The Ukrainian Defense Ministry appeared to celebrate an explosion that destroyed the Kerch Bridge linking Russia to the Crimean Peninsula on Saturday morning.
“The guided missile cruiser Moskva and the Kerch Bridge — two notorious symbols of Russian power in Ukrainian Crimea — have gone down,” the Ukrainian government tweeted. “What’s next in line, Russkies?”
The guided missile cruiser Moskva and the Kerch Bridge – two notorious symbols of russian power in Ukrainian Crimea – have gone down.
What’s next in line, russkies?— Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) October 8, 2022
CRUCIAL BRIDGE LINKING CRIMEA TO RUSSIA COLLAPSES IN SUSPECTED TRUCK BOMB ATTACK
Russia forcibly seized Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, and the bridge provided a key supply route for Russian forces deployed to southern Ukraine’s Kherson region amid Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war in the country.
Ukraine has not formally taken credit for the blast, which took place one day after Putin’s 70th birthday. Russian authorities said Saturday morning that the blast was caused by a roadside truck, which collapsed two lanes of the bridge and resulted in three casualties.
An early morning blast and ensuing fire hit a section of the dual road-and-rail Crimea Bridge over the Kerch Strait and a span of the road bridge collapsed into the sea on October 8. pic.twitter.com/qvRUP7wTsX
— Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (@RFERL) October 8, 2022
?️The Kerch bridge between Crimea and mainland Russia has been partially destroyed.
Footage from the scene has shown a train of oil tanker wagons ablaze, and one lane of the parallel road bridge collapsed into the seahttps://t.co/Z5C2sDu3eE pic.twitter.com/VImzRPonyM
— The Telegraph (@Telegraph) October 8, 2022
Another video of the aftermath of explosion on Kerch bridge. pic.twitter.com/bGN7vAayqJ
— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) October 8, 2022
Mykhailo Podolyak, a senior adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, tweeted Saturday morning, however, that the Kerch explosion marked just “the beginning.”
“Everything illegal must be destroyed, everything that is stolen must be returned to Ukraine, everything occupied by Russia must be expelled,” he wrote.
Crimea, the bridge, the beginning. Everything illegal must be destroyed, everything stolen must be returned to Ukraine, everything occupied by Russia must be expelled. pic.twitter.com/yUiSwOLlDP
— Михайло Подоляк (@Podolyak_M) October 8, 2022
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Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova condemned the response to the blast from Ukrainian officials, claiming the “reaction of the Kyiv regime to the destruction of civilian infrastructure testifies to its terrorist nature.”
