LUGANSK, October 11. /TASS/. Ukraine’s combat readiness in the Kharkov direction will weaken after the Russian military has destroyed the bridge across the Oskol River in the Kharkov Region, military expert Andrey Marochko believes.

On Friday, the Defense Ministry said that the Russian military destroyed the bridge across the Oskol River in the Petrovka area in the Kupyansk direction with a missile strike.

“Most likely, after the destruction of the bridge across the Oskol River, the Ukrainian command will build pontoon crossings in this area, but this will take some time, which could work against the Ukrainian command and weaken the supply of the Ukrainian group in the eastern part of the Oskol bank. Naturally, this will weaken their combat readiness,” Marochko told TASS.

He believes that logistics problems for the Ukrainian army after the destruction of the bridge will affect the course of the fighting near the strategically important Kupyansk.

“Essentially, supplying the enemy with some kind of floating transport vehicles - such as rafts, quadcopters, or robotic systems - will certainly not fully meet their needs on the Kharkov front, as their force there is quite substantial,” the military expert said.