Crimea, the peninsula annexed by Russia from Ukraine in 2014, has banned the use of motorised vehicles such as scooters, quad bikes and motorcycles at nighttime, saying they sound like drone attacks, Moscow-installed authorities said.
Sergei Aksyonov, the peninsula's Russian-installed governor, said the ban, which he called a temporary measure to guard military and other important facilities, would be in place between 8 p.m. and 6 a.m. from Wednesday onwards.
"The moped noise hampers the work of defence systems. Their engines sound similar (to drones)," Oleg Kryuchkov, Aksyonov's advisor, said separately on Telegram on Tuesday. "The enemy is recruiting your children for nighttime rides."
Sevastopol resident Yulia Demura shares this view. "The sound of the motorbikes' engines and the sound of drones are similar," she said, adding that those noises "distract our military."
Those who are able to think and analyse the situation, will understand the ban, Maxim the 'Indian', a member of Idalgo bikers' club in Sevastopol told Reuters. He adds more throttle on his idling bike to demonstrate how the sound of a motorbike's engine resembles the audio characteristics of a drone.
His fellow bikers were shocked when they learned that the ban for nighttime rides covered specifically motorbikes, 'Indian' said. The law-abiding bikers understand the necessity of the measure unlike those who used to speed around and would continue to do so despite any bans, he said.
The ban is justified because it is enhancing security, Andrei Boprisov from St.Petersburg and a biker himself told Reuters.
The ban in Crimea, a popular summer tourist destination for Russians, does not apply to cars or larger vehicles.
Ukraine has recently intensified drone attacks on Crimea, home to Russia's Black Sea Fleet, targeting the peninsula's supply routes and triggering a fuel crisis, as the holiday season starts.
A limit of 20 litres (5.3 gallons) of fuel per car at local petrol stations would continue, Mikhail Razvozhayev, the governor of Crimea's biggest city, Sevastopol, said in a Telegram post late on Tuesday.
On Tuesday, a Ukrainian drone strikes halted operations at Moscow's oil refinery, sources said, adding to widespread damage inflicted on Russian energy facilities and extending the fuel crisis deeper into the country.
Overnight, Russian defence systems downed 10 drones heading for Moscow, Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on Telegram early on Wednesday.
Another attack on the same refinery in Moscow took place on Thursday.
US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday Russia hould make peace with Ukraine after a "very good" meeting with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, in comments that sparked cautious optimism among G7 leaders that a peace deal could be struck.