Ukraine war: Putin inspects Crimea bridge hit by blast; Kyiv warns of more blackouts after Russia hits power grid
- Putin drove a car to occupied Crimea across a flagship bridge seriously damaged in an explosion that Russia blamed on an act of ‘terrorism’ by Ukraine
- About half the region around the Ukrainian capital will remain without electricity for the coming days after missile strikes on power facilities, the regional governor said
Russian President Vladimir Putin has driven to occupied Crimea across a flagship bridge seriously damaged in an explosion.
“We’re driving across the right side” of the bridge, Putin told Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin seated beside him in the Mercedes car, in footage broadcast on state TV. “The left side as far as I understand is in working condition, but it needs to be fully restored.”
At one point, Putin pulled up to the location where the October 8 blast took place and got out of the car to discuss repairs to the road and rail span across the Kerch Strait, which he ordered built after annexing Crimea in 2014.
The Kremlin blamed an act of “terrorism” by Ukraine for the explosion that ignited a fuel train and caused the partial collapse of the road bridge into the sea.
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Putin says Ukraine behind Crimea bridge blast, calling it ‘act of terrorism’
Ukrainian officials did not claim responsibility for the attack on the bridge, which was being used to help supply Russia’s invasion forces in southern Ukraine. But the country’s postal service quickly announced a new stamp noting the blast.
Russia raced to reopen one lane of traffic for light vehicles and a partial train service to the peninsula.
Putin opened the 19km (12 mile) bridge in 2018 by driving a truck at the head of a column of vehicles along it. Construction costs were about US$3.7 billion.
The Russian leader said on Monday that Russia also needs to guarantee a link with Crimea on land via Ukrainian regions that Russia has annexed, though it does not control any of them fully.
No sign of peace, Ukraine warns of blackouts
Meanwhile, Russia said on Tuesday that it can agree with the United States about the need for lasting peace in Ukraine but played down the prospect of negotiations until it achieves the goals of its “special military operation”.
Both US President Joe Biden and Putin have said they are open to diplomacy on Ukraine, but a meeting between the two leaders has not been organised and neither side agrees on the conditions for talks.
About half the region surrounding the Ukrainian capital will remain without electricity for the coming days after missile strikes on power facilities, the Kyiv regional governor said.
On the ground
A third Russian airfield came under drone attack early Tuesday after Moscow accused Ukraine of carrying out strikes against two bases used by its long-range bombers, the deepest hit on its territory since Putin ordered the invasion.
An oil storage tank caught fire after the drone strike at a Kursk region airfield, state-run Tass news service reported, citing local governor Roman Starovoyt on Telegram. Ukraine has never officially claimed responsibility for any attacks that have happened on Russian soil.
Russia’s RIA news agency said the three deaths occurred at the airbase in Ryazan, 185km (115 miles) southeast of Moscow. The other base hit was Engels, near the city of Saratov, about 730km southeast of Moscow. It is one of two strategic bomber bases housing Russia’s air-delivered nuclear capability, the other being in Amur region in the Russian Far East.
The Kyiv government did not directly claim responsibility. If it did carry out the attacks, they were the deepest strikes inside the Russian heartland since Moscow invaded Ukraine on February 24.
“The Kyiv regime, to disable Russian long-range aircraft, made attempts to strike with Soviet-made unstaffed jet aerial vehicles at the military airfields Dyagilevo, in the Ryazan region, and Engels, in the Saratov region,” the Russian defence ministry said.
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It said the drones were intercepted and shot down. The wreckage caused slight damage to two aircraft, it said, and four people were wounded.
The ministry called it a “terrorist act” and said Russia responded with a “massive strike on the military control system and related objects of the defences complex, communication centres, energy and military units of Ukraine with high-precision air- and sea-based weapons”, in which it said all 17 designated targets were hit.
Ukraine said it shot down more than 60 of over 70 missiles launched by Russia on Monday, the latest in weeks of attacks targeting critical infrastructure.
Reuters could not verify battlefield reports.
The UN Security Council was due to meet on Tuesday to discuss “humanitarian issues and protection of children” in Ukraine, according to Russia, while European Union leaders were in Albania for talks with their counterparts from the Western Balkans to discuss deepening ties amid efforts by Moscow to wield its influence in the region.
