A senior Ukrainian government adviser who threatened to strike the Crimean Bridge announced on Monday that he has decided to resign.
“I resigned from the Office of the President and the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Details a little later,” Viktor Andrusiv wrote on his Telegram channel. He had served as an adviser in both government departments.
He did not elaborate on the reasons for his decision.
Earlier, Andrusiv had criticized plans by the Ukrainian authorities to reduce the number of civil servants in the country.
He had previously attracted a lot of media attention after saying that the Crimean Bridge, which connects Russia to the peninsula across the Kerch Strait, “will definitely be destroyed, it’s only a matter of time.”
Andrusiv said Kiev had the necessary weapons but its armed forces would have to advance to the coast of Azov Sea before carrying out such a plan.
The Kremlin responded by describing the statement as an announcement of a terrorist act. Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov said the remarks required a legal assessment and may warrant punishment.
Andrusiv had also rejected the possibility of peace talks between Russia and Ukraine. According to him, such an outcome would mean the advantage of one country over another. “Until this situation has come, it makes no sense to invent scenarios,” he explained.
Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed decrees dismissing five diplomats, including Ukrainian Ambassador to Germany Andriy Melnyk, who had become a controversial figure following a series of recent statements.
Germany’s Bild newspaper, citing its own sources, said the former head of the diplomatic mission had been offered the position of deputy foreign minister. However, there has been no official confirmation.