Alexander Mercouris | Russia Smashes Zatoka Bridge Tightens Dobropilia Cauldron Repels Lyman Attack; CDU Plots Merz Ouster | Sept. 16, 2026

Source: Alexander Mercouris youtube



Description:
Russia has struck the Zatoka Bridge linking Odessa to Romania while grinding forward at Orikhiv and closing the Dobropillya cauldron on Sloviansk. Alexander breaks down the disputed Lyman counteroffensive claims, the mounting pressure on Ukraine's budget and why 78 percent of Germans now want Friedrich Merz to resign. With the CDU plotting his ouster and Russia's new jet powered drones going unanswered, is the war entering its most decisive phase yet?

Episode 2020
00:00:00 Intro
00:01:06 Russian drone and missile strikes resume on Kiev
00:01:40 Reports the Zatoka Bridge to Romania has been destroyed
00:04:37 Ukrainian drone strikes on Russia drop sharply
00:07:56 Russian recon drones signal a major strike is coming
00:09:24 Orikhiv nears total collapse under Russian assault
00:16:16 Russians storm Dobropillya to encircle Sloviansk
00:20:08 Azov commander Prokopenko's troubled battlefield history
00:22:15 Rybar reports Ukrainian collapse in northeastern Kharkiv
00:23:29 Ukraine claims a counteroffensive breakthrough near Lyman
00:29:12 Mercouris questions the scale of Ukraine's Lyman claims
00:36:17 Biletsky's Azov offensive looks politically motivated
00:49:28 Russia's jet powered Geran drones have no Western answer
00:53:29 Russia mass produces the new Dan T cruise missile
00:59:56 Ukraine admits it can no longer fund its own budget
01:00:56 Belgian court ruling shakes frozen Russian asset seizure plans
01:08:05 Poll finds 78 percent of Germans want Merz to resign
01:10:26 CDU faces collapse in the Mecklenburg Vorpommern election
01:18:27 Middle East turmoil deepens the global energy crisis
01:24:41 Congress pushes bone crushing Russia sanctions bill