Key developments on Aug. 16:
- Ukrainian forces destroyed bridge over Seim River in Kursk Oblast, Russian authority claims
- U.S. reluctant to allow ATACMS in Kursk Oblast due to limited supply, CNN reports
- Myrnohrad residents evacuating as Russian forces reach 6 km from the town
- Ukraine reportedly strikes ferry crossing in occupied Crimea, boat in Krasnodar Krai, official says
- Ukraine advances another 1-3 km into Russia's Kursk Oblast, Syrskyi says
Ukrainian forces destroyed a bridge over the Seim River in the Glushkovsky district in Russia's Kursk Oblast, Alexey Smirnov, the region's acting governor, claimed on Aug. 16.
The unprecedented operation hit its 10-day mark on Aug. 15, with Kyiv claiming to have seized 1,150 square kilometers of Russian territory and 82 settlements, including the town of Sudzha.
Photos purporting to show the destroyed bridge were published by the Russian Telegram channel Mash, which claimed the bridge had been struck multiple times.
The channel also claimed that about 30 settlements near the village of Glushkovo, approximately 150 kilometers (93 miles) from Kursk, have been "cut off" due to the attack.
Air Force Commander Mykola Oleshchuk posted later a video, showing the attack on the Russian bridge.
"Ukraine's Air Force aviation is actively participating in combat operations in the Kursk sector. Ukrainian pilots are conducting precision strikes on enemy's strongholds, equipment concentrations, as well as on enemy's logistics hubs and supply routes," he said.
The Insider reported that the Glushkovsky district has three bridges across the Seim River, with the other two located near the settlements of Zvannoe and Karyzh.
Roman Alyokhin, an advisor to Kursk Oblast's acting governor and a Russian pro-war blogger, also claimed that Ukrainian forces are targeting the bridge in Zvannoe, about 7 kilometers (4 miles) from Glushkovo, in an attempt to seize part of Kursk Oblast along the river.
The Kyiv Independent could not verify these claims.
Kyiv said that rather than capturing Russian territory, the incursion aims to protect Ukrainian lives by preventing cross-border attacks and diverting Russian reinforcements.
Despite mounting reports that Russia is moving at least some forces to the sector, Kyiv's troops in the east of Ukraine say the situation there remains dire as Moscow continues its advance near Pokrovsk and Toretsk.
Francis Farrell
US reluctant to allow ATACMS in Kursk Oblast due to limited supply, CNN reports
The U.S. is reluctant to allow Ukraine to use its long-range weapons inside Kursk "not because of the risk of escalation, but because the US only has a limited supply," CNN reported on Aug. 16, citing multiple unnamed U.S. officials.
U.S. Defense Department Deputy Press Secretary Sabrina Singh told the press on Aug. 8 that Ukraine's operation is "consistent with our policy" as Kyiv is defending "against attacks that are coming across the border."
Responding to a question on how far into Russian territory Ukraine is allowed to strike, Singh said that the U.S. does "not support long-range attacks," but refused to specify the exact distance.
"I'm not going to draw a circular map on where they can and can't strike, but we've been very clear with the Ukrainians," she said.
The U.S. remains reluctant to greenlight the use of U.S.-supplied long-range weapons in Kursk Oblast, as they "would be better used to continue targeting Russian-occupied Crimea," CNN said.
However, this is due to the "limited supply" of Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS), rather than long-standing fears of escalating the war, CNN said, citing multiple officials.
The U.S. first supplied long-range ATACMS to Ukraine in March of this year but only announced the deliveries in April. The U.S. provides the most military support to Ukraine, followed by Germany.
According to CNN, the U.S. and Western officials familiar with the latest intelligence "cautioned that Ukraine is extremely unlikely to be able to hold" Russian territory.
The officials also "emphasized that it's too soon to judge how the operation will affect the broader outcome of the war."
Kateryna Hodunova
Myrnohrad residents evacuating as Russian forces reach 6 km from the town
Residents of the Donetsk Oblast town of Myrnohrad are evacuating as Russian forces are now only 6 kilometers (3.8 miles) away, the acting head of the town's military administration told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty on Aug. 16.
