Zelensky admits to Ukraine's involvement in attacks on Crimea bridge

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky admitted in a video message on his Telegram channel that Kyiv was responsible for another attempt to attack the Crimean bridge on August 12.

According to Zelensky, the Armed Forces of Ukraine thus respond to Russia's actions.

"Every destroyed [Russian military], all pieces of scorched Russian equipment, fire at the site of their headquarters and warehouses, the eloquent smoke on the Crimean bridge and not only that — all this proves that we will not leave any of Russia's crimes unanswered," Zelensky said.

Earlier, the Russian Defence Ministry reported that the Armed Forces of Ukraine tried to attack the Crimean Bridge by launching S-200 anti-aircraft guided missile, which was upgraded into a strike version. Russian air defence systems shot the Ukrainian missile down.

The Armed Forces of Ukraine made the first attempt to attack the Crimean bridge two hours earlier before the missile attack. Crimea Governor Sergei Aksyonov said that two Ukrainian missiles were shot down in the Kerch Strait area.

The Crimean bridge was not damaged, Aksyonov added.

S-200 missiles tried to attack Crimean bridge

The Ukrainian missiles that were shot down during the attack on the Crimean bridge, have a very large destructive agent, military expert Vasily Dandykin said. The S-200 missile carries a very large amount of explosives. It was designed to shoot down targets at high altitudes and large distances. The maximum range of Ukrainian S-200 missiles converted into a strike version amounts to 200 kilometres.

Maria Zakharova, an official representative for the Russian Foreign Ministry, stressed that Russia would not leave the attacks in Crimea unanswered. The Crimean bridge is an object of purely civilian infrastructure, she sad adding that attacks on the bridge were unacceptable.

On October 8, 2022, a truck filled with explosives blew up on the Crimean bridge. Two car sections of the bridge partially collapsed. Seven fuel tanks of a railway train caught fire. Russian President Vladimir Putin then said that the terrorist act was conducted by Ukrainian special services.

On October 12, the FSB detained eight accomplices in the terrorist attack on the Crimean bridge. Among them are citizens of Russia, Ukraine and Armenia. According to the agency, the head of military intelligence of Ukraine Kirill Budanov was the organiser of the explosion.

On July 9, 2023, Deputy Head of Ukraine's Ministry of Defence Anna Malyar admitted the involvement of Ukrainian special services in the attack on the Crimean bridge.

On July 17, Ukrainian unmanned boats attacked the Crimean bridge near the 145th support. As a result of the emergency, two adults were killed and a minor girl was injured.