Not A Bridge Too Far – The Kerch Strait Bridge Has Been Attacked Again -Kyiv isn’t holding back anymore – and a Ukrainian security official announced that its forces were responsible for the overnight attack on the Kerch Bridge.
Explosions were first heard in the early hours of Monday morning, stopping traffic on the road-and-rail link between Crimea with mainland Russia. Two people were killed, while a third was wounded in the attack, Russian-appointed officials announced.
“There is damage to the roadway on spans of the Crimean Bridge,” Russia’s Transport Ministry said via the Telegram social messaging app.
The nearly 12-mile crossing, the longest in Europe, holds huge strategic and symbolic importance for Moscow. This is the second time since Russia launched its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine that the bridge has come under attack. A fuel tanker exploded while crossing the Kerch Bridge in October, killing three people. That damage had been repaired.
Russian President Vladimir Putin branded it a “terrorist attack” orchestrated by Ukrainian security services and ordered a wave of retaliatory strikes on Ukrainian cities including the capital Kyiv afterward.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has since claimed indirect responsibility, listing it as one of his military’s “successes” in 2022.
Pre-Dawn Strike
The pair of strikes were reportedly made at around 3 am local time Monday (8 pm ET Sunday), damaging part of the bridge. A source in Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) told CNN this attack was a joint operation of the SBU and Ukraine’s naval forces. The source spoke on the condition of anonymity.
There are reports that surface drones were employed in the overnight strike on the bridge, while the Kremlin has blamed the UK and the U.S. for helping orchestrate the attack.
“Today’s attack on the Crimean Bridge was carried out by the Kyiv regime. This regime is terrorist and has all the hallmarks of an international organized crime group,” said Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova. “Decisions are made by Ukrainian officials and the military with the direct participation of American and British intelligence agencies and politicians. The U.S. and Britain are in charge of a terrorist state structure.”
Russian propagandist Margarita Simonyan also claimed the attack was carried out with the help of British intelligence and has called for retribution.
“Does this make Tower Bridge (in London) a legitimate target,” she said on Monday. “for me, that’s quite it.”
A Vital Link to Crimea
The attack has come as many Russians have continued to flee Crimea, and there have been reports of long traffic jams on the remaining road route out of the peninsula. Trains are moving again across the Kerch Bridge, but delays continue.
Though the ferry service between Crimea and Russia has also resumed – the Russian-installed ministry for transport on the peninsula says it’s only for cargo at the moment.
It has been a critical artery for supplying Crimea with both its daily needs and supplies for the Russian military, in addition to fuel and goods for civilians. It also became a major supply route for Russian forces following the February 24, 2022 invasion – and allowed Kremlin forces to move into the Kherson region of Southern Ukraine, as well as the neighboring Zaporizhzhia province.
Flagship Project for Putin
The 12-mile-long (19-kilometer-long) bridge was built after Moscow illegally annexed Crimea in 2014. Costing a reported $3.7 billion to build, it has been seen as a physical expression of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s objective to take over Ukraine and bind it to Russia forever.
It was constructed by a firm belonging to Arkady Rotenberg, a close ally of Putin. It consists of a separate roadway and railway – both supported by concrete stilts. The Kerch Bridge became a flagship project for Putin, who opened it by driving a truck across it in 2018.
This is a developing story.
Author Experience and Expertise
A Senior Editor for 19FortyFive, Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,200 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu.
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