Satellite Images Prove Russia Built Pontoon Bridge Across Pripyat River In Chernobyl Exclusion Zone

Russia's claim that it was pulling off troops from the Ukrainian border proved even more deceptive as satellite images prove Kremlin has constructed a military-style pontoon bridge across the Pripyat River, which is just 4 miles from the Ukrainian border.

Photos taken by the commercial imaging company Planet show the bridge, constructed possibly in association with Belarusian units, is situated within the exclusion zone surrounding the Chernobyl nuclear reactor, said a report by Forbes.

A review of the images that began popping up on social media sites Tuesday proved the span of the bridge was erected sometime between Feb. 14 and 15. Reports said another image from Feb. 13 shows the work to clear either side of the river for constructing the bridge was carried out beforehand.

Besides, satellite images from early January show no signs of a bridge in the area, hinting that it all began very recently.

Though the Planet images do not help determine which type of bridge this is, high-resolution shots from Maxar Technologies hint at a PMP-series pontoon bridge.

However, The Drive reported that it is unclear whether the bridge is still there as radar satellite imagery of the area taken Wednesday hints it has been dismantled. However, a radar image is reportedly not enough to reach a reliable conclusion.

A tweet by military analyst Rob Lee too supports the presence of the bridge. Lee said over three pontoon companies have been deployed to Belarus, a claim confirmed by the Belarusian Ministry of Defense.

The ministry said, a "motorized infantry units of the Russian Armed Forces (would train to) repel strikes by means of air attacks by a conventional enemy, work out issues of maintaining survivability, withdrawing and occupying defensive lines, and crossing a water barrier (the Pripyat River)." However, the Russian authorities have made no mention of this.

Videos doing rounds on social media too showed Russian forces equipped with PMPs and TMM-3 bridge systems in Belarus and areas of western Russia. The PMP and TMM-3 consist of standardized sections that can be connected to make complete bridges.

However, whether or not Russia would use a bridge to cross over to Ukraine is unpredictable. According to Forbes, though Kremlin might want "additional vectors" toward Kyiv besides the most convenient and predictable route the eastern bank of the Pripyat River, to which the bridge leads, appears "far more difficult to traverse due to marshy terrain." That too, when a road, situated 1.5 miles southwest of the bridge, offers a far more convenient alternate route to the border.