On Saturday, a truck exploded on the only bridge connecting the Crimean peninsula with the Russian mainland, sending part of the crossing into the sea, jeopardizing the main supply route for Russian troops fighting in southern Ukraine.

The 19-kilometer bridge across the Kerch Strait has become an important symbol of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s claim to the peninsula, which his forces seized from Ukraine in 2014. Putin attended the opening of the bridge in 2018, driving a truck over it.

The extent of the damage was difficult to assess immediately, although any disruption to traffic on the bridge could have serious consequences for Russia’s ability to wage war in southern Ukraine.

The bridge is the only military supply route connecting the Russian mainland with the Crimean peninsula. Without it, the Russian military will be severely limited in its ability to supply fuel, equipment and ammunition to Russian forces in an increasingly intense struggle for control of southern Ukraine.

Russian state news agency RIA reported that a car exploded on the bridge, setting seven carriages of the train on fire. Although there were no immediate claims of responsibility, Russian and Ukrainian officials said the fire was not accidental.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov called the episode “extraordinary” in a statement on Saturday, without specifying who was behind it. He said Mr. Putin, who celebrated his 70th birthday on Friday, had been briefed.

“The president instructed the prime minister to form a government commission to find out the causes of the incident and eliminate the consequences as soon as possible,” Peskov said, according to Russian state media.

Officials in Russia-annexed Crimea have left no doubt as to who they believe is responsible.

“Ukrainian vandals were able to get to the Crimean bridge with their bloodied hands,” said Vladimir Konstantinov, chairman of the so-called Crimean parliament.

Ukrainian officials did not immediately comment on the cause of the fire, although senior officials had previously said a bridge was a possible target.

“Crimea, bridge, beginning,” Mikhail Podolyak, adviser to the President of Ukraine, wrote on Saturday. “Everything illegal must be destroyed. Everything stolen must be returned to Ukraine. All Russian occupiers must be expelled.”

A senior Ukrainian military official did not deny that Ukrainian forces were behind the attack, but did not confirm it either.

“All I can say is that a car with fuel was passing over the bridge, intended to supply the occupying forces in southern Ukraine,” the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The official added: “Putin should be happy. Not everyone gets such an expensive birthday present.”

In recent weeks, the movement of military vehicles heading over the bridge to Crimea has increased as Russia has placed tanks and equipment on the front line in Kherson region, a fertile stretch of southern Ukraine that Kremlin forces seized in the first weeks of the war. Last week, Ukrainian forces stepped up counter-offensive operations in the region, taking large tracts of land in an attempt to drive Russian troops east across the Dnieper and liberate Kherson.

Source: New York Times