Ukraine attacked Crimean bridge with ATACMS missiles in 2024: US warned of failure - NYT
In the summer of 2024, as part of a large-scale operation to strike Russian military targets in Crimea called Lunar Hail, Ukraine hit the Crimean bridge with American long-range ATACMS missiles. The bridge was not destroyed, as the US had warned.
According to Censor.NET, this is stated in the New York Times investigation into the role of the United States in Ukrainian operations against Russia.
Preparing for the operation
In 2024, in response to Ukraine's request for support to return to the 1991 borders, the United States offered Operation Lunar Hail as a compromise. The purpose of the campaign was to strike long-range missiles and drones at Russian infrastructure in Crimea to force Russia to withdraw its resources from the peninsula.
It is noted that of the approximately 100 targets chosen for strikes, the "most desirable" for Kyiv was the bridge across the Kerch Strait - the Crimean Bridge, which was of great importance to Russian dictator Vladimir Putin.
The NYT writes that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was "obsessed" with destroying the bridge, one of the symbols of Russia's annexation.
The third attack on the bridge was unsuccessful
Previously, attacks on the Crimean Bridge had been a red line for the United States, but after the Lunar Hail agreement, the White House authorized the military and the CIA to work secretly with the Ukrainians and the British on an attack plan that would destroy the bridge.
To destroy the bridge, the White House planned to use ATACMS missiles to weaken the bridge's vulnerable areas, and then naval drones would blow up its piers.
However, at that time, the Russians strengthened their defense around the pylons, so Ukraine proposed to attack only with ATACMS.
But, according to the investigation, Supreme Allied Commander Europe Christopher Cavoli and Lieutenant General Antonio Aguto opposed this because they believed that ATACMS alone would not be enough to bring down the bridge. They insisted that the Ukrainians should wait for the drones to be ready or abandon the strike.
Results of Operation Lunar Hail
Eventually, the Americans retreated, and in mid-August 2024, the Ukrainian Armed Forces hit the bridge with ATACMS missiles. The strike left "holes" in the bridge, which the Russians were able to quickly repair, an unnamed U.S. official told the NYT.
One American official lamented the strike, saying that "sometimes they (Ukrainians - ed.) have to try and fail to see that we are right."
Apart from the episode with the Kerch Bridge, cooperation within the framework of Operation Lunar Hail was recognized as successful, the newspaper emphasizes. Russian warships, planes, command posts, weapons depots and repair bases were destroyed or forced to move out of Crimea to avoid Ukrainian strikes.
It is worth noting that the NYT article does not mention the date of the attack, but it may refer to the events of August 16. At that time, explosions were heard in the occupied Crimea, in particular, in Sevastopol, Kerch and Feodosia. The occupiers blocked traffic on the Kerch Bridge.
The Russian Ministry of Defense claimed that on the night of August 16, 2024, 12 ATACMS missiles were shot down, targeting the Crimean Bridge. The occupiers did not report any damage to the bridge.
