instead, the video says, “You chose Crimea. Big mistake.’ before cutting to footage of mushroom clouds rising into the sky in the wake of the massive explosions that sent shockwaves through the area on Tuesday.
Footage is then shown of Russian tourists watching explosions at Saki Air Base, before the caption adds: “Time to go home. Crimea is Ukraine.”
The clip also includes footage of a Russian woman crying in the back seat of a car that went viral earlier this week.
“I don’t want to leave Crimea,” said the sobbing woman. “It’s so cool here and it feels like home.”
In a caption accompanying the 35-second clip, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry wrote: “Unless they want an uncomfortably hot summer vacation, we advise our valued Russian guests not to visit Ukraine’s Crimea. Because no amount of sunscreen will protect them from the dangerous effects of smoking in unauthorized areas.”
The video has been viewed more than 2.1 million times since it was first uploaded on Thursday.
Russia continued to insist that the explosions were simply an accident, although this was widely rejected by independent experts who point to multiple impact craters.
British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace told the… BBC the presence of two independent explosion points indicates an attack.
He added: “It is absolutely legitimate for Ukraine to use lethal force, if necessary, not only to reclaim its territory, but also to push back its invader.”
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