Keep your eye on the Crimea bridge. It was Moscow’s signature infrastructure project after it had annexed Crimea in 2014, connecting the peninsula to Russia. The double structure is nearly 12 miles (19 km) across, making it the longest bridge in all of Europe. And now it is on Kyiv’s list of prime targets.
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The Ukrainian Defense Ministry’s Intelligence Directorate reported that it had obtained documents containing detailed technical information about the bridge, which been identified as a key target for Ukrainian forces as it is key for Russian logistics.
Earlier, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov guaranteed the security of the bridge, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in response that Ukraine’s plans to destroy the Crimean bridge “will fail completely,” according to Kommersant. At the same time, he noted that the Russian authorities are closely monitoring the supply of long-range weapons to Kyiv, and have taking note of the threat against the bridge.
5 Highlights From Lavrov’s Latest Interview
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, the second most recognizable Russian official, has whipped up plenty of controversy since the start of the war on Feb. 24, often denying reality of the invasion and the toll on Ukraine. Perhaps his lowest moment came on Italian television last month, when he tried to justify “denazification” while commenting on Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, who is Jewish, by making the absurd and offensive claim that Adolf Hitler had “Jewish blood.”
On Thursday night, Lavrov sat down for an extended interview with the BBC. Here are the highlights:
1. “We didn’t invade Ukraine. We declared a special military operation.”
2. “We had absolutely no other way of explaining to the West that dragging Ukraine into Nato was a criminal act.”
3. The BBC asked Lavrov about a United Nations report about the Ukrainian city of Yahidne, where 360 residents were forced to stay for 28 days in the basement of a school without sustenance, where 10 people died. “It’s a great pity but international diplomats … very often they’re being used to amplify fake news spread by the West.”
4. “Russia is not squeaky clean. Russia is what it is. And we are not ashamed of showing who we are.”
5. Lavrov was also questioned regarding the two Britons sentenced to death for fighting alongside Ukraine: “I am not interested in the eyes of the West at all. I am only interested in international law. According to international law, mercenaries are not recognised as combatants.”
After Kyiv, Macron Reveals New Route To Export Ukrainian Grain
Following the much anticipated meeting in Kyiv between three of Europe’s top leaders and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, French President Emmanuel Macron says that a new route to export Ukrainian grain has been identified to alleviate a global food shortage.
Macron said in an interview with French channel TF1 that he and his European counterparts are working on a “new route that will pass through Romania, as Odessa is a few kilometers (from the border).” Macron said the grain could be transported by the Danube River or by rail.
Macron spent the day Thursday in Ukraine, along with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, touring the damage of Russia’s invasion in Kyiv’s suburbs and pledging further military and humanitarian support to Zelensky. The three visiting leaders also pledged their support for Ukraine’s candidacy in the EU.
Russian Soldiers Settling In Houses That Belong To Ukrainians
Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar has shared reports of Russian soldiers bringing their relatives to occupied territories in Ukraine, including the city of Kherson, and settling in houses that belong to Ukrainians.
Maliarl said that Russia is also stepping up measures to distribute Russian passports in the occupied settlements and still plans to annex the territories.
The Deputy Defense Minister said this may be done in order to increase the proportion of the local population which will support the Kremlin’s plans to annex the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine in the event of so-called referendums.
Damaged Ukrainian Heritage Sites To Be Restored With 3D Printing
In collaboration with experts from Latvia’s Culture Ministry and Riga Technical University, Ukrainian specialists have scanned two heritage sites in Chernihiv Oblast damaged by Russian shelling, as well as two sacred monuments near Lviv and Kyiv. The work is part of a project to use 3D printing to preserve and restore historical sites that have been damaged. Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, some 400 incidents of damage towards Ukrainian cultural heritage sites have been recorded.
Coke Is Out: Coca-Cola Bottling Company To Close Shop In Russia
Coca-Cola HBC, the bottling company for Coke in Russia, said in a statement that it was letting its stock run out, and would stop the production and sale of Coca-Cola or other brands of the company in the country.
The company said in May that it was evaluating all options for the Russian market.
Parent company Coca-Cola joined the exodus of U.S. companies leaving Russia in March after its invasion of Ukraine.
Zelensky Arrives In Paris As A Hologram
Referencing Star Wars, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, “attended” the Paris conference Viva Tech as a hologram. A step up from his usual standard video link, the 3D Zelensky asked the crowd of big tech firms for help to rebuild Ukraine as a fully digital democracy.
