The spokesman of the Ukrainian Navy, Dmytro Pletenchuk noted that the Crimean Bridge in temporarily occupied Crimea has not been destroyed yet due to its heavy defense. He announced this on the air of the national telethon.
According to the spokesman, russian occupiers periodically block traffic on the Crimean Bridge, especially at any sign of an air raid alert.
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"It is not being used as originally intended because it has been damaged. We should remember that they are simultaneously building land-based infrastructure to compensate for the facility's closure, if necessary. Therefore, we can say that they are investing in the defense and protection of this facility quite seriously. This is probably the only reason why it is still there," Pletenchuk stated.
The spokesman added that the occupiers are actively maintaining a high level of air defense saturation on the peninsula to protect objects that are strategically and ideologically important to them.
"This is, of course, the so-called Crimean Bridge, first of all. This is the military infrastructure located in Crimea, which is represented in a large number of facilities. Therefore, they have to maintain this level, especially since we have seen clear evidence of the destruction of various air defense systems in Crimea," Pletenchuk claimed.
It is known that Ukrainian forces have repeatedly tried to destroy the Crimean Bridge. This first happened in October 2022. Then Ukrainians managed to damage part of the bridge.

Subsequently, there were other attempts to disable the Crimean Bridge. Although it still exists, russian occupiers no longer fully use it for military purposes.
Earlier Defense Express reported that russians redeploy air defense assets to bolster temporarily occupied Crimea.
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