Reports of a Ukrainian strike against a railway bridge near the city, considered the gateway to Crimea, show Kyiv pressure to “unsupport” its seizure of the Moscow peninsula. said a former U.S. military commander.
The Twitter account NOELreports, which provides updates on the war in Ukraine, said: murmured How Kyiv forces destroyed a bridge near Melitopol, one of the main supply routes for Russian troops, on Sunday.
The bridge was reportedly attacked by US-supplied HIMARS as a Russian convoy passed.
Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges, former commander of US Army Europe, shared a tweet saying the move is “part of Russia’s attempt to destroy the ‘overpass’ seized in 2014 and isolate Crimea.” Added to the message.
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“This is a step towards adopting long-range precision fire that will make Crimea unacceptable to the Russian military,” he added.
Newsweek Hodges and the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense have been reached for comment.
Moscow forces occupy parts of southern Ukraine, including the cities of Melitopol and Mariupol, which border Russia via the peninsula and are an important supply route.
Earlier this month, General Mark Milley of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff said Ukraine was unlikely to kick Russia out of Crimea anytime soon.
Part of cutting off the “overpass” and isolating Crimea. This is a step towards adopting long-range precision fire that will make Crimea unacceptable to the Russian military. https://t.co/N3Packpy0u
— Ben Hodges (@general_ben) January 30, 2023
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has pledged to expel Russian forces from all occupied territories of his country, including Crimea.
But Hodges is one of the military experts who believes retaking Crimea is necessary for Ukraine’s long-term survival. He told Britain’s Channel 4 News last Wednesday that Crimea is “definitive terrain” and should be quarantined with “long-range precision weapons”.
In his view, these include F-16 jets and ATACM (Army Tactical Missile System) and armed drones to “reach beyond the currently used HIMARS that could isolate Crimea,” It can “make Crimea untenable”.
The fate of Crimea as a decisive factor in the war in Ukraine continues to be debated amid speculation over whether Vladimir Putin will be a red line for a Moscow ready to use its nuclear capabilities in defense. ing.
There are also logistical issues required to move to Crimea.
Retired Australian Maj. Gen. Mick Ryan said in a Substack article on Monday that there were only two narrow land approaches to the peninsula, which would “help little attackers” and “could be heavily fortified by the Russians.” expensive,” he wrote.
He also said that Ukraine would also need to recapture all its southern territories.Liberating the Kherson and Zaporizhia provinces would give it “the only two earth axes that can be used to advance into Crimea.” will be, he writes.
