The suggestion is that Ukraine has evolved a new method of attack, aimed at sowing “chaos within Russian forces”, as the key Zelenskiy adviser Mykhailo Podolyak told the Guardian last week. Some experts believe drones operated by special forces were responsible for the dramatic attack on the Saky airbase, where about nine combat planes that supported Russia’s Black Sea fleet were destroyed.

In any event, such drone strikes will have a practical effect. The Institute for the Study of War said “Russian occupation officials in Crimea are likely considering strengthening security on the peninsula” and that “such measures may draw Russian security forces away from the frontlines”.

But the critical point is the psychological impact. Repeatedly captured on video, they demonstrate that Crimea and similar behind-the-lines locations are not safe, bringing the conflict closer to Russia and the occupied territories, while at the same time being focused (at least so far) on military and industrial targets.