Stern: two Bundeswehr soldiers who were going to blow up the Crimean Bridge were arrested in Germany
Two German soldiers planned to blow up the Crimean Bridge. According to the German media, the Bundeswehr soldiers wanted to prevent the supply of the Russian army. As part of a criminal group of 12 people, they stole weapons and equipment at military bases in the federal state of Schleswig-Holstein, including trying to steal diving equipment. Western media regularly discuss possible options for an APU strike on the Crimean Bridge, for example, how useful Harpoon missiles will be for this.
Two soldiers of the Bundeswehr intended to blow up the Crimean Bridge with the help of stolen weapons and diving equipment. This is reported by the newspaper Stern.
The case is being investigated by the Prosecutor's Office of Kiel. According to the investigation, the soldiers of the German army discussed criminal plans on the phone - mining and blowing up a bridge across the Kerch Strait.
Both soldiers have been under surveillance for a long time, the DPA agency said in a statement. The attackers, as part of a group of twelve people, staged at least five thefts of weapons and equipment from military facilities in Schleswig-Holstein in northern Germany. At the time of the crimes, at least four criminals were career military officers of the Bundeswehr.
Two of them were arrested at the end of May. Before that, the attackers tried to get into the base of military divers in Ekkernferd. After that, they wanted to go to Ukraine with the stolen equipment.
During the search, the detainees found ammunition, weapons and explosives, they wanted to sell some of the stolen goods, and use the rest in the explosion of the Crimean Bridge.
Goal #1
On June 15, Major General of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Dmitry Marchenko said that the Crimean Bridge is the number one target for the Ukrainian military. "This is not a secret either for their military or for our military. Neither for their civilians, nor for our civilians. This will be the number one target for defeat," Marchenko said.
At the end of April, Secretary of the National Security Council of Ukraine (NSDC) Oleksiy Danilov said that if the Ukrainian army could, it would have already struck at the Crimean Bridge. "If we had the ability to do it, we would have done it already. If there is an opportunity to do this, we will definitely do it," Danilov promised.
Later, the adviser to the head of the office of the Ukrainian president, Alexey Arestovich, clarified that the Crimean Bridge is under good protection and Ukraine cannot attack it yet.
"From the means that we could get [to the bridge]: either aviation - it will not pass, or "Dots-U" (tactical missile system) - they will not reach, because the distance does not allow them to fly there. That is, unfortunately, nothing threatens the Crimean Bridge in the near future," Arestovich admitted.
Thousands of pounds of explosives
The columnist of the American Forbes, David Ax, writes in his July 6 article that the APU does not have the means to deliver a reliable strike on the Crimean Bridge.
According to the journalist, crossing the Kerch Strait is a "legitimate goal" of Ukraine, since "the Russian military arrive in Ukraine through Crimea."
According to him, it is possible to blow up the bridge either with the help of long-range missiles, which the APU does not have now (but Washington can transfer them to Kiev in theory), or you can strike by getting as close to the target as possible. However, the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation reliably cover the bridge.
Aks noted that if the Ukrainian army returns Melitopol or Kherson, then it may have a chance to hit the Crimean Bridge. However, the British Harpoon missiles, which the APU can use when attacking the bridge, are designed to defeat ships - and the bridge is much stronger than any ship.
At the same time, a similar idea was put forward by former NATO commander General Philip Breedlove - he told The Times newspaper that the AFU could hit the Crimean Bridge with "Harpoons".
It does not surprise me at all that the Russian authorities are concerned about this object. He is incredibly important to them. Several people I talked to say that the destruction of the Crimean Bridge will be a huge blow for Russia. I am a certified civil engineer and I understand the construction of bridges," the former NATO commander said.
Ivan Zhukovsky
