In a briefing on Thursday, the Ministry of Defense (MoD) said Ukraine’s offensive in Russian-controlled Kherson was “gaining momentum” after its forces hit the Antonievsky Bridge, which it said was likely to be rendered useless. The strategic bridge, still standing but riddled with holes, is essential for Moscow to supply its occupation forces in the south. The Foreign Ministry said Ukrainian troops used new long-range artillery to destroy at least three bridges on the Dnipro River, which runs through central Ukraine from Kherson in the south to Kyiv in the north. He said: “Russia’s 49th Army, stationed on the west bank of the Dnipro River, now looks very vulnerable.” He added that losing Russian control over Kherson would “severely undermine [its] attempts to portray the occupation as a success’. Russian officials have said they will instead use pontoons and ferries to ferry their troops across the river. A Russian military truck drives past unexploded ordnance in the Russian-controlled village of Chornobaivka (Reuters) Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Wednesday in his nightly speech: “We are doing everything to ensure that the occupation forces have no logistical opportunity in our country.” One of Mr Zelensky’s advisers, Oleksiy Arestovych, said Russia was carrying out a “massive redeployment” of forces from the east to the south to defend the Kherson region. Antonivskyi Bridge, Russian-controlled city of Kherson (bayraktar_1love) Oleksiy Danilov, secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, tweeted that Russia was massing “the maximum number of troops” in the direction of Kherson. Meanwhile, Vladimir Putin’s forces launched missile strikes on the Kiev and Chernihiv regions, areas that have not been targeted in weeks. Bombing also hit Kharkiv and Mykolaiv. On Wednesday, Russian-backed forces said they had seized the Vuhlehirsk coal-fired power plant, Ukraine’s second largest, in the eastern Donetsk region. It is reported to be Moscow’s first major gain in more than three weeks. Also in Donetsk, Moscow-backed separatists accused Ukrainian forces of killing four civilians and wounding 11 amid shelling. The report could not be verified by Reuters news agency.
