Russian drone slams into bridge in Kyiv as Germany’s chancellor visits

Tetiana Dzhafarova/AFP/Getty Images

A Russian drone slammed into a bridge in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv on Sunday as German Chancellor Friedrich Merz visited the city in a display of support for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Video footage showed the moment the city’s North Bridge was struck, sparking a huge plume of fire and black smoke while cars were still traveling across. There have so far not been reports of casualties.

Russia has been escalating its campaign against Ukraine’s capital and it is the second time the North Bridge has been hit in as many days.

It comes as Merz visited Kyiv alongside his Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy, Katarina Reiche, despite warnings from Russia on Saturday that foreign visitors and dignitaries to the Ukrainian capital are not safe amid a Russian onslaught of attacks.

“Ukraine is facing decisive weeks ahead,” Merz wrote on X Saturday. “Therefore I have traveled to Kyiv today with the message: You can rely on us.”

Tetiana Dzhafarova/法新社/盖蒂图片社

周日，一架俄罗斯无人机撞上了乌克兰首都基辅的一座桥梁。当时，德国总理弗里德里希·默茨正在基辅访问，以示对乌克兰总统弗拉基米尔·泽连斯基的支持。

视频画面显示，撞击瞬间，城市北桥燃起熊熊大火，浓烟滚滚，而当时桥上仍有车辆通行。目前尚未收到人员伤亡报告。

俄罗斯不断升级对乌克兰首都的袭击，这是北桥在短短两天内第二次遭到袭击。

此前，尽管俄罗斯周六发出警告，称在俄罗斯发动猛烈袭击的情况下，外国游客和政要前往乌克兰首都并不安全，但梅尔茨仍与他的经济和能源部长卡塔琳娜·赖歇一同访问了基辅。

“乌克兰未来几周将面临关键时刻，”梅尔茨周六在X网站上写道。“因此，我今天前往基辅，传递的信息是：你们可以信赖我们。”