Why should the Kerch Bridge attack significance?

Why should the Kerch Bridge attack significance?
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Why should the Kerch Bridge attack significance?

What role does the bridge play in terms of strategy?

Is Ukraine responsible for this assault?

What was Russia’s response?

What was the Ukrainian counteroffensive’s main goal?

Why did Russia back out of a grain deal that the UN mediated?

At the NATO meeting, what assurances did Ukraine receive from its Western allies?

The Kerch Bridge

Why should the Kerch Bridge attack significance?
Why should the Kerch Bridge attack significance?

The Kerch Bridge, which connects the Crimean Peninsula in the Black Sea to the Russian mainland, was attacked last week. In what the Russians claimed was an assault by two Ukrainian sea drones, one part of the bridge was harmed. Although Ukraine hasn’t admitted responsibility for the strike, its security agency SBU stated information on what happened to the bridge would be made public after “Ukraine has won the war.” Russia responded by launching a significant airstrike on Odesa, a port city in southern Ukraine. A few hours after the strike, Russia also made the announcement that it was leaving a UN-mediated agreement that had permitted Ukraine to ship its grain across the Black Sea, where Russia had imposed a naval blockade.

How did the Kerch Bridge fare?

Russian authorities claim that one of the bridge’s pieces was blown up, killing two adults and seriously hurting a kid. A part of the bridge was tilted and hanging down, as seen in a video that the local media had broadcast. The 19 km long Kerch Bridge, which spans the Kerch Strait, includes two concurrent rail and traffic systems. In 2018, Vladimir Putin of Russia officially inaugurated it, four years after annexing Crimea from Ukraine through a contentious referendum. The rail service was resumed six hours after the incident, but the road is still closed. The bridge has been the target of attacks before. Three people were murdered and the bridge was destroyed by a large truck bomb in October. Three persons were murdered and the bridge was severely damaged by a truck bomb. Later, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy hailed the assault on the bridge as one of the military’s successful operations.

What makes this bridge so crucial?

For Russia, the bridge is significant for administrative, symbolic, and practical reasons. There was no direct connection between the Russian mainland and Crimea in 2014 when Russia moved quickly to seize the peninsula after a pro-Russian elected administration in Kyiv was overthrown amid anti-regime protests backed by the West. Mr. Putin gave an urgent order for the bridge to be built. But as Ukraine’s military power increased over the next years with support from the West, the bridge continued to be a weak link. According to experts, one of the military goals when Mr. Putin authorized a full-scale war on February 24, 2022 (what the Russians now refer to as a “special military operation”) was to secure a “land bridge” from mainland Russia to Crimea. The land bridge between Ukraine’s northeast and Crimea is currently controlled by Russia, although it is still close to the frontlines and well within Ukrainian fire’s range. Thus, the Kerch Bridge continues to be a vital logistical supply route for the southern Russian soldiers. As part of its offensive to recover Kerson last year, Ukraine targeted the Kerch Bridge. When Ukrainian forces attacked Russian troops on the western bank of the Dnieper River, the strategy was to cut off the supplies. In November, the Russian troops evacuated the city of Kherson and moved to the eastern side of the river. The onslaught last week occurred as a Ukrainian counteroffensive was in progress. The destruction of Mr. Putin’s land bridge was one of the counteroffensive’s main objectives, according to the Western officials, and it started in early June. In order to reach the Sea of Azov shore, Ukrainian troops intend to conduct deep incursions into the Russian-held regions of the southeast. If successful, this would make Crimea even more vulnerable to future Ukrainian invasions, leaving the Kerch Bridge as the only bridge connecting the peninsula to the rest of Russia. The focus of the counteroffensive, southern Ukraine, is where Ukraine also wants to stop Russian supplies.

What is the status of Ukraine’s offensive response?

Why should the Kerch Bridge attack significance?
Why should the Kerch Bridge attack significance?

The counteroffensive was undertaken by Ukraine using cutting-edge armaments from the West. Mr. Zelenskyy has constantly pushed for more cutting-edge armaments from the West to combat the Russians over the past few months. Along with artillery shells and ammunition, the United States and its European allies have provided armored vehicles, long-range rockets, cruise missiles, main battle tanks, and missile defense systems. Additionally, they train Ukrainian soldiers at several locations in the US and Europe. Since the Russian invasion started, the United States alone has announced 42 aid packages for Ukraine. The United States revealed its decision to supply cluster munitions to Ukraine, which have been outlawed by more than 100 nations due to the indiscriminate harm they do to civilians. To exert pressure on Mr. Putin, allies wanted Ukraine to quickly gain ground on Russia in the counteroffensive. However, despite fighting for six weeks, Ukraine has yet to achieve a significant victory Since the counteroffensive started, Kyiv claims its troops have reclaimed roughly 210 square kilometers of territory, largely in the southeast. However, the frontline villages were deserted. Ukraine paid a tremendous price for these modest advances. In the first two weeks of the counteroffensive, according to a NYT report that quotes American and European officials, Ukraine lost 20% of the weapons it delivered to the battlefield, including main battle tanks and armored vehicles supplied by the West. Only twice this year have the fighting lines significantly changed, once in January when the Russians captured Soledar and once in May when they captured Bakhmut. Along the more than 1000 km long frontline, the Russians have constructed massive fortifications with mines and tank traps, which appear to have slowed down the This puts pressure on Ukraine. At the recently finished NATO meeting in Vilnius, Lithuania, Ukraine received commitments for more arms and training from its Western partners. Additionally, Kyiv stated that the counteroffensive’s main thrust had not yet started. The assault on the Kerch Bridge followed.  

Way Forward:

  • The Kerch Bridge, which spans the Black Sea and connects the Russian mainland to the Crimean Peninsula, was attacked last week. Drones floating in the water hit the only bridge.
  • Although Ukraine has not admitted guilt in the attack, its security services SBU has stated that information on what transpired with the bridge will be made public when Ukraine has won the war.
  • Russia values the bridge for symbolic, administrative, and practical reasons.
  • One of the main objectives of the Ukrainian offensive was to destroy the bridge, cutting off Russia from Crimea. The offensive also wanted to stop Russian supplies from reaching the targeted region of southern Ukraine.

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