Moscow says bridge connecting Crimea and occupied zone unusable after Kyiv strike

A critical bridge between annexed Crimea and the region partially occupied by Russian troops in southern Ukraine, hit by a Ukrainian attack on Thursday, is currently “unusable,” a Russian official said Friday.

“Unfortunately, the bridge is much more damaged than we originally thought,” said Vladimir Saldo, head of the government of the occupied zone of the Kherson region, quoted by the Russian TV channel.

“In the next 15-20 days or even longer, while work is underway and we determine what can be done, the bridge will not be used for traffic,” he added.

The Chongar Bridge, consisting of two parallel roads connecting Crimea with the Kherson region in southern Ukraine, was attacked on the night of Wednesday to Thursday.

This infrastructure is on the most direct route between Crimea and Melitopol, one of the largest Russian-held cities in southern Ukraine.

Crimea, a Ukrainian peninsula annexed by Moscow in 2014, serves as a logistical base for Russian troops, mainly to send reinforcements and maintain equipment.

Thus, several bridges linking Crimea with the occupied south of Ukraine are necessary for Russian military operations at a time when Kyiv is conducting a counteroffensive in the south and east of the country.

This Thursday, a member of the Ukrainian administration in Kherson, Yuriy Sobolevsky, considered the damage inflicted on the Chongarsky bridge “a blow to Russian military logistics.”

Paramilitary group leader Wagner stressed this Friday that the Russian army is retreating in several areas of southern and eastern Ukraine, contradicting Moscow’s claims that Kyiv’s counteroffensive has failed.

Yevgeny Prigozhin said the same thing is happening in Bakhmut, where Ukrainian forces are breaking through Russian defenses.

Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine has been the scene of the longest and bloodiest battle since the Russian invasion on February 24, 2022.

Russian troops claim to have captured the town where Wagner Group mercenaries fought, but Ukrainians say they have been outflanking in recent weeks.

Prigozhin’s comments, which cannot be independently verified, contradict Russian President Vladimir Putin and Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, who said the army is repelling all Ukrainian attacks.