Newly captured satellite imagery reveals the aftermath of Ukrainian airstrikes on two key bridges in Russia’s Kursk region.
The back-to-back strikes come as Ukraine looks to reinforce its efforts inside Russia that began with a stunning invasion last week. The incursion is now on its 14th day. By targeting the two bridges, Kyiv is likely trying to disrupt the supply lines of the Russian forces deployed to stop its advances.
The first documented strike, which was carried out on Friday, targeted a bridge in the Glushkovsky district of the Kursk region. An aerial video shared by Ukraine’s air force shows a projectile strike the bridge, causing a section of it to collapse into the Seim River.
“Aviation of the Air Force takes an active part in combat operations in the Kursk direction,” Lt. Gen. Mykola Oleschuk, the Ukrainian air force commander, wrote in a Telegram post.
“Ukrainian pilots use high-precision strikes against enemy strongholds, accumulations of equipment, as well as enemy logistics centers and supply routes,” he added, indicating that Ukrainian airpower is involved in the combined-arms operations inside Russia.
Days later, on Sunday, Ukraine targeted a second bridge just a few miles away in the village of Zvannoye. An aerial video shared by Kyiv’s air force shows an explosion before zooming in on the bridge to reveal some damage to the structure.
“Minus one more bridge!” Oleschuk wrote on Telegram after the second strike.
“Aviation of the Air Force continues to deprive the enemy of logistical capabilities with precise strikes from the air, which significantly affects the course of hostilities,” he said. “Thanks again to the pilots for their professionalism and results!” It’s unclear which weapons are being used to conduct these strikes.
The Ukrainian airstrikes come as Russia has redeployed some units from operations in and around Ukraine to the Kursk region. Targeting the bridges there may be an attempt by Kyiv to cut the supply lines of Russian forces that have been sent to respond to the invasion.
After the first bridge was destroyed on Friday, conflict analysts at the Institute for the Study of War cited Russian milbloggers in claiming that the strike will complicate Russian ground lines of communication in the area. The situation appeared a little less clear after Sunday’s attack.
“Russian milbloggers and opposition media disagreed about the impact of the damage on Russian logistics, with some sources claiming that the strike only partially damaged the bridge, while others claimed that the strike rendered the bridge unpassable and that there is only one other usable bridge left in the area near Karyzh (west of Zvannoye),” the analysts wrote in their daily assessment.
Some reports indicate that a third bridge has also been struck, but Ukraine has only acknowledged the first two.
Ukrainian forces continue to advance in Kursk nearly two weeks into their invasion of the region, according to an update on Saturday from Kyiv’s Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi. The bold attack surprised Moscow and Ukraine’s international partners, including the US, which was not made aware of plans for the operation ahead of time.
The Kremlin is still scrambling to respond to the assault, which represents the biggest attack on Russian soil by a foreign enemy since World War II. Ukrainian forces have, by their own estimates, captured more than 1,150 square kilometers (more than 440 square miles) of territory and seized more than 80 settlements.
On Sunday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said a goal of the operation is to create a “buffer zone” within Russian territory.
“Everything that inflicts losses on the Russian army, Russian state, their military-industrial complex, and their economy helps prevent the war from expanding and brings us closer to a just end to this aggression — a just peace for Ukraine,” he said in a nightly address to the nation.
