Russian President Vladimir Putin drives a Mercedes car on the Kerch bridge that was destroyed during the invasion of Russia-Ukraine. The strategic bridge connecting Russia with Crimea was destroyed by bombing last October 8. Later, Russia repaired the damage and made the bridge passable.
Putin blamed Ukraine for destroying the Kerch bridge and escalated the missile attack. Russia responded by killing many and inflicting heavy damage. However, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi denied the accusation of destroying the bridge. In 2018, Putin built the Kerch Bridge to connect the island of Crimea, which was annexed by Russia in 2014, with Russia. The destruction of the 19 km long bridge by bombing was a major headache for Russia.
At the same time, the argument that Putin is trying to anger Mercedes, which has stopped trading in Russia, is also strong. The company had stopped trading in Russia due to protests over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. However, Putin’s close supporter Dmitry Peskov rejected this claim.