Russian-made railroad to Berdiansk will be vulnerable to Ukrainian attacks – UK intelligence

Russia continues to build a railroad line through the occupied territories, as the first branch to Berdiansk is complete.

It is still subject to shelling by the Ukrainian forces, the UK intelligence report says.

On March 18, Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin mentioned the construction of a railway line from Rostov-on-Don in southern Russia through the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine to Crimea.

The new line should eventually reach Sevastopol and is intended to duplicate the Kerch Bridge.

Putin also said that the first completed section of the railroad restores access to Berdiansk.

However, the railroad passes through an area that can be hit by Ukraine's long-range precision-guided missile systems.

The new rail line south of Donetsk is almost 60 km long and was built in eight months, the intelligence review emphasized.

It is almost certainly one of Russia's largest infrastructure projects in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine, the British Ministry of Defense added.

It is likely that one of the main purposes of the new line will be to support Russian activity in Mariupol.

This port city, which was destroyed by Russia in 2022, is home to the Azovstal steel plant and other heavy industry facilities, which, although currently severely damaged, Russia may try to repair and operate in the future, British observers have noted.