Myrnohrad lies just east of Pokrovsk, a key logistics hub that has become the main focus of the Russian offensive in Donetsk Oblast.
"People are leaving, but not as quickly or urgently as we would like and as the situation requires," Yurii Tretiak said on air on RFE/RL, adding that 20,000 people remain in Myrnohrad, including around 1,000 children.
Roughly 46,000 people lived in the town before the full-scale invasion, but many have left due to constant Russian attacks and shifting front lines.
"(Russian forces) are advancing little by little. The front line is now around 6 kilometers from the town of Myrnohrad," he said.
The authorities are organizing evacuations, mainly for children and the elderly, but many residents are reportedly leaving themselves due to unceasing Russian attacks in the area. Myrnohrad is planned to be completely evacuated by the end of August, Tretiak said.
The evacuation is also underway in neighboring Pokrovsk as Russian forces inch toward the town.
Donetsk Oblast Governor Vadym Filashkin announced an evacuation of over 700 children from four communities in Donetsk Oblast in early August as heavy battles continued in the direction of Pokrovsk.
As Russian forces concentrate more of their recourses on the offensive in Donetsk Oblast, the situation in the area in the Pokrovsk direction remains "extremely challenging," Kyiv acknowledged.
Emmanuelle Chaze
Ukraine reportedly strikes ferry crossing in occupied Crimea, boat in Krasnodar Krai, official says
Preliminary reports indicate that Ukraine struck a ferry crossing in the city of Kerch in occupied Crimea overnight on Aug. 16, as well as a boat near the community of Chernomorsk in Russia's Krasnodar Krai, Serhii Bratchuk, spokesperson for the Odesa Oblast Military Administration said.
No information was immediately available as to the extent of the damage. It was not immediately clear what boat was struck or whether it was a military target.
Explosions rang out across multiple cities in occupied Crimea overnight on Aug. 16, the Crimean Wind Telegram channel claimed, citing resident reports. A fire was reported near the city of Kerch, in the area of the Kerch ferry crossing.
Residents in Sevastopol, Simferopol, and Kerch heard explosions around 3:30 a.m. local time, according to local media reports.
Multiple explosions were also reported in the community of Chernomorsk in Russia's neighbouring region Krasnodar Krai around 4:30 a.m. local time.
The Kerch bridge, connecting occupied Crimea with mainland Russia, was reportedly closed to traffic around 2 a.m., local residents reported. The bridge reopened around 7 a.m. local time.
Russia's Defense Ministry claimed that five Ukrainian unmanned aerial drones and two unmanned naval drones were destroyed overnight in the Black Sea.
The Kyiv Independent cannot independently verify any of the claims.
Since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion, Ukraine has regularly launched attacks on occupied Crimea as well as neighbouring Krasnodar Krai.
Kyiv's Military Intelligence Chief Kyrylo Budanov warned on Aug. 2 that Ukraine is working on a "complex solution" that could destroy the Kerch Bridge in the coming months. Russia reportedly began fortifying the bridge last month.
Ukraine has regularly struck ferry crossings between occupied Crimea and Russia's Krasnodar Krai, prioritizing the crossing over the bridge in recent months as a more important military target.
Martin Fornusek
Ukraine advances another 1-3 km into Russia's Kursk Oblast, Syrskyi says
Ukrainian forces have advanced 1 to 3 kilometers in some areas of Russia's Kursk Oblast, Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi reported to President Volodymyr Zelensky on Aug. 16.
"In general, the situation is under control. All activities are being carried out according to the plan, the logistics system is working smoothly," Syrskyi said.
According to the commander, the fighting is ongoing near the village of Malaya Loknya, some 15 kilometers (9 miles) from Sudzha.
"I hope many captives will be taken there," Syrskyi said.
The estimates of Russian captives, taken by Ukraine during the Kursk Oblast, ranging from several hundred to 2,000. Ukraine declined to provide a full number of Russian captives taken during the ongoing operation following the Kyiv Independent's request.
Martin Fornusek
