Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky has become “toxic” to the collective West, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has claimed, pointing to veiled criticism in Washington of the Ukrainian drone attack on the Crimean Bridge which killed two civilians.
“The White House has publicly disavowed attacks carried out by the Kiev regime, drawing a dividing line between arms sales and terrorist attacks. This is, of course, just another manipulation. But something else is important – Zelensky has become toxic to the West,” Zakharova wrote in a Telegram post.
The remarks apparently came in response to statements made by US National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby on Monday. The official insisted the White House was “not in a position to attribute the attack to any particular party at this point,” refusing to confirm the attack on the strategic bridge was launched by Kiev.
Moreover, Kirby noted the attack on the structure had hardly impacted Russia’s military capabilities and was not expected to have a “dramatic effect” on them in the long run.
“I think it’s just too soon to know whether that attack on that bridge is going to have any significant military impact on their ability to continue to fight this war,” he said, adding that “the Russians have many, many, many other ways of providing logistics and sustainment to their troops in Ukraine.”
The Crimean Bridge, linking the peninsula – which broke away from Ukraine back in 2014 and joined Russia after a referendum – to the country’s mainland was attacked early on Monday. An early assessment of the incident indicated that it was targeted by two sea drones launched by Kiev, Russian investigators have claimed.
The attack left the road section of the bridge heavily damaged, while a Russian couple was killed in their vehicle. Their now-orphaned 14-year-old daughter was seriously injured in the blast. Russian leadership, including President Vladimir Putin, has squarely described the incident as a “terrorist attack” launched by the “Kiev regime” on a civilian installation.
The bridge was first targeted by Ukraine last October, when a truck packed with explosives was detonated on it. The blast heavily damaged both road and railway sections of the bridge, prompting a large-scale repair effort, which has been completed since then.
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