The head of Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU), Vasyl Maliuk, has confirmed that his agency was responsible for the destruction of the Crimean Bridge in October 2022.
During the unveiling of a commemorative stamp dedicated to their work, Maliuk stated, “The destruction of the Crimean Bridge is one of our accomplishments. I am convinced that the unique special operations conducted by the Security Service will become the subject of new stamps.”
He further emphasized that since the early days of the large-scale invasion, SBU operatives have been actively targeting the occupiers in “hotspots” and doing everything possible to quickly liberate Ukrainian land.
The newly issued stamps, which are now available at branches of Ukraine’s state postal operator Ukrposhta, will also be sent to SBU personnel on the frontlines. These stamps will be used by the operatives to mark ammunition and send a symbolic “greeting” from all Ukrainians to the occupiers.
The explosion Maliuk refers to happened on 8 October 2022 and involved a truck and fuel tankers. Sections of the Kerch (Crimean) Bridge, a key infrastructure link connecting occupied Crimea to mainland Russia, collapsed into the water, impacting Russian supply lines to occupied southeast Ukraine.
At the time, Ukraine media reported that the SBU was behind the explosion, but it was never confirmed. On 8 July 2023, the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense acknowledged that this attack was carried out by Ukraine.
The Kerch Bridge recently suffered another explosion. On 17 July 2023, a reported marine drone attack caused another section of the bridge to collapse. One marine drone was reportedly launched from the Azov Sea, to which Ukraine’s access is cut off. Liga.net reported, citing its sources, that the bridge attack was indeed a joint operation conducted by the Security Service and the Ukrainian Navy.
The Ukrainian Security Service stated that they will disclose further details about this episode of the destruction of the Crimean Bridge “after our Victory.”
