Crimean Bridge Closed Again as Fuel Depot Blows Up

The Crimean Bridge – Kerch Bridge – is closed again. The fuel depot was hit. According to the BBC, civilians were evacuated, and transportation was disrupted due to a drone attack. Sergei Aksyonov, the Russian governor of Crimea, said Ukraine was behind the attack.

The BBC said there is no evidence Ukraine is responsible.

However, Ukrainians did take credit for the recent attack on the Crimean bridge.

Also, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the Kerch Bridge must be “neutralized.” He said the bridge is a legitimate military target as Russia uses it to “feed the war.”

In remarks to the Aspen Security Forum, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, speaking by video link, said Friday evening that the bridge is a legitimate military target.

He suggested that taking it out is key to Ukraine‘s own ambitions, which include taking back all land occupied since 2014, when a popular uprising ousted the country’s former pro-Moscow president, leading the Kremlin to seize the Crimean peninsula, which is home to a Russian naval base and provides the country direct access to the Black Sea.

Reportedly, Russia is not using the bridge for military transport and leaving it only for civilian use. If that’s true, then the attacks are war crimes.

Crimean Mayor Aksyonov said residents within five kilometers of the blast were being evacuated.

The BBC calls Crimea “occupied territory,” but the people allegedly overwhelmingly voted to join Russia. Crimea wasn’t part of Ukraine until 1954, and the population is majority Russian. The situation is complicated, so it’s hard to know what they prefer, but it’s not clear they want to be part of Ukraine.

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