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Dramatic moment An explosives-packed Russian drone ship wrecks a key Ukrainian bridge as Putin unleashes a new weapon of war that Moscow hopes will turn the tide of war
- The unmanned object is seen in the water approaching the bridge at high speed.
- Some reports say it was underwater while others say it was a surface drone.
Dramatic video shows the moment a Russian ‘maritime drone’ inflicts extensive damage on a key Ukrainian bridge connecting to Moldova.
The unmanned object is seen in the water approaching at high speed in the dark. A huge explosion goes off suddenly.
Some reports say it was an underwater drone, while others believe the visibility of the footage shows it to be a USV, an unmanned surface vessel.
Russia has previously attacked the Zatoka road-rail bridge across the Dniester estuary in the Odessa region, a strategic link between Ukraine and its troubled neighbor Moldova, where the pro-EU government fell yesterday.
It is the first time Russia has used this type of attack in war, analysts say.
The unmanned object is seen in the water approaching at high speed in the dark. A large explosion then suddenly erupts
Russia is not known to have such drones, but their creation is understood to have been proposed in a meeting with Vladimir Putin last year. Pictured: Mysterious Ukrainian drone ship washed up near the home of the Russian Black Sea Fleet last year
The bridge has been previously attacked by the Russians without destroying it.
It was used to deliver supplies to the southern Ukrainian armed forces via Romania, Bulgaria and Moldova.
Russia is not known to have such drones, but Sevastopol Governor Mikhail Razvozhaev is understood to have proposed creating them in a meeting with Vladimir Putin in November last year.
He said that companies in the city, in the annexed Crimea, had the ability to design and manufacture such drones.
Russian pro-war analysts applauded the attack.
VGTRK correspondent Andrei Rudenko posted:
‘Wow! We can’t do it from the air, we’ll take it from the water.
Evgeny Poddubny, military correspondent for VGTRK, added: “Almost a year after the start of the special military operation, we began to use unmanned marine drones.”
He stated: ‘The railway bridge at Zatoka is a gateway, not the only one, for…Western and Soviet equipment, munitions and models, which are produced by various former fraternal republics of Eastern Europe.
‘Of course, we needed to have started faster.’
The bridge has been previously attacked by the Russians but without destroying it
Some reports say it was an underwater drone, while others believe the visibility of the footage shows it to be a USV, an unmanned surface vessel.
It’s the first time Russia has used this type of attack in war, analysts say
A Ukrainian source said it appeared to be the first time the Russians had used such a drone.
The extent of the damage to the bridge was not confirmed.
Russia’s latest attack on the bridge comes amid the launch of Putin’s new major offensive, which has unleashed a wave of missile and drone strikes across Ukraine.
Moscow forces attacked critical infrastructure in Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, and launched multiple attacks against energy infrastructure in Zaporizhzhia. Explosions were also heard near the capital of kyiv.
Ukrainian forces said they had shot down a series of drones and Kaliber missiles launched at Ukraine in recent days. The county air force also said some 35 S-300 missiles were launched in the Kharkiv and Zaporizhizhia regions.
The recent attacks came amid reports that Putin is preparing 1,800 tanks and 400 fighter jets for a new invasion in the coming days, ahead of the first anniversary of the Russian president’s invasion on February 24.