It doesn’t surprise me that the Media used an image of a collapsed bridge as the sign of war in Russia this week.
There are about 100,000 rivers in Russia, including the Volga, which is the longest in Europe. The country also has nearly three million lakes, including Baikal, which holds more water than any other on the planet. The bridges that cross Russian waterways are vital pieces of transport infrastructure that in war, are needed to supply front line troops with ammunition, food, spare parts and equipment. They can also form the forward edge of the battle lines as their embankments can offer good defensive positions and wide fields of view.
The well-known story of A Bridge Too Far is a fine example of the importance of possessing and preserving river crossings in mobile warfare. Reserve demolitions are very complicated operations and if the commander fails to complete his task, he can expect to be court-martialled (and in the case of Germany in World War II, executed).
To place the importance of Russian bridges in context, the Satnav route from Moscow to Irkutsk in 2011, set out a route over a bridge that crossed the mighty Kama river, which was closed. This meant a diversion of several hours and over 100 miles that caused delay and uncertainty to the journey. The opposing forces in Kursk will face this sort of disruption after the destruction of the bridge over the Seym this week.
The destruction of bridges was widespread during the Russian civil-war, as the 1919 photo below shows; and this is why the image used by the Media this week does not surprise me.
Rupert Wieloch 