Ukraine says it hit Russia's bridge to Crimea with underwater explosives
Ukraine's SBU security service said on Tuesday that it had hit the road and rail bridge linking Russia and the Crimean peninsula below the water level with explosives.
In a statement, the SBU said it had used 1,100 kilograms (2,420 pounds) of explosives that were detonated early in the morning and damaged underwater pillars of the bridge, a key supply route for Russian forces in Ukraine in the past.
The official Russian outlet which provides regular status updates on the bridge said its operation had been suspended for about three hours between 4 a.m. and 7 a.m. local time.
It gave no reason for the temporary closure, but said the bridge had been reopened and was functioning as normal.
"Previously, we hit the Crimean Bridge twice, in 2022 and 2023. So today we continued this tradition underwater," the SBU said in its statement, adding that the operation had been prepared over several months.
The SBU shared video footage that showed an explosion next to one of the many support pillars of the bridge.
Reuters was able to confirm the location from the structure and bearing elements of the bridge that matched satellite and file imagery of the area. Reuters was not able to independently verify when the video was filmed.
Russian military bloggers said the attack had been unsuccessful and speculated that it had been carried out by a Ukrainian sea drone.
On Sunday, Ukraine launched drones in an operation codenamed "Spider's Web" to attack Russian nuclear-capable long-range bomber planes at distant airfields across Russia.
The 19-km (12-mile) Crimea Bridge over the Kerch Strait is the only direct link between the transport network of Russia and the Crimean peninsula, which Moscow annexed from Ukraine in 2014.
The bridge was a flagship project for Russian President Vladimir Putin. It consists of a separate roadway and railway, both supported by concrete stilts, which give way to a wider span held by steel arches at the point where ships pass between the Black Sea and the smaller Azov Sea.
The bridge was used by Russian forces during their invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, when they crossed it to reach Crimea and from there went on to seize parts of Ukraine's southern Kherson and southeastern Zaporizhzhia regions.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Zawya
an hour ago
- Zawya
Putin is ready to help Trump on Iran nuclear negotiations, the Kremlin says
President Vladimir Putin told U.S. President Donald Trump that he was ready to use Russia's close partnership with Iran to help with negotiations over Iran's nuclear programme, the Kremlin said on Thursday. Trump said after a phone call with Putin on Wednesday that time was running out for Iran to make a decision on its nuclear programme and that he believed Putin agreed that the Islamic Republic should not have nuclear weapons. Putin, according to Trump, suggested that he participate in the discussions with Iran and that "he could, perhaps, be helpful in getting this brought to a rapid conclusion", though Iran was "slowwalking". "We have close partner relations with Tehran and, naturally, President Putin said that we are ready to use this level of partnership with Tehran in order to facilitate and contribute to the negotiations that are taking place to resolve the issue of the Iranian nuclear dossier," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Thursday. Asked when Putin could join the negotiations, Peskov said that dialogue with Tehran and Washington continued through various channels. "The president will be able to get involved when necessary," Peskov said. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Wednesday that abandoning uranium enrichment was "100%" against the country's interests, rejecting a central U.S. demand in talks to resolve a decades-long dispute over Tehran's nuclear ambitions. The U.S. proposal for a new nuclear deal was presented to Iran on Saturday by Oman, which has mediated talks between Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi and President Donald Trump's Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff. After five rounds of talks, several hard-to-bridge issues remain, including Iran's insistence on maintaining uranium enrichment on its soil and Tehran's refusal to ship abroad its entire existing stockpile of highly enriched uranium - possible raw material for nuclear bombs. Khamenei, who has the final say on all matters of state, said nothing about halting the talks, but said the U.S. proposal "contradicts our nation's belief in self-reliance and the principle of 'We Can'".
Dubai Eye
3 hours ago
- Dubai Eye
Russian drone on Ukraine kills 5, injures 23
A Russian drone attack damaged apartment buildings in Ukraine's second-largest city of Kharkiv, injuring 17 people, while killing 5 and injuring 6 in the northern town of Pryluky on Thursday. On the Telegram messaging app, Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov said the strikes, around 1 a.m., damaged seven apartment buildings, with direct hits on two. Kharkiv has been a frequent target of Russian drones and missiles in the more than three-year-old war. "It flew into our neighbours' apartment next door, and my child and I managed to run out into the hallway," said a resident, Anastasiia Meleshchenko, adding that the ceiling began to crumble after a blast. Emergency services said at least four children were among the injured in Kharkiv. In the town of Pryluky, a one-year-old child and two women were among those killed, Viacheslav Chaus, the regional governor of Chernihiv, said on Telegram, with initial details showing six more injured and hospitalised. At least six drones were used in the overnight attack that damaged buildings in the town's residential area, Chaus said. Reuters could not independently verify the reports. There was no immediate comment from Russia. Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, tens of thousands of people have been killed, with large areas of eastern and southern Ukraine destroyed, and millions forced to flee their homes.
The National
3 hours ago
- The National
Putin could participate in Iran talks and will retaliate against Ukraine attack, Trump says
President Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin spoke by phone on Wednesday, with the US leader saying the Russian President told him he wanted to participate in Iran nuclear talks and that he would retaliate against Ukraine's recent drone attack. In a post on his Truth Social platform, Mr Trump said that the phone call lasted more than hour, and that the two leaders agreed Iran could not have a nuclear weapon. "President Putin suggested that he will participate in the discussions with Iran and that he could, perhaps, be helpful in getting this brought to a rapid conclusion," Mr Trump said. "Time is running out on Iran's decision pertaining to nuclear weapons, which must be made quickly!" The post also said Iran has been "slow walking" talks. Iran and the US have been engaged in negotiations on a new deal that would put limits on its nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief. The US wants Iran to cease enriching uranium under a possible new deal, but Tehran says its programme is for civilian purposes and it has the right to continue. Earlier on Wednesday, Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said a US proposal for a nuclear deal ran counter to Tehran's national interests, and that his country would not abandon uranium enrichment. Though Mr Trump said the call "was a good conversation", Mr Putin vowed to retaliate after Kyiv attacked Russian planes, and as a result, there would be no "immediate peace". Mr Putin "did say, and very strongly, that he will have to respond to the recent attack on the airfields", the US President wrote in his post. This is a stark turn around for Mr Trump, who took office this year on a promise to swiftly end the war in Ukraine. On Monday, delegates from Russia and Ukraine met briefly in Istanbul for a new round of talks. The day before, Kyiv unleashed a surprise drone offensive that hit Russian airfields across the country, taking out many heavy bombers and surveillance planes. The development comes after the White House on Tuesday confirmed that Mr Trump would attend the Nato summit this month, a meeting that is expected to be dominated by the war in Ukraine. The meetings will come shortly after Mr Trump is set to attend the Group of Seven leaders' summit in Canada, where allies are also expected to discuss ways to end the conflict. During a press briefing on Tuesday White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the President "remains positive at the progress" in the talks.
