The destruction of the Crimean bridge could be a crushing blow to the Kremlin, as it links mainland Russia to the Crimean peninsula. And Ukraine can now do this more easily with the recently delivered Harpoon missiles. This was said by the former Commander-in-Chief of NATO’s Combined Armed Forces in Europe, General Philip Breedlove The Times.
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In his words, because of Russia’s ongoing aggression against Ukraine, the Crimean bridge can be considered a completely “legitimate target”.
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Moscow hopes that the West has at least some sense and political will left. This was stated on July 2 by the press secretary of the presi…
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“It does not surprise me at all that the Russians are so worried about the Crimean bridge. It is incredibly important to them. Now that the West has provided Ukraine with Harpoon cruise missiles with a range of up to 200 miles (more than 300 km – note ed.), I think the Russians have every reason to worry that Ukraine might attack the bridge,” he said.
We recall that Crimea was included in the composition of the Russian Federation in 2014 after a controversial referendum, and the event was condemned by many world leaders as an illegal appropriation of Ukrainian territory. The UN also did not recognize the annexation.
The 11-kilometer Crimean Bridge was built between 2016 and 2018 across the Kerch Strait and is one of Russia’s most ambitious engineering projects, costing around $3.5 billion. According to publications in Russian and Ukrainian media, it is very well protected, including with air defense and radars to prevent underwater sabotage and the deployment of explosives. In addition, the bridge is built in such a way that it will not collapse as a whole, because it is built in sections, they claim in Russia.
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