According to the latest edition of The New York Times, in the summer of 2024, Ukraine secretly carried out a third attack on the Crimean bridge, but it was unsuccessful. It is indicated that the strike took place within the framework of secret military cooperation between Kyiv and Washington.
Points of attention
- The planning and execution of the attack reveal the complexities and risks involved in covert military operations in the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia.
- The revelation of this unsuccessful strike sheds light on the evolving dynamics of the conflict in Crimea and the strategic maneuvers adopted by the involved parties.
What is known about the secret attack on the Crimean bridge?
As journalists managed to find out, in the summer of 2024, Ukraine damaged the Crimean bridge with long-range ATACMS missiles.
According to their data, this secret operation was carried out as part of the Lunar Hail campaign, which was jointly developed by Ukraine and the United States.
This operation involved strikes on Russian infrastructure in occupied Crimea.
Initially, Washington did not allow Ukraine to attack the Crimean bridge with American missiles, but later agreed.
The ATACMS was planned to hit vulnerable areas of the bridge, and the naval drones would explode near the bridge piers, but the Russians strengthened the protection of the piers. After that, the Ukrainian military proposed to attack only with ATACMS missiles. American officials objected, arguing that the missiles would not give a reliable result, so it was necessary to either wait or abandon the strike.
However, when the attack did take place, the planned strike caused minimal damage to the facility.
