Deputy Minister of Defense of Ukraine Anna Malyar summed up the results of 500 days since the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation, noting the main successes of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU). Among other things, she admitted for the first time that 273 days ago, the “first blow to the Crimean bridge” was delivered. The Deputy Minister published a post on the morning of July 8 in her Telegram channel.
« 500 days of large-scale war.
497 days ago, we destroyed the expectations of "Kyiv in three days" and the myth of the "second army of the world."
462 days ago we liberated the Kiev region and northern Ukraine, the Russian media for the first time spoke of their retreat as a "goodwill gesture."
451 days since we sent the cruiser Moskva to the bottom.
380 days ago received the first Himars from the allies.
373 days since the Snake Island was liberated.
305 days ago, they launched a counteroffensive in the Kharkiv region. An unprecedentedly fast offensive with a cascading collapse of the Russian defenses that amazed the whole world.
273 days since the first blow was struck on the Crimean bridge in order to break the Russians' logistics.
Our Kherson was returned 239 days ago.
113 days ago, they obtained a warrant for the arrest of Putin in The Hague.
80 days since we received powerful air defense systems from partners – the Patriot system.
65 days since the first Russian "supersonic" Kinzhal missile was shot down.
It is at this moment that our soldiers in heavy fighting liberate the occupied lands in the east and south. Very soon we will start training pilots on the F-16. Ahead is victory.
Earlier, the media center of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine Military Media Center reported that Russian troops were preparing for possible military operations on the territory of the annexed Crimea. According to the Ukrainian military, the occupying troops are carrying out "fortification of the terrain" in the northern, western and eastern parts of the peninsula, and are also training the defense of the Crimean isthmuses.
In early July, a traffic jam arose at the entrance to the Crimean bridge from the Krasnodar Territory, and on the 3rd the queue grew to 13 km. The waiting time for inspection for Russians who went on vacation was five hours. Hundreds of trucks were waiting in line with cars. Volunteers distributed water to people, dry closets were set up at the entrance to the bridge, and doctors and employees of the Ministry of Emergency Situations were also on duty there. The headquarters appealed to drivers to “take into account the traffic situation” when organizing a trip to the Crimea and “allow time for the necessary checks.” Mikhail Podolyak, adviser to the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, stated that in this way the Russian troops tried to save the bridge from destruction, using people as human shields.
On October 8, 2022, a truck exploded on the automobile part of the Crimean Bridge. Due to the explosion, the tanks of a train passing along the railway part of the bridge caught fire. Four people died . The authorities of the annexed peninsula said that “Ukrainian vandals” were behind the sabotage. Later, the Russian authorities blamed the explosion on the special services of Ukraine. The FSB said that the organizer of the explosion on the Crimean bridge on October 8 is the head of military intelligence of Ukraine, Kirill Budanov. The implementation of this plan was allegedly carried out by another 12 people, most of whom have already been detained in Moscow. After that, only buses and cars were allowed to cross the bridge, all vehicles are carefully inspected.