kyiv claims destruction of second strategic bridge in Kursk region

Photo: Yan Dobronosov Agence France-PResse

Victoria Lukovenko – Agence France-Presse in Kiev

Published at 8:14 a.m. Updated at 9:10 a.m.

• Europe

kyiv said on Sunday it had destroyed a second strategic bridge in the Russian region of Kursk, where its troops have been conducting an unprecedented offensive for 12 days, at a time when the Russian army says it is continuing its push into eastern Ukraine, towards the Pokrovsk logistics hub.

On August 6, the Ukrainian army attacked the border region of Kursk, seizing, according to Kiev, 82 localities and 1,150 square kilometers of territory outside an assault that surprised Moscow, moving for the first time in a massive and prolonged manner the clashes into Russian territory.

In recent days, the Ukrainian army has said it is anchoring its positions in this Russian region, while advancing gradually, “exactly as we planned”, according to President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Moscow, for its part, repeated on Sunday that it was “repelling” the Ukrainian attacks by sending reinforcements and inflicting heavy losses on its adversary.

There are still many questions about Kiev’s intentions in the short and medium term.

The Ukrainian authorities have sworn that the aim of the offensive was not to “occupy” part of Russian territory but, according to them, to put pressure on the Russian army and thus force Moscow to begin “fair” negotiations, while Russia still occupies nearly 20% of Ukraine.

The time has therefore come for the moment to continue this unprecedented operation.

On Sunday, the commander of the air force, Mykola Oleshchuk welcomed the destruction of a second important bridge for the Russian army, two days after a first similar claim.

“The Air Force continues to deprive the enemy of its logistical capabilities through precision airstrikes,” he said, posting video of the attack on Telegram.

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The official did not specify when this strike took place, but it appears to have hit a bridge over the Seim River, about fifteen kilometers north of the Ukrainian border.

Russian military bloggers, who follow the fighting in real time, shared photos dated Saturday showing what appears to be the affected bridge, estimating that this destruction would restrict the possibilities for Russian forces to maneuver in the area.

The hostilities have already forced tens of thousands of people to evacuate on both sides of the border and at least a dozen people have been killed, according to Russian authorities.

Oil depot on fire

In parallel with its offensive, Ukraine is still seeking to disrupt the supply mechanism of Moscow's forces, deeper into Russian soil, in retaliation for the daily attacks on its territory since February 2022.

It thus struck an oil depot in the Rostov region, in southern Russia, with explosive drones on the night of Saturday to Sunday.

According to the account given by the regional governor, Vassili Golubev, “the air defenses repelled [the] drone attack.” “As a result of debris falling on the territory of industrial storage facilities [in the city of] Proletarsk, a fire broke out.”

Videos posted on social media showed thick black smoke and flames coming from the site.

This facility “stored oil and oil products” needed “for the needs” of the Russian army, justified the Ukrainian forces, who confirmed the attack.

Pokrovsk in the Russian crosshairs

While the Ukrainian offensive in the Kursk region attracts a lot of attention, the majority of the fighting continues to take place in the Ukrainian Donbass, where Russian troops have the advantage, facing outnumbered Ukrainian forces.

On Sunday, Russia claimed the capture of a new town, Svyrydonivka, at a fifteen kilometers from the city of Pokrovsk, a real logistical hub for the Ukrainian army.

This town, with 61,000 inhabitants before the Russian invasion, is located on an important route to the Ukrainian strongholds of Chassiv Yar and Kostiantynivka, which Moscow would like to seize.

This rapid progress since the capture of Ocheretyne in early May is a sign of unabated pressure on the Eastern Front, despite the unprecedented advance of Ukrainian forces into Russian territory.