2023 Crimean Bridge explosion

Not to be confused with the 2022 Crimean Bridge explosion.
2023 Crimean Bridge explosion
Part of the Crimea attacks during the Russian invasion of Ukraine
Map
Date17 July 2023
Time3:04 a.m.
3:20 a.m. (UTC+03:00)
LocationCrimean Bridge
Coordinates45°14′44″N 36°35′18″E / 45.24562°N 36.58829°E / 45.24562; 36.58829
PerpetratorUkraine
Deaths2
Non-fatal injuries1

On 17 July 2023, at approximately 3:04 a.m. and 3:20 a.m. EEST, the Ukrainian Navy attacked the Crimean Bridge,[1] with two suicide sea drones, damaging a span of the road bridge.[2] The explosions killed two civilians and injured one.[3][2] Ukraine later formally admitted to launching the attack.[4]

Incident[edit]

Explosion[edit]

Grey Zone, a pro-Wagner Group Telegram channel, said that explosions were heard at approximately 3:04 a.m. and 3:20 a.m. local time.[5] Russian-installed governor of Crimea, Sergey Aksyonov, stated that an "emergency" occurred near the 145th support on the Russia side of the bridge.[6]

Damage[edit]

The bridge was damaged.[7] According to the BBC, the road surface was damaged, but the supports remained intact.[6] FDD's Long War Journal says "two of the bridge’s four lanes are totally unusable. The adjacent span for the other two lanes was knocked loose but remains on the pier."[8]

A source close to Ukrainian intelligence services stated to Meduza that one of the pillars was damaged. The source said that the damaged pillar was the 145th pillar, on the Ukrainian side of the Ukraine–Russia international border.[2]

Subsequent assessments revealed that the span had ruptured, with repairs estimating to last until November.[9] Nevertheless, the bridge reopened to traffic the next day, albeit with only one lane open.[10] The bridge was subsequently closed to both road and rail traffic only a few days later, following an attack on a Russian ammunition dump in Crimea on 22 July.[11] The bridge was fully reopened on 14 October.[12]

Casualties[edit]

Married couple Alexey and Natalia Kulik from Belgorod were killed, and their 14-year-old daughter Angelina was injured.[13][14] On July 24, Angelina was discharged from the hospital.

Responsibility[edit]

The attack was reportedly conducted by Ukrainian forces using Sea Baby[15][16] marine drones and planned by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and the Ukrainian Navy. Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukrainian Minister for Digital Transformation confirmed that naval drones had been used.[17] SBU spokesman Artem Dekhtyarenko [uk] said that further information on the attack would be revealed at the end of the war.[18] However, immediately after the attack, Ukrainian Army spokeswoman Natalia Humeniuk denied Ukrainian responsibility.[19]

Russia's Anti-Terrorist Committee had opened a criminal investigation on the incident.[20]

On 21 July, President Zelenskyy said at the Aspen Security Forum about the Crimean Bridge: “This is the route used to feed the war with ammunition and this is being done on a daily basis. And it militarizes the Crimean peninsula…For us, this is understandably an enemy facility built outside international laws and all applicable norms. So, understandably, this is a target for us. And a target that is bringing war, not peace, has to be neutralized.”[21]

On 22 July, Ukrainian Defence Minister, Oleksii Reznikov acknowledged, in an interview with CNN, that the Crimea Bridge is a valid target. Asked whether Ukraine would seek to disable the bridge he replied: “It’s normal tactics to ruin the logistic lines of your enemy to stop the options to get more ammunition, to get more fuel, to get more food, etcetera. That’s why we will use these tactics against them.”[22]

On 3 August, Ukraine formally admitted to launching the attack, with an official saying that it was proof that the country was more than capable of penetrating Russia's defences.[4]

Russia's reaction[edit]

Transfiguration Cathedral in Odesa after airstrikes on the night of 23 July 2023

According to reports, emergency services arrived on the scene, including Minister of Transport Vitaly Savelyev and Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Crimea Igor Mikhailichenko,[23] and a crisis centre was formed.[5]

Later that day, Russian President Vladimir Putin withdrew from a deal that allowed Ukraine to export grain across the Black Sea despite a wartime blockade.[24]

On the following day, 18 July, Russian forces hit southern Ukraine with airstrikes. Russia's Defense Ministry said that the strikes on Ukrainian port cities of Odesa and Mykolaiv were in retaliation for the Crimean Bridge explosion.[25] Ukraine said that Russia was attacking civilian infrastructure linked to grain exports.[26]

On 25 March 2024, Lt. Gen. Vasyl Maliuk, head of the SBU, said that Russia doesn't use the Kerch Bridge for munitions anymore due to repeated Ukrainian attacks. He said: “Before our successful strikes [on the bridge], daily traffic ranged from 42 to 46 trains carrying weapons and ammunition ... now there are only four to five per day. Four are passenger trains and one carries general goods.” He said that Ukraine still intends to destroy the bridge.[27]

Other reactions[edit]

The UK Ministry of Defence believe the bridge has become a 'security burden' to Russia, tying down air defence systems and crews who would otherwise be deployed elsewhere.[28]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Sea drones and the counteroffensive in Crimea". Reuters.
  2. ^ a b c "'The same ones were used on Sevastopol three months ago' What a source close to Ukraine's Defense Ministry told Meduza about the latest Crimea bridge attack". Meduza. 17 July 2023. Wikidata Q120722812. Archived from the original on 17 July 2023.
  3. ^ "Traffic stopped on Crimean Bridge, reports of blasts". Reuters. 16 July 2023. Archived from the original on 17 July 2023. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
  4. ^ a b Bubalo, Mattea; Goksedef, Ece (3 August 2023). "Ukraine says it launched July attack on bridge to Crimea". BBC. Retrieved 4 August 2023.
  5. ^ a b Pennington, Josh; Stambaugh, Alex (16 July 2023). "Crimean Bridge hit by 2 strikes, reports say". CNN. Archived from the original on 18 July 2023. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
  6. ^ a b Cooney, Christy (16 July 2023). "Crimea bridge closed following 'emergency'". BBC News. Archived from the original on 17 July 2023. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
  7. ^ Pennington, Josh; Stambaugh, Alex (16 July 2023). "Russian Transport Ministry reports damage to Crimean Bridge". CNN. Archived from the original on 17 July 2023. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
  8. ^ JOHN HARDIE (17 July 2023). "Crimean Bridge Damaged by Ukrainian Strike". Archived from the original on 19 July 2023. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
  9. ^ Psaropoulos, John (20 July 2023). "Ukrainian push stalls, Russia's command baulks, food crisis looms". Aljazeera. Archived from the original on 20 July 2023. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
  10. ^ McGarvey, Emily (18 July 2023). "Ukraine war: Russia says Crimean bridge partially open to cars again". BBC. Archived from the original on 18 July 2023. Retrieved 18 July 2023.
  11. ^ Cursino, Malu (22 July 2023). "Crimea bridge closed after fuel depot hit - Russia". BBC. Archived from the original on 22 July 2023. Retrieved 22 July 2023.
  12. ^ "На Крымском мосту открыто движение автомобилей по всем четырем полосам". Коммерсантъ (in Russian). 14 October 2023. Retrieved 14 October 2023.
  13. ^ Anand, Nisha (17 July 2023). "Parents killed, child injured in 'emergency' incident at Crimea-Russia bridge; traffic halted". Hindustan Times. Archived from the original on 17 July 2023. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
  14. ^ Edwards, Josh Pennington,Alex Stambaugh,Brad Lendon,Christian (17 July 2023). "Ukraine claims responsibility for new attack on key Crimea bridge". CNN. Retrieved 13 August 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  15. ^ Roman Romaniuk (1 January 2024). "Sea drones, Elon Musk, and high-precision missiles: How Ukraine dominates in the Black Sea". Ukrainska Pravda.
  16. ^ "СБУ показала відео ураження Кримського мосту дронами SeaBaby". Ukrainian Military Center (in Ukrainian). 25 November 2023. Archived from the original on 8 January 2024.
  17. ^ "Crimean bridge was struck by "naval drones," Ukrainian minister says". 17 July 2023. Archived from the original on 18 July 2023. Retrieved 18 July 2023.
  18. ^ "Crimea bridge attack: What happened, why is the bridge important?". aljazeera.com. Archived from the original on 17 July 2023. Retrieved 18 July 2023.
  19. ^ "Ukraine military says bridge incident may be Russian 'provocation'". dw.com. Archived from the original on 17 July 2023. Retrieved 17 July 2023.
  20. ^ "Ukraine attacked Crimean bridge with surface drones, Russia says". Reuters. 17 July 2023. Archived from the original on 17 July 2023. Retrieved 17 July 2023.
  21. ^ "Crimea bridge is legitimate military target: Ukraine's Zelenskyy". alarabiya. 22 July 2023. Archived from the original on 22 July 2023. Retrieved 22 July 2023.
  22. ^ Sebastian Shukla; Alex Marquardt; Sana Noor Haq (25 July 2023). "Ukraine's defense minister says attacks on Crimea will continue, predicts possible NATO entry next year". CNN. Retrieved 25 July 2023.
  23. ^ Pennington, Josh; Stambaugh, Alex (16 July 2023). "Emergency incident reported on bridge linking Crimea with Russia". CNN. Archived from the original on 17 July 2023. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
  24. ^ "Putin tightens grip on Africa after killing Black Sea grain deal". Politico. 19 July 2023.
  25. ^ "Peskov: Strikes on Odesa were revenge for Crimean Bridge attack". The Kyiv Independent. 18 July 2023. Archived from the original on 20 July 2023. Retrieved 18 July 2023.
  26. ^ "Ukrainian air defenses in Odesa outgunned as Russia targets global grain supply". CNN. 21 July 2023.
  27. ^ Kateryna Denisova (25 March 2024). "Russia not using damaged Crimean Bridge to transport weapons — SBU". The New Voice of Ukraine.
  28. ^ "Russia claims key Crimea bridge is fully repaired, but actually it remains limited and a huge 'security burden,' UK intel says". 19 October 2023.
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