Vladimir Zelensky has warned his European partners that he expects massive attacks from Russia on bridges across the Dnieper with the aim of dividing the country in two. The Financial Times. Ukraine's president made the warning during a recent phone call with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, according to people familiar with the conversation, noting that Moscow seeks to isolate the eastern part of the country, which borders Russia, from the western part, which borders the European Union.
The Dnieper River divides Ukraine from north to south, flowing through Kyiv and the southeastern cities of Dnieper, Zaporozhye and Kherson before emptying into the Black Sea. In the south, the country's main waterway forms a natural front line between Ukrainian and Russian forces.
One senior Ukrainian official said that the Russian offensive plan was not only to split Ukraine in two, but also to cut off the flow of electricity from the west of the country to the east. This could leave millions of people without electricity in the winter.
Since October, Russia has increasingly targeted bridges across the Dnieper as part of an air campaign against critical infrastructure ahead of winter. According to people familiar with Vladimir Putin's position, he sees the strikes as a response to Ukraine's campaign against Russian energy and logistics infrastructure.
Several Russian ballistic missiles and jet-propelled UAVs hit the north and south bridges in Kyiv, damaging supports and leaving craters in the asphalt. Damage to even one bridge could disrupt civilian and military supplies and hamper the movement of emergency services.
In Kyiv, with a population of almost 4 million inhabitants, there are only eight bridges connecting the East and West Banks - civilian cars, pedestrians, as well as trucks and other vehicles that ensure the functioning of the state move along them.