Blasts on Crimea bridge kill 2, threaten Russian war supply lines

An attack before dawn Monday damaged part of a bridge linking Russia to Moscow-annexed Crimea that is a key supply route for Kremlin forces in the war with Ukraine, forcing the span's temporary closure for a second time in less than a year.

Two people were killed and their daughter was injured. Vehicle traffic on the Kerch Bridge came to a standstill, while rail traffic across the 19-kilometre span also was halted for about six hours.

Hours after Monday's attack, video from Russian authorities showed crews picking up debris from the deck of the bridge, a section of which appeared to be sloping to one side, and a damaged black sedan with its passenger door open.

Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered increased security at the 19-kilometre bridge, repeating a call he made in October 2022 when the span was severely damaged by an explosion that Moscow also blamed on Kyiv.

He also promised "there will be a response from Russia, of course."

The strike on the bridge was carried out by two Ukrainian sea drones, Russia's National Anti-Terrorist Committee said.

Ukrainian officials didn't claim responsibility for the attack.

The bridge is a conspicuous symbol of Moscow's claims on Crimea and an essential land link to the peninsula, which Russia captured from Ukraine in 2014. The $3.6-billion US bridge is the longest in Europe and is crucial for enabling Russia's military operations in southern Ukraine during the almost 17-month-long war.

Russia has expanded its presence in Crimea since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Occasional acts of sabotage and other attacks against Russian military and other facilities on the peninsula have occurred since, with the Kremlin blaming Ukraine.

TheOctober 2022 attack blew up two of the bridge's sections and required months of repair. Moscow decried that assault as an act of terrorism and retaliated by bombarding Ukraine's civilian infrastructure, targeting the country's power grid over the winter.

The attack happened hours before Russia announced a halt to a wartime deal that allows grain to flow from Ukraine to countries in Africa, the Middle East and Asia, although the Kremlin denied the link.

"No, these developments aren't connected," spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said. "Even before this terror attack President [Vladimir] Putin had declared our stand on that."

No outright denial from Ukraine

The attack on the bridge came as Ukrainian forces tryto press a counteroffensive in several sections of the front line.

Natalia Humeniuk, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian military's Southern Command, said the explosions on the bridge could be a Russian provocation. But Ukrainian Ukrainska Pravda and RBC Ukraine news outlets said the attack was planned jointly by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and the Ukrainian navy and involved sea drones.

In what appeared to be an indirect acknowledgment of Ukraine's involvement in Monday's explosion, Ukrainian Security Service spokesperson Artem Degtyarenko said in a statement that details of what happened would be revealed after Ukraine has won the war.

"In the meantime, we are watching with interest how one of the symbols of the Putin regime once again failed to withstand the military load," he said.

Russian media identified the dead as Alexei and Natalia Kulik, who were travelling to Crimea for a summer vacation. The 40-year-old Kulik was a truck driver and his 36-year-old wife was a municipal education worker. Their 14-year-old daughter suffered chest and brain injuries.

Andriy Yusov, a spokesperson for Ukraine's military intelligence department, declined to comment Monday on the incident but said: "The peninsula is used by the Russians as a large logistical hub for moving forces and assets deep into the territory of Ukraine. Of course, any logistical problems are additional complications for the occupiers."

George Barros, an analyst at the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War, said if thebridgewas seriously damaged it would significantly impact Russian supply lines.

"Russia will only have one ground supply line the coastal highway on the Sea of Azov to sustain (or evacuate) its tens of thousands of troops in occupied KhersonandCrimeaif UKR manages to degrade/destroy thebridge," Barrossaid on Twitter.