Destroying Sergey Kotov ship is a rehearsal for a further strike on Crimean Bridge

The destruction of the Russian Sergey Kotov patrol ship is a rehearsal of the Defence Forces on the possibility of putting the Crimean bridge out of action, former speaker of the Ukrainian Army General Staff Colonel Vladyslav Seleznev said in a commentary to LIGA media outlet.
According to him, Sergey Kotov was on combat duty and covered the Crimean bridge from attacks by Ukrainian naval drones.
"I think it was a rehearsal of the Ukrainian Defence Forces on the possibility of putting out of action a key logistical artery that provides everything the occupation troops in Crimea need," the military officer said.
To ensure that a strike on the Crimean bridge would be "as painful as possible" for the Russian Federation, it should be comprehensive, Seleznev said.
He explained that such a strike requires German Taurus long-range missiles to destroy the structures that support the bridge.
In addition to them, US long-range ATACAMS missiles are needed to destroy the canvas of the bridge, as well as kamikaze drones, which will help destroy the foundation of the structure, the former General Staff speaker summarised.
Recently, leaked audio obtained by Russian spies and later broadcast by the Russian state-controlled news network RT shows that top German officials were discussing plans to possibly send Ukraine long-range missiles that can take out the key Crimean bridge.
Senior German officials confirmed the authenticity of the audio to The Wall Street Journal.
A spokesperson for the German Ministry of Defense told Business Insider in an email that "a conversation in the air force sector" had been intercepted but could not comment "about the content of the communications that were apparently intercepted."
The spokesperson added that the counterintelligence service is conducting an investigation into the leak and that they could not say if any changes were made to the recording or transcript that is being shared on social media.
The missiles have been one of Ukraine's key asks to Germany. The Taurus has a long range of about 500 km.