RIGHT SPEAK: UKRainian Troops Creating Conditions to Advance; UKR Military Confirms Strikes on Key Bridges Linking Occupied Crimea with Mainland UKR; UKR Says US and German Air Defence Systems 'highly effective'; UKR’s Forces Destroy 6 RUssian Ammo Depots, 21 Units of Military Hardware in Tavria Axis, LIVE UPDATES and MORE

UKR Presidential Press Service/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo

Ukrainian troops creating conditions to advance - commander-in-chief:

KYIV, Aug 7 (Reuters) - Ukrainian troops are creating conditions to advance forward step-by-step and have the initiative on the battlefield, Ukraine's commander-in-chief said on Monday.

Kyiv's defensive lines are stable with troops repelling Russian attempts to counter-attack and distract Ukrainian forces from other parts of the front, Valeriy Zaluzhnyi said in a statement on the Telegram messaging app.

"Heavy fighting is underway, and step-by-step, Ukrainian troops are continuing to create the conditions to advance. The initiative is on our side," Zaluzhnyi said after a telephone call with U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Mark Milley.

Ukraine launched a counteroffensive at the start of the summer, attempting to retake swathes of territory captured by Russia in the south and east of the country.

The United States and other Western allies have sent Ukraine weapons and trained Ukrainian soldiers to help Kyiv with the offensive.

Ukraine has so far recaptured several villages in the south and some territory around the ruined city of Bakhmut in the east. Kyiv has yet to attempt a major breakthrough across heavily defended Russian lines.

Ukrainian officials have brushed aside criticism that they are advancing slowly, saying they are trying to avoid high casualties as they attack well-fortified Russian lines that are strewn with landmines.

Moscow says the Ukrainian counteroffensive has failed.

Hanna Maliar, Ukraine's deputy defence minister, said Russia was using all its resources to stop Kyiv's advance, but that Ukrainian troops were continuing to move toward the southern cities of Melitopol and Berdyansk on the Sea of Azov. --->READ MORE HERE

Photo by Ercin Erturk/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Ukraine war latest: Military confirms strikes on key bridges linking occupied Crimea with mainland Ukraine:

Ukraine targeted key bridges that connect occupied Crimea to mainland Ukraine.

The strikes have been set to disrupt Russian forces' logistics and create further challenges for their operations on the southern fronts.

The Ukrainian military's Strategic Communications Directorate confirmed striking the Chonhar and Henichesk bridges at around 3 p.m. local time on Aug. 6.

Chonhar Bridge is located on a narrow piece of land in northern Crimea and links the occupied peninsula with Kherson Oblast. Henichesk Bridge sits on the Arabat Spit, a barrier between the Henichesk Strait in the north and Crimea in the south.

The military didn't specify the type of missiles that struck the bridges.

Russian forces have relied on Chonhar Bridge as a supply route to transport ammunition and fuel for their troops on the southeastern front line amid the ongoing counteroffensive launched by Ukrainian forces.

Earlier the same day, Russian proxies in Crimea and Kherson Oblasts said Ukraine hit the bridges using British-French-made Storm Shadow/SCALP missiles.