Russia's Hermitage Museum has cancelled all planned expeditions to Russian-occupied Crimea this summer, citing a deteriorating security situation on the peninsula, Butyagin told Russian media, according to Babel.
The Hermitage's decision came after a series of Ukrainian strikes against infrastructure across Crimea left the peninsula under a formal state of emergency — and underscored the physical costs of Russia's continued occupation of Ukrainian territory.
Ukrainian strikes force occupation authorities' hand
A group page for the Myrmeky expedition, which Butyagin has led since 1999, announced several days ago that fieldwork would be relocated "due to the worsening situation," with the team now planning excavations in Prikubanye instead.
Ukraine's strikes have targeted multiple sites across the peninsula in recent weeks. Among the objects hit were the Chonhar road bridge, a railway bridge over the North Crimean Canal, the main electrical substation in Sevastopol, and a fuel depot in Kerch. Air defense installations near the Crimean Bridge were also struck.
In response, the occupation administration introduced a full ban on fuel sales to civilians from 21 June, rolling electricity blackouts, and closed all children's summer camps through the end of the season on security grounds. On 26 June, a state of emergency was declared across Crimea and Sevastopol.
Butyagin's arrest and exchange
Butyagin was detained in Warsaw on 4 December 2025 at the request of Ukrainian prosecutors, who allege he conducted illegal excavations at the Myrmeky ancient settlement in occupied Crimea and destroyed an archaeological cultural layer valued at over 200 million hryvnias (approximately $4.8 million).
Poland's prosecutors agreed to extradition in January, and a Polish court approved the transfer in March. However, on 28 April, Poland released Butyagin and exchanged him — as part of a larger five-for-five prisoner swap — for a Belarusian political prisoner, Ukrainian media reported.
Ukraine's case against Butyagin remains open.
