Ukraine struggles to identify suspected war criminals as fighting with Russia intensifies: Live updates
USA TodayDec 27, 2022
Day 154 Roundup: Ukraine Strikes Key Bridge in Russian-Occupied Kherson; Russia Makes Gains in Donbas
Image copyright: AP Photos [via EuroNews]
The Facts
A key bridge into Russian-occupied Kherson in the south of Ukraine was struck by Ukrainian forces late on Tuesday. Russian media reported that the Antonovsky bridge was targeted by US-supplied High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and that it has since been closed to civilians. Ukrainian officials have also verified the reports.
The bridge, one of two crossing the Dnipro River in the region, is reportedly a key supply route for Russian troops and its destruction or takeover by opposition forces could potentially leave them isolated if Ukraine were to launch a successful counterattack on Kherson. While social media footage showed damage to the bridge, its structural integrity appeared to be intact.
The Spin
Pro-establishment narrative
As the war shifts to the strategically important Donbas region of Donetsk, the US and its allies need to continue to do everything in their power to arm Ukraine with all the weapons they need. Doing so is the only way to push Putin's forces back as was done in Kyiv.
Pro-Russia narrative
As stated by Putin, the whole purpose of the war was never to invade Kyiv, but to liberate the ethnically Russian people of Donetsk and Luhansk, who have been subjected to systematic killing by Ukrainian forces for not recognizing the 2014 coup in Kyiv.