NYT: Ukraine Strikes Crimean Bridge With ATACMS Missiles Causing Damage

The attack took place as part of the secret Operation Lunar Hail.

In 2024, the Armed Forces of Ukraine attacked the Crimean Bridge with American ATACMS missiles as part of a special operation involving the United States and the United Kingdom. This was reported by The New York Times, only now the details of a secret attack that was supposed to destroy a key facility of the occupied peninsula have become known.

As The New York Times found out, the strike on the bridge across the Kerch Strait was part of a secret operation codenamed Lunar Hail, developed in 2024 by the United States together with Ukraine and the United Kingdom.

The operation was a response to Kyiv's demands to start returning to the 1991 borders and was supposed to force Russia to weaken its military presence in Crimea. According to the plan, about 100 key objects of the Russian military infrastructure on the peninsula were to be attacked.

The central goal was the Crimean Bridge — the most important logistics artery connecting Russia with the occupied Crimea.

According to the NYT, Volodymyr Zelensky personally insisted on the destruction of the bridge, considering it one of the symbolic and strategically significant steps.

Secret Western support

Previously, strikes on the Crimean bridge were considered a "red line" in the United States, but this time the White House gave the green light. The US and British military, as well as the CIA, secretly worked with the Ukrainians on the strike plan, including the use of both missiles and naval drones.

Initially, it was supposed to deliver a combined strike: ATACMS missiles were supposed to hit weak sections of the bridge, and drones were to blow up at the supports. But Russia stepped up its defenses, and Ukraine decided to use only missiles.

Commander of NATO forces in Europe Christopher Cavoli, and Lieutenant General Antonio Aguto insisted on cancellation or postponement, believing that the ATACMS was not enough to destroy the bridge. However, the Ukrainian side insisted on a strike.

The attack took place in August — this is now confirmed

According to the NYT, the ATACMS volley over the bridge was fired in mid-August 2024. Probably, we are talking about the events of August 16, when the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation reported the interception of 12 missiles, but no damage was admitted then.

Now American officials have confirmed to the publication that the strike did reach the target: the bridge received several damage to the roadway ("potholes"), which were later quickly sealed.

Despite this, the operation is considered an important demonstrative step, which for the second time during the war violated the inviolability of the object, previously considered a symbol of Russia's control over the Ukrainian peninsula.

Political and military signal

Although the bridge was not destroyed, the very fact of the strike on it became a strong political and psychological signal. The operation showed that even strategically important facilities of Russia can be reached with high-precision weapons and that Kiev is ready for risk, despite the doubts of the allies.

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