UKRAINE has blitzed a key Russian oil depot near the £3billion bridge linked to annexed Crimea in a message to Vladimir Putin on “Victory Day”.
Footage showed the blazing oil terminal at Yurovka in southern Krasnodar region, where the tyrant has two sprawling palaces.
Ukraine strikes a Russian oil depot in Yurovka, Krasnodar region
East2WestExplosions and fires are seen on the streets of Belgorod after the Ukrainian strike[/caption]
East2WestOrange plumes of smoke rise from the Russian oil depot in Yurovka, Krasnodar region[/caption]
Some 62 firefighters rushed to the depot, a key supply point close to Putin’s Kerch Bridge road and rail crossing for the Russian military.
Ukraine has vowed to destroy the hated 11-mile bridge which connects Russia to the occupied territory by mid-July.
Putin’s beloved bridge, which he hailed a “miracle” when it was completed, is considered a symbol of his sham triumph in “returning” Crimea to its homeland.
It is to Ukraine a grotesque display of 10 years of Russian occupation – and a top military target.
The drone strike came as Putin staged his annual “Victory Day” military parade on Moscow’s Red Square, in freezing temperatures.
Putin axed most of the May 9 celebrations of Russia’s defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II over fears of Ukrainian kamikaze drone attacks.
Victory Day military parades and other events are usually used by Putin to garner national pride and showcase Russia’s power.
Russia claimed it shot down six drones over the LUKOIL-Yugnaftoprodukt oil terminal in Yurovk, but flames and smoke were seen rising from the facility.
Strikes by Ukraine also hit Russia’s border region Belgorod ahead of Putin’s major military showpiece parade in Moscow.
Eight people were wounded – reportedly including a girl, ten, and her mother – and housing and cars were up in flames after the shelling.
Belgorod is less than 50 miles across the border from Ukraine’s second city Kharkiv, now being pummelled by Russian forces.
Some 19 apartment blocks were hit in the shelling of Belgorod.
Russia’s air defence systems destroyed 15 rockets launched from the RM-70 Vampir system, and one drone over the region.
Ukraine’s repeated attacks on oil refineries have become a major headache for Putin, with Russian prices rising and supplies disrupted.
Destroying Kerch bridge would see Ukraine take a major step forward in winning the war in the Black Sea by cutting off a major Russian military supply route and throwing a spanner in Putin’s war machine.
The “most actively defended bridge in the world” would have to be brought down with a “multi-pronged” big bang-style air and sea attack, defence expert Bryan Clark previously told The Sun.
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