The Ukrainian military said on Tuesday it attacked a vital railway bridge over the Northern Crimea Canal in Russian-held Crimea.
In a post on Telegram, Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces (SOF) said the Northern Crimea Canal bridge “no longer exists.”
SOF said the rail bridge served as a “strategic military and logistics artery for the occupiers”. SOF said the bridge was used to move goods, resources and military supplies through the Kerch Strait between Crimea and the mainland Russian region.
Russia annexed Crimea, which is internationally recognized as part of Ukraine, in 2014. There were sanctions from America and the European Union on this occupation.
Crimea is strategically located on the Black Sea and Russia has also used it as a launching point for attacks in its invasion of Ukraine. The Russian invasion of its neighbor began in February 2022.
‘Isolating Crimea with drones’
Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said the Ukrainian military was “isolating Crimea with drones.”
“It seems that next time Crimea will become an island. This could lead to some unexpected consequences for the Russians,” Fedorov said on YouTube.
Ukraine has also launched attacks on oil refineries in Crimea, suspending fuel sales on the peninsula. Ukraine has also recently carried out drone attacks on other energy infrastructure and on June 18 damaged a major oil refinery near Moscow.
Putin: Ukraine aims to ‘destabilize society’ with drone attacks
In his first remarks after the Ukrainian drone attack on a Moscow refinery last week, Russian President Vladimir Putin told graduates of military and security institutes that Ukraine aims to “destabilize society.”
“Attacks against civilian infrastructure – what is their purpose? To destabilize society and create a sense of uncertainty about the actions of the Russian armed forces in the midst of such a massive attack, when the entire West is working for them and these drones are coming in large numbers,” Putin said.
Since starting the war, Russia has consistently targeted Ukrainian hospitals, power plants, and other civilian infrastructure without any apparent military objective. Ukraine has recently managed to regularly attack targets inside Russian territory using more advanced drone systems.
Russia is considering a diesel export ban to boost its domestic fuel market amid gas shortages caused by attacks on Ukraine’s refineries and depots, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said.
Russia is also promoting domestic fuel production and drafting tax proposals to help the energy sector. .
Russian ballistic missile hits Zelensky’s hometown
Meanwhile, a Russian strike targeted the Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih, the hometown of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Zelensky said three people were killed and more than 20 were injured in the Russian missile attack on the city.
According to Ukrainian officials, the missile used a cluster munition warhead.
Edited by: Wesley Rahn
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