Russia continues to attack Ukraine, especially in the northeast regions where they reportedly began to blow up bridges. For the first time, the Ukrainian military has stated that Russian soldiers have begun to blow up bridges in the northeast to hinder a Ukrainian counter-offensive.
The General Staff said Saturday in its weekly operations briefing that in the area of Tsyrkuny and Rusky Tyshky east of Kharkiv, “the occupiers blew up three road bridges in order to slow down the counter-offensive actions of the Defense Forces.”
The Ukrainian military has retaken a number of towns north and east of Kharkiv in the last two weeks, making it more difficult for Russian artillery to attack the city and threatening to disrupt Russian supply lines to forces fighting in Donetsk and Luhansk.
Kharkiv, which lies near the Russian border, was one of the first cities to be attacked when Russia invaded Ukraine.
Russian offensive lulls: The General Staff reported that Russian forces had taken few offensive actions for the second day in a row, while artillery fire and aerial reconnaissance persisted.
According to some Ukrainian officials, Russian forces are taking a break before commencing the next phase, which aims to secure all of Donetsk and Luhansk.
Beyond these two areas, the Russians have continued to bomb Mykolaiv in the south, according to the General Staff. Ukrainians claimed to have destroyed “a storage with ammunition and up to 20 units of enemy military equipment” to the north of the city.
Tensions are building ahead of May 9, also known as “Victory Day” in Russia, which commemorates Moscow’s victory over Nazi Germany. Russian President Vladimir Putin might legally declare war on that day, allowing him to mobilize reserves and scale up the Russian assault, according to Western sources